Blackburn Olympic F.C. was an English association football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, in the late 19th century. Although it was only in existence from 1878 to 1889, it is significant in the history of football in England as the first club from the north of the country and the first from a working-class background to win the Football Association Challenge Cup (better known as the FA Cup, trophy pictured). The cup had previously been won only by teams of wealthy amateurs from the home counties, and Olympic's victory against Old Etonians F.C. in 1883 marked a turning point in the sport's transition from a pastime for upper-class gentlemen to a professional sport. Olympic, however, proved unable to compete with wealthier and better-supported clubs in the professional era. Most of Olympic's home matches took place at the Hole-i'-th-Wall stadium, named after an adjacent public house. One Olympic player, James Ward, was selected for the England team while playing for the club. Six other former or future England internationals played for Olympic, including Jack Hunter, who was the club's coach at the time of Olympic's FA Cup win. (Full article...)

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