British football clubs tours over South America contributed to the spread and develop of football in the region during the first years of the 20th century. The first club to tour on the region was Southampton F.C. in 1904, followed by several teams (mainly from England although some Scottish clubs also visited South America) until 1929 with Chelsea F.C. being the last team to tour.

During those 25 years of tours, British teams' performances were decreasing while the South American squads' style of playing improved. Indeed, Southampton won all of their matches in 1904 with 40 goals scored in 1904 while Chelsea was defeated eight times (over 16 games played) in their 1929 tour.

Background

Football (and other British-origin sports like rugby union) were gaining popularity in Argentina and Uruguay and the associations brought foreign teams to their countries as a way of encourage the practise of the sport among the large number of enthusiasts.Historia del Fútbol Amateur en la Argentina, by Jorge Iwanczuk. Published by Autores Editores (1992) - In fact, Argentine Primera División was the first football league outside of the British Isles,"Salvation army", The Guardian, 4 June 2006 having been held since 1891 to the present.

British teams were considered the best in the world by then, and some of them served as inspiration to establish football clubs in Argentina and Uruguay, helped by the immigration of British citizens that had arrived to work for British companies (mostly in railway construction). CURCC (in Uruguay), Belgrano A.C., Rosario A.C., Alumni and Quilmes (in Argentina) are some examples of clubs established by British immigrants to South America.Plaza Jewell, el club donde nació el deporte rosarino, cumple hoy 145 años, La Capital, 27 Mar 2012

Football had been introduced many years ago in both countries, being the first game played in Argentina on June 20, 1867,A un siglo y medio del primer partido de fútbol en la Argentina y en Sudamérica by Oscar Barnade, Clarín, 20 Jun 2017 with the establishment of Buenos Aires Football Club, the first football club not only in Argentina but in South America.Historia de Fútbol de AFA: Orígenes 1891/1899, by Carlos Yametti. Published by Edición del Autor (2011) – In Uruguay, football had been introduced in 1870. Argentina organised its first league championship, Primera División, in 1891 while its Uruguayan homonymous held its first championship in 1900.

Both countries considered themselves rivals due to their proximity. Moreover, they had the only organised bodies in South America and had held some earlier competitions such as Tie Cup (1900) or Copa de Honor Cousenier (1905), played by champions of each association.

In some cases, the influence of British clubs on Argentine football extended to the colours adopted by some clubs. Arístides Langone, president of Club Atlético Independiente, was so impressed by the Nottingham Forest squad that beat local Alumni by 6–0 that he suggested to change the jersey colours from white and blue to red. The request was approved and Independiente adopted the colour that would later become an identity mark for the club, being known as El Rojo (The Red).Independiente y Nottingham Forest unidos para siempre on Olé, 27 Aug 2010

Some versions also state that Quilmes A.C. was another institution that took the colours from a British squad, in this case the white jersey with blue details of the England national team, although there is no evidence to prove that statement.

Tours Southampton F.C. was the first foreign club to tour South America, followed by Nottingham Forest F.C. in 1905. One of its games, against Alumni in Buenos Aires, was attended by 10,000 spectators, what proves the interest of Argentine fans to see the local forces facing British sides, considered technically superior by them.

The first team to defeat a British side was Argentine Alumni, who defeated the South Africa team (mostly composed of British–origin players) by 1–0 at Sociedad Sportiva Argentina stadium in Palermo. The relevance of the victory was expressed by local media, such as La Nación writing: "For our national football, the Alumni v South Africa match was a great triumph that will be remembered for a long time in everyone's memory, serving as example and stimulus for the future", while British-origin newspaper The Standard wrote "it was a glorious victory and what happened in La Sportiva is promising for Argentine football".A cien años de un triunfazo on Clarín, 24 June 2006

Corinthian F.C. of London was the first British club to tour Brazil in 1910, playing ten games in the cities of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. The team inspired a group of railway workers to establish a club which they named after the British team, therefore S.C. Corinthians was founded in September 1910.NO BOM RETIRO, EM 1910, COMEÇA ESTA HISTÓRIA, Folha de S.Paulo, 5 Dec 1976

Corinthian F.C. would return to Brazil in 1913, becoming the only British team that toured South America twice.Corinthian FC Football Pioneers by Vince Cooper, 2 Oct 2017

Exeter City was the first British team to play beyond Argentina and UruguayExeter City's 1914 South American Tour & its Legacy Today by R.I. Ngah when they reached Brazil to play a series of friendly matches in Rio de Janeiro (most of them v. local combined teams), finishing their tour on July 21, 1914, when Exeter played Brazil national team, in which was the first match ever played by the scratch.A century of the Seleção: the remarkable story of Brazilian football on The Guardian

Nevertheless, newspapers in Argentina were left disappointed with City's performances during the tour. Tribuna describing them as "the most mediocre team of professionals sent out by the FA from the home of football", and the Buenos Aires Herald complaining that the Grecians were not "sufficiently superior".

Plymouth Argyle thrashed the Uruguay national team 4–0 in their first game (Uruguay went on to win the first ever World Cup just six years later) before pulling off another shock by beating Argentina 1–0. Plymouth Argyle was the team that faced Argentina most times, with 4 matches played between both squads.Argentina national team - List of Other Matches 1901-2008 by Héctor Pelayes on RSSSF

In the match against Boca Juniors on 9 July 1924, the Boca Juniors supporters invaded the pitch after their team had scored the opening goal and carried all eleven home players shoulder high around the stadium. After a half hour delay, the referee restarted the match, but a further invasion was sparked when the referee awarded a penalty against the home side. When the match was again restarted, the Argyle players had agreed that Patsy Corcoran would take the spot-kick and miss, to prevent another pitch invasion. However, the ultra-competitive Russell was not prepared to accept this, and just before Corcoran was about to take the penalty he was pushed aside by Russell who took it himself and scored. This prompted a further pitch invasion by the Boca fans and this time the match was abandoned.Chapter 13: 1920-1930 by Colin Parsons on Green on Screen website

Chelsea F.C. was the last British club to tour South America, in 1929. Since the first tour in 1904, the South American players had evolved a lot, as they were described as "true masters in tactical play" by Chelsea chairman Kirby himself. He also remarked the style and ball control on offer, perhaps a consequence of the outstanding sporting facilities many of the amateur teams possessed.When Chelsea went to Rio on Chelsea FC official site, 12 Jul 2014 The evolution of South American football was also evident in the tour results: of 16 games played during their three months tour, Chelsea only won five, with eight loses.South American Trip of Chelsea FC 1929 by Pablo Ciullini on RSSSF On the other hand, the Chelsea players emphasised the "unfair play" of some Argentine players and the violent surrounding atmosphere of the supporters in Argentina. The Chelsea management complained to the Football Association that "non-observance of the laws of the game hindered real football".¡Golazo!: A History of Latin American Football by Andreas Campomar – Quercus Publishing Plc (2014) –

Some players that were part of British teams touring South America, would then hired as coaches in the continent. Walter Bull of Totenham Hotspur went to Argentina, John Harley to Uruguay (he died there in 1959) while John Hamilton went to Brazil in 1907, becoming the first professional coach in the country.

List of British clubs by year of tour Countries visited indicated in each case: Toured Not toured

Team Year Arg Uru Bra Source Southampton 1904 Rio de la Plata tour of Southampton FC 1905 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFsource Nottingham Forest 1905 Rio de la Plata trip of Nottingham Forest 1905 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFThe World's Game: A History of Soccer, by Bill Murray, William J. Murray South Africa F.A. 1906 Río de la Plata Trip of South African Football Association 1906 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSF Everton 1909 Rio de la Plata trip of Everton FC 1909 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFThe South American Tour 1909 on Everton Collection website Tottenham Hotspur 1909 Rio de la Plata trip of Tottenham Hotspur FC 1909 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFHotspur Towers - Spurs in South AmericaEverton & Tottenham Hotspur in South America 1909, Association football around the world, 1863-19378 Corinthian 1910 Swindon Town 1912 Rio de la Plata trip of Swindon Town 1912 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFWhen Saturday Comes magazine, Sep 2010 Corinthian 1913 Exeter City 1914 South America trip of Exeter City 1914 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFExeter City return to Brazil one hundred years after special trip by Kalika Mehta, BBC Sport, 18 July 2014 Third Lanark 1923 Rio de la Plata trip of Third Lanark 1923 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFTommy McInally: Celtic's Bad Bhoy? by David Potter - Black & White Publishing (2009) - Memoria y Balance 1923 - Asociación Amateurs de Football on Biblioteca AFA Plymouth Argyle 1924 Argentina and Uruguay trip of Plymouth Argyle 1924 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFSOUTH AMERICAN TOUR 1924 Motherwell 1928 South American Trip of Motherwell FC 1928 by Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSFMotherwell: Beating Argentina & bringing football to South America, BBC Sport, 16 July 2020 Chelsea 1929

Matches details (by club) Complete list of visitors and games played in Argentina, UruguayBritish and Irish Clubs - Overseas Tours 1890-1939British Clubs in Argentina and Uruguay (1904-1929) (RSSSF) and Brazil.British and Irish Clubs - Overseas Tours 1890-1939 by Javier García on RSSSF

Indicates British clubs defeats.

Southampton

Southampton Date Rival Score Venue 26 Jun 1904 Alumni Sociedad Sportiva 3 Jul 1904 Británicos Sociedad Sportiva 6 Jul 1904 Belgrano A.C. Sociedad Sportiva 9 Jul 1904 Sociedad Sportiva 10 Jul 1904 Liga Argentina Sociedad Sportiva 14 Jul 1904 Liga Uruguaya Parque Central

Balance Pl W D L Gs Gc 6 6 0 0 40 5

Notes

Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest Date Rival Score Venue 11 Jun 1905 CURCC Parque Central 16 Jun 1905 Rosario Combined Plaza Jewell 18 Jun 1905 Belgrano A.C. Sociedad Sportiva 22 Jun 1905 Británicos Sociedad Sportiva 24 Jun 1905 Rosario Combined Sociedad Sportiva 25 Jun 1905 Alumni Sociedad Sportiva 29 Jun 1905 Sociedad Sportiva 2 Jul 1905 Liga Argentina Sociedad Sportiva

Balance Pl W D L Gs Gc 8 8 0 0 57 6

Notes

South Africa