Gold Buys FA Cup

Last updated : 23 May 2005 By Brian Cartlidge
The Blues co-owner paid a a record-breaking auction fee of £478,000 for the trophy, one of four produced for the FA Cup competition since it began in 1871, last Thursday because he says he didn't want the trophy going overseas.

"The Germans might have won more World Cups than us but I couldn't stand by and let them win the FA Cup as well," he said.

"This is surely one of the country's most important items of sporting heritage and seemingly no-one was prepared to do anything about keeping the cup in the country.

"Neither the government nor the governing body of football seemed prepared to do anything proactive about it, which I think is outrageous, so I felt compelled to do something myself.

"I was in the lucky position of being able to preserve a historic piece of British sporting memorabilia."