Beginnning a football programme collection
To effectively begin a football programme collection, a person needs to choose a specialism to their collection. There are hundreds of thousands of football programmes available in the United Kingdom, and even more worldwide. To give a collection a of purpose a theme ought to be adopted to avoid pointless accumulation and to keep to a designated budget.
Sometimes you come across a programme that covers or crosses two themes at once. These are likely to prove to be valuable purchases in years to come as they signify a special or historical event, which will muster memories for football fans from across the world in the future.
The programme is a good way to remember a memorable event at a specific match. This could come in the form of some sort of achievement such as a player milestone, which can be featured in the programme. Player milestones come in many formats, such as an appearance record, a goal getting record, the end of a players career, a number of years of service by a player, and others.
The darker side of soccer is also often recorded in match programmes. These historical events attract collectors who see them as poignant reminders of the past. They are highly collectible and valuable as a result. The tragedies at Bradford, Ibrox and Hillsborough have collectible programmes associated with them, not only for the match itself, but also the subsequent commemorative games.
A notably valuable set of football programmes to own are those related to the Munich Air Disaster involving the Manchester United team and Busby’s Babes. The programme from the match against Partizan Belgrade who Manchester United were playing on the tragic trip can sell for over £1000. A similar sum can be achieved for the programme against Sheffield Wednesday straight after the disaster, where the team list wasn’t filled in for the Man United team.
Notable events are usually reflected in the content and design of the programme. Important football programmes to get hold of are final games in an old stadium, or the first issue within a new one. Most programmes of this type are abundant with interesting articles and historical information, making them a gem in any football programme collection.
Football programmes can mean different things to different collectors. You may value a prticular programme highly for entirely personal reasons and memories which they may conjure up. For others the pursuit is one of passion, finding out more about the history and traditions of a football team that they follow. Whatever your reason, collecting football programmes is a highly rewarding hobby, and comes highly recommended to any football supporter.