The Final in Play, 1905

The press camera finally fast enough for football. By 1905 the photographers who had spent a decade shooting crowds could stop the game itself: here Aston Villa and Newcastle United contest the Cup Final at the Crystal Palace — Villa won it 2–0, Harry Hampton twice — and the players hang mid-stride in a way no engraver ever managed. Action photography arrived late to the game and changed how it was remembered; this is among the earliest surviving frames of a final in motion. The engraving gave football its first pictures; the shutter gave it its first evidence.

Maker

press photograph

Date

1905

Medium of the original

Press photograph

Original held by

Unknown press photographer, 1905 · Wikimedia Commons

Credit

Unknown press photographer, 1905 · Wikimedia Commons

Rights

Public domain, verified

Catalogue number

PA-01087