Posts by Kathryn Thompson

To celebrate the 150^th anniversary of the FA Cup, The Royal Mint have JUST CONFIRMED that a new UK £2 coin will be released this year.

The real magic of football all started with the FA Cup. Where underdogs play alongside premier league giants creating unforgettable sporting moments. The local games, the atmosphere, the people, the community spirit and the feeling that you really are part of it. It’s amazing to think that what all starts in your local park could take your team to Wembley stadium, and the infamous tournament final.

The FA Cup is the longest standing football tournament, producing hometown heroes and capturing the nation every year since the first ever final was played in 1872. 

Ahead of this release, we’ve put together 7 top football facts to test your knowledge of the popular sport.

1. FIFA is a French acronym for Fédération Internationale de Football Association (International Federation of Association Football) and manages football around the world. They organise and champion worldwide tournaments, most notably the World Cup.

2. Not every country can participate in FIFA – Greenland isn’t able to join as the country cannot grow regulation-length grass. Seems ironic, doesn’t it?

3. As I’m sure many football fans will know (or will want to forget), Arsenal FC has won the FA Cup 14 times since it began in 1871.

4. Do you know the offside rule? It’s football topic talked about enough to have been made into a coin design in 2011! To put it somewhat simply, a player is offside if the ball is played forward to them in the opposing teams half of the pitch, and there is no one on the opposite team between them and the opposing goalkeeper.

5. If you thought those old and torn footballs at the bottom of the pile at school were bad, at least you didn’t use an animal’s organ! Apparently, an inflated pig’s bladder was once used to play the famous sport.

6. Did you know that, if a team scores an own goal through a direct free kick, then it’s a corner to the opposing team, rather than a goal?

7. Chilean football team Colo-Colo walked into the Estadio Monumental of Santiago with rescue dogs that were in need of a home. In partnership with shelter Union de Amigos de los Animales (UAA), the team highlighted the need for adoption of homeless dogs.

Let us know your favourite football facts in the comments!

We all know how popular football is across the UK – and just how popular Football themed commemoratives can be. 

If you want to make sure you score a Football £2 for your collection on release day, before anyone else, you can sign up to our UK New Issue BU Pack Coin subscription.

It means that you’ll automatically be sent the new coin issue on launch day, without having to do anything, securing your commemorative before anyone else.

 And you can always cancel or pause your subscription online!

Click this link so you don’t miss out >>