Texaco Cup
GenreSporting event
FrequencyAnnual
Country England
 Scotland
 Northern Ireland
 Ireland
Inaugurated1970 (1970)
Most recent1975 (1975)
Programme for the 1974–75 Texaco Cup semi-final between Newcastle United and Birmingham City

The Texaco Cup, officially known as the International League Board Competition, was an association football competition started in 1970, involving sides from England, Scotland, and Ireland that had not qualified for European competitions.[1][2]

It was one of the first football competitions to receive sponsorship, taking the name of American petroleum company Texaco for £100,000, and was instituted to help promote Texaco's recent purchase of the Regent filling station chain.[3] Irish and Northern Irish clubs withdrew from the competition after 1971–72 due to political pressure,[4] competing in a separate Texaco (All-Ireland) Cup in 1973–74 and 1974–75.[5]

Crowds in the competition fell after the first few seasons,[6] and it became the Anglo-Scottish Cup from 1975 to 1976 after Texaco's sponsorship ended.[7]

Format

For the first four seasons it was played as a straight knockout tournament, with sixteen clubs entered, all ties being two-legged. For the final season of the competition, 16 English clubs played in groups before being joined in the knockout stages by four Scottish sides.[8]

List of Finals

Source:[9]

Season Winners Runners-up Aggregate score
1970–71 Wolverhampton Wanderers Heart of Midlothian 3–2
1971–72 Derby County Airdrieonians 2–1
1972–73 Ipswich Town Norwich City 4–2
1973–74 Newcastle United Burnley 2–1
1974–75 Newcastle United Southampton 3–1

NB Finals played over two legs except in 1973–74

Participants

1970–71

England Burnley, Nottingham Forest, Stoke City, Tottenham Hotspur, West Bromwich Albion, Wolverhampton Wanderers
Scotland Airdrieonians, Dunfermline Athletic, Dundee, Hearts, Morton, Motherwell
Northern Ireland Ards, Derry City
Republic of Ireland Limerick, Shamrock Rovers

1971–72

England Coventry City, Derby County, Huddersfield Town, Manchester City, Newcastle United, Stoke City
Scotland Airdrieonians, Dundee United, Falkirk, Hearts, Morton, Motherwell
Northern Ireland Ballymena United, Coleraine
Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers, Waterford

1972–73

England Coventry City, Crystal Palace, Ipswich Town, Leicester City, Newcastle United, Norwich City, Sheffield United, West Bromwich Albion, Wolverhampton Wanderers
Scotland Ayr United, Dundee, Dundee United, Hearts, Kilmarnock, Motherwell, St Johnstone

1973–74

England Birmingham City, Burnley, Coventry City, Everton, Leicester City, Newcastle United, Norwich City, Sheffield United, Stoke City
Scotland Ayr United, Dundee United, East Fife, Hearts, Morton, Motherwell, St Johnstone

1974–75

England Birmingham City, Blackpool, Carlisle United, Leyton Orient, Luton Town, Manchester City, Middlesbrough, Newcastle United, Norwich City, Oldham Athletic, Peterborough United, Sheffield United, Southampton, Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion, West Ham United
Scotland Aberdeen, Ayr United, Hearts, Rangers

References

  1. ^ "Texaco Cup". Scottish Football Historical Archive. Archived from the original on 4 October 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
  2. ^ James Ross (20 December 2007). "Texaco Cup & Anglo-Scottish Cup 1971–81". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 21 September 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
  3. ^ Jim Heath (July 2001). "Best of British oils". When Saturday Comes. Archived from the original on 2011-02-19. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
  4. ^ Withdrawal of Irish clubs[dead link]
  5. ^ "All-Ireland Cross-Border Cup Competitions, (C) Copyright Sean DeLoughry, Julian Canny and RSSSF 2003/08". Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2023-02-02.
  6. ^ Scott Murray (26 June 2009). "The Joy of Six: Extinct football competitions". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 March 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
  7. ^ "Anglo-Scottish Cup: Intro". Scottish Football Historical Archive. Archived from the original on 4 October 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
  8. ^ Tom Lewis (20 December 2007). "Anglo-Scottish Cup & Texaco Cup – Full Results". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2018.
  9. ^ James M. Ross (20 December 2007). "Texaco Cup Finals 1971–75". Texaco Cup & Anglo-Scottish Cup 1971–81. RSSSF. Archived from the original on 21 September 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2017.

External links

Football in the United Kingdom
Defunct football competitions in Scotland
Texaco Cup and Anglo-Scottish Cup
Categories