By Mark Baber
July 9 – In its first year of operation after being switched from Preston to Manchester, England’s National Football Museum has welcomed 458,000 visitors, smashing the 350,000 target and fully justifying Manchester City Council’s investment in the project.
A year ago, the Museum opened at its new city centre venue after the city council offered a funding package worth £2m per year. The museum, launched 2001, averaged 100,000 a year at its old location at Preston North End’s Deepdale ground, which is now being used for research and archive purposes.
The museum was founded to preserve, conserve and interpret several important collections of memorabilia and features exhibits such as the England captain’s shirt from the first ever international football match between England and Scotland; the original painting of L.S. Lowry’s “Going to the Match,” ; the original version of the FA Cup; the match ball from the 1966 World Cup Final; Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” shirt; and the old UEFA Cup Winners Cup trophy.
Museum director Kevin Moore said: “We have smashed the target by more than the capacity of Wembley stadium. I’m really pleased. Until you open you never really know how it’s going to go but to break the target is wonderful news. Preston is still very important to the museum as its archive but Manchester is a big city and a great flagship. We look forward to welcoming our 500,000th visitor during the coming summer holiday period.”
Highlights of the first year of operation in Manchester have included the arrival of the Football Association’s 1863 Minute Book, the original rulebook that helped form association football; and Pablo Picasso’s ceramic statue of ‘Le Footballeur.’