Subbuteo Comes Home

Subbuteo, the game that sees players flick a miniature football into goals on tabletop pitches, has come a long way since its creation in 1946. Originally, sets would include chalk and instructions on how to draw out the pitch but now the cult-classic English game has returned to its hometown of Tunbridge Wells for the biannual World Cup.

The three-day event in Tunbridge Wells marked a return to the UK for the tournament for the first time since Manchester hosted in 2012. Hundreds of players from 26 countries came to play on 48 tables in a sports hall in the English town to play in the competition run by the Federation of International Sports Table Football (FISTF). Alongside that event, tournaments with ‘classic’ rules ran in a different venue in the town. Rules for the larger official tournament are different and much higher paced from the ones that most people would be used to playing at home with no waiting to take turns and no time to strategise next moves.

The scale is a testament to the global growth of a game that many British adults associate with their childhood. 48 tables played host to nearly 250 players in the individual competitions alone, with six categories that accommodate under-12s, veterans, and everything in between.

Mark had travelled from Malta, has been playing the game for 30 years, and like many others travels internationally four times a year to play in tournaments. He joked that he plays “because he can’t play real football” but went on to stress the strength of community that the sport has across borders.

Another player, Matthew, was visiting from Wales and finds the social elements of the tournaments the most enjoyable. “I have friends from all over the world in France, Australia, Italy, Belgium, and more that I catch up with”, he said. “I am probably the worst player here but I’ve been playing for 30 years and it still makes for an incredibly fun weekend. People are reaffirming that this is a truly inclusive game you can play across all ages that’s why it’s growing.”

Those sentiments were echoed by Rudy from Singapore, who picked up the game he loved during his childhood again in 2010. “I involve all of my children and travel twice a year, normally within Asia. When there is a big event like the World Cup, we always come and watch. For people in my age range, it is great to involve our children as an antidote to video games. They get to actually see their friends face to face and it is an amazing way to bond with their parents.” Other teams had travelled from places as far away as Australia and Japan.

Players here take the game extremely seriously, polishing their players in between halves and invariably erupting in cheers when scoring. The tournament organizers have planned for international interest too by streaming games with live commentary on their official YouTube channel.

Subbuteo was created by Peter Adolph after leaving the Royal Air Force in 1946 as a new income stream for the pilot after the end of World War II. Adapting an existing game with various improvements to speed up pace and ease, he began assembling kits at home and selling them a year later after advertising in a national newspaper aimed at boys in England.

Original sets involved assembling goals from wire, sticking cardboard players on buttons, and drawing out pitches with chalk but the game enjoyed significant early popularity and a rivalry with ‘NewFooty’, a game of similar nature. After pioneering heavier hand-painted figures in 1961 though, Subbuteo quickly left its competitors behind and became a staple in British households during the 1970s and 80s.

Faced with the growth of video games in the 1990s and early 2000s and under the ownership of toy company Hasbro, sales declined substantially until the COVID-19 pandemic. That period saw a sharp increase in general board game sales as people were forced to stay at home and Subbuteo continued its growth in the subsequent years, attracting younger fans as parents looked for alternatives to technology-based entertainment

Gemma Lewington is the Marketing Director for University Games, the current producer of Subbuteo. Like the players inside the hall, she attributes the growth of the game to parents “wanting to get their children off phones and consoles”. Whilst the board game company has seen increases in sales across the board in recent years, the explosion of Subbuteo is unmatched. “There’s a heritage and a generational part of it too. Parents played when they were younger and with the game now evolved even further again, they want to play it with their children,” she told me. According to her, the UK are actually “behind” some other countries with Italy in particular leading the way.

University Games are keen to move and develop the game with the times. Players can now buy an officially licenced ‘Lionesses edition’, to represent the England Women’s team alongside electronic scoreboards, timers, training sets, and even a four-man VAR set.

Greece, Italy, and Portugal took home the individual titles on Saturday night in Kent and Italy the team titles on Sunday, undoubtedly ahead of some heavy celebrations. The game might not be taken as seriously as many in the hall this weekend but it is no doubt set for even more growth as trends to move away from technology gather even more pace all over the world.