THE POST-WAR BOOM
When fans return to football grounds this season, it won’t be the first time the sport has reopened its turnstiles to one and all following a tumultuous interruption.
In 1946, after the Second World War, fans flocked back to the game in unprecedented numbers, seeking a sliver of familiarity in a world forever changed. Travel restrictions, limits on gatherings and the compulsory carrying of masks – gas, rather than surgical – had become a way of life during the war. All of that could be set aside, even though the scars of conflict remained.
After seven long years without league football, supporters were desperate just to pack out their grounds, cheer on their teams and watch the game they loved.
The last English Football League game had been played on Saturday, September 2, 1939. Blackpool beat Wolves 2-1 in front of 20,000 to move to the top of the First Division table.
The following day, Britain declared war on Nazi Germany. The Government closed all entertainment and sports venues, and the FA announced that all football was “entirely suspended”. However, they soon decided that a limited form of the game could help to boost morale and provide much-needed relief from the pressures of war.
Wartime football was a
