10 May 1947 - Brittania Rules The Pitch

On 10 May 1947, a unified British team defeated a Rest-of-Europe XI in a game billed as the "Match of the Century."

The concept of a British national team dates back to 1908, when a team styled as "Great Britain" won the gold medal at the Summer Olympics. Despite the name, however, the side included only Englishmen. They repeated as champions in 1912, but all four Home Nation associations--England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland--subsequently withdrew from FIFA over disagreements about the role of professionalism in the sport, bringing the united team to an end.

The 1947 match celebrated the return of the Home Nations to the international fold, with the proceeds going to help FIFA recover losses sustained by the interruption of play during World War II. England manager Walter Winterbottom selected the British team, which included five English players, three from Scotland, two from Wales, and one from Northern Ireland. The European team, chosen by Swiss national team manager Karl Rappan, included one player each from France, Switzerland, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Belgium, and the Netherlands, as well as two each from Sweden and Denmark.

Played before a crowd of over 130,000 at Glasgow's Hampden Park, Britain (wearing navy blue shirts and socks with white shorts) rolled to an easy 6-1 victory with goals from Englishmen Wilf Mannion (22', 33') and Tommy Lawton (37', 82'), Scotsman Billy Steel (35'), and a 74th-minute own-goal from the Europeans. Sweden's Gunnar Nordahl scored the only goal for the Rest of Europe in the 24th minute.

13 November 1945 - The Soviets Invade Britain

On 13 November 1945, Dynamo Moscow drew with Chelsea, 3-3, at Stamford Bridge before a capacity crowd of 85,000. It was the opening match of Dynamo's British tour, which saw them also face Cardiff, Arsenal, and Glasgow Rangers.

The tour was engineered by members of the FA and the Football League, who were looking to celebrate the resumption of English football after its World War II hiatus. As one of the Soviet Union's leading clubs, Dynamo generated a lot of interest in a British public that was still unfamiliar with the Soviet nation. The British press, however, was critical of the Soviets' footballing abilities, with one reporter saying Dynamo were "not nearly good enough to play our class of professional teams."

The opening half against Chelsea appeared to prove him correct, as Dynamo went down 2-0. In the second half, however, Dynamo's fluid passing game allowed them to equalize. Late into the second half, new Blues signing Tommy Lawton appeared to win the match for Chelsea with a header, but Dynamo's Vsyevolod Bobrov scored a dramatic third for the Soviets, despite appearing to be offside.

Dynamo continued to impress on its tour, crushing Third Division Cardiff, 10-1, then beating Arsenal 4-3, before finally losing to Rangers, 3-2. (Highlights of the Rangers match can be seen below.)

27 August 1938 - Makes You Wonder Why They'd Ever Want To Change It

On 27 August 1938, Everton's "beacon" crest made its debut, but did so in a relatively inconspicuous location.

Everton's first crest, which dates back to 1920, consisted simply of the interlocking initials "EFC." According to the official club history, secretary Theo Kelly decided that a newer crest was needed—he wanted to include one on a club necktie. He also designed the crest, using the local landmark known as Prince Rupert's Tower as its centerpiece, adding laurels as emblems off success, and including the motto "Nil satis, nisi optimum," which translates to "nothing but the best is good enough."

The club produced the neckties as proposed, and they were worn for the first time by Kelly and club chairman Earnest Green on the opening day of the 1938-39 season in the First Division. Everton were away at Blackpool that day and won 0-2 with goals from Tommy Lawton and Alex Stevenson.

Kelly and Green continued to wear the ties throughout the season, which ended with Everton claiming their fifth league title (and Kelly became the team's manager for the following season). The new crest was not used on the team's shirts, however, until 1978.

The crest has since undergone several modifications, most recently in 2013 when the club simplified the design, dropping both the laurels and the motto. But those changes caused an uproar among Everton supporters and the club vowed to reevaluate the crest at the end of the 2013-14 season.

10 May 1947 - Brittania Rules The Pitch

On 10 May 1947, a unified British team defeated a Rest-of-Europe XI in a game billed as the "Match of the Century."

The concept of a British national team dates back to 1908, when a team styled as "Great Britain" won the gold medal at the Summer Olympics. Despite the name, however, the side included only Englishmen. They repeated as champions in 1912, but all four Home Nation associations--England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland--subsequently withdrew from FIFA over disagreements about the role of professionalism in the sport, bringing the united team to an end.

The 1947 match celebrated the return of the Home Nations to the international fold, with the proceeds going to help FIFA recover losses sustained by the interruption of play during World War II. England manager Walter Winterbottom selected the British team, which included five English players, three from Scotland, two from Wales, and one from Northern Ireland. The European team, chosen by Swiss national team manager Karl Rappan, included one player each from France, Switzerland, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Belgium, and the Netherlands, as well as two each from Sweden and Denmark.

Played before a crowd of over 130,000 at Glasgow's Hampden Park, Britain (wearing navy blue shirts and socks with white shorts) rolled to an easy 6-1 victory with goals from Englishmen Wilf Mannion (22', 33') and Tommy Lawton (37', 82'), Scotsman Billy Steel (35'), and a 74th-minute own-goal from the Europeans. Sweden's Gunnar Nordahl scored the only goal for the Rest of Europe in the 24th minute.

13 November 1945 - The Soviets Invade Britain

On 13 November 1945, Dynamo Moscow drew with Chelsea, 3-3, at Stamford Bridge before a capacity crowd of 85,000. It was the opening match of Dynamo's British tour, which saw them also face Cardiff, Arsenal, and Glasgow Rangers.

The tour was engineered by members of the FA and the Football League, who were looking to celebrate the resumption of English football after its World War II hiatus. As one of the Soviet Union's leading clubs, Dynamo generated a lot of interest in a British public that was still unfamiliar with the Soviet nation. The British press, however, was critical of the Soviets' footballing abilities, with one reporter saying Dynamo were "not nearly good enough to play our class of professional teams."

The opening half against Chelsea appeared to prove him correct, as Dynamo went down 2-0. In the second half, however, Dynamo's fluid passing game allowed them to equalize. Late into the second half, new Blues signing Tommy Lawton appeared to win the match for Chelsea with a header, but Dynamo's Vsyevolod Bobrov scored a dramatic third for the Soviets, despite appearing to be offside.

Dynamo continued to impress on its tour, crushing Third Division Cardiff, 10-1, then beating Arsenal 4-3, before finally losing to Rangers, 3-2. (Highlights of the Rangers match can be seen below.)