Texaco Cup

Last updated
Texaco Cup
GenreSporting event
FrequencyAnnual
CountryFlag of England.svg  England
Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Ulster Banner.svg  Northern Ireland
Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland
Inaugurated1970 (1970)
Most recent1975 (1975)
Programme for the 1974-75 Texaco Cup semi-final between Newcastle United and Birmingham City Texaco Cup Programme 1974-75.jpg
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]

Contents

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]

SeasonWinnersRunners-upAggregate score
1970–71 Flag of England.svg Wolverhampton Wanderers Flag of Scotland.svg Heart of Midlothian 3–2
1971–72 Flag of England.svg Derby County Flag of Scotland.svg Airdrieonians 2–1
1972–73 Flag of England.svg Ipswich Town Flag of England.svg Norwich City 4–2
1973–74 Flag of England.svg Newcastle United Flag of England.svg Burnley 2–1 [a]
1974–75 Flag of England.svg Newcastle United Flag of England.svg Southampton 3–1
  1. Final was played as a single game.

Participants

1970–71

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

1971–72

Flag of England.svg Coventry City, Derby County, Huddersfield Town, Manchester City, Newcastle United, Stoke City
Flag of Scotland.svg Airdrieonians, Dundee United, Falkirk, Hearts, Morton, Motherwell
Ulster Banner.svg Ballymena United, Coleraine
Flag of Ireland.svg Shamrock Rovers, Waterford

1972–73

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

1973–74

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

1974–75

Flag of England.svg 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
Flag of Scotland.svg 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.