It seems odd that a commuter town 30 miles outside London should stage the climax to a huge international football tournament. But if you’re into Subbuteo it’s no surprise at all. This weekend, 300 players from 26 nations plus hundreds more fans are flocking to a leafy part of Kent to see the famous table-top game ‘come home’.
Subbuteo was devised by former RAF man Peter Adolph in 1947, in the village of Langton Green on the outskirts of Tunbridge Wells. It is still regarded as the cradle of a unique game which has stood the test of time and seen off the challenge of video games to be bigger than ever.
The Subbuteo World Cup is everything that a real one is, with the exception that the players are one inch high plastic figures being flicked around a piece of cloth by fully grown adults in two halves of 15 minutes. Thankfully, there is no VAR. Other than that it is much the same as any modern day FIFA World Cup, boasting all the colour, controversy drama and passion of the man-size game.
Tournament host and English Subbuteo Association ‘technical director’, Stewart Grant told SunSport: “We have players coming over from Australia, Brazil, Singapore and Japan and even a player from Ukraine. He is actually French but he lived out there before the war so he is playing for Ukraine. And there’s a team from Tunisia - the only African nation being represented.
“There are multiple categories. There are groups, seedings and then like any other World Cup it goes into a knockout format and on to the final. It can get very passionate, it really can. It’s very intricate in how players flick the ball and move forwards. It moves at such speed that when players score they will run off pumping their arms, chests and running around.
“In the team event players bundle each other like you see on a real pitch. Players curse when they scuff a shot. The passion levels can get very high and there will be disagreements like there is in real football. Especially among the Continentals, who take it very seriously. This year we want that passion. We want to get in people’s faces.
“It never comes to pushing and shoving but there have been instances at local and national level where players have disagreed with something on the pitch, picked up their players and walked off. We are actively encouraging people to come down in England kits, bring flags. And if a goal goes in, cheer it.
“When we have gone abroad to places like Italy they all cheer their team on so much that it can be intimidating. This is our chance to give it back and create a cauldron, so when people play us they are scared and are nervous. We have got to semi-finals and quarters. But now we have the players that with the right draw, can go on and win it.”
The Rise of Subbuteo
England have yet to lift any of the numerous trophies up for grabs in the Veterans, Women’s, Individual, Team, Under-16 and Under-12 categories in the now biennial tournament. The ‘Three Centimetre Lions’ have a top squad and even staged training camps in Milton Keynes to make sure nothing is left to chance or a badly positioned digit. Vastly experienced campaigner Justin Finch once had his flicking finger insured for £50k. Ruby Matthews is a huge star in the Under-16 category. Hadley Chapman has been playing only 18 months but is already team captain for the U12s.
The event has made it to broadcast with it being streamed live on X. Grant, also a Youtuber, said: “There is a multi camera set up and even guest commentaries. In Tunbridge Wells they are so passionate about this game originating there. There are museum exhibitions, walking tours. They are so proud that the game came from there. The fact it is ‘coming home’ has brought everyone together. We have brought Subbuteo back to where it was born.
“That’s why it’s the biggest World Cup there has ever been. It is in our backyard.”
The Subbuteo World Cup's Global Appeal
The draw is on Friday and England have their work cut out to be crowned world champions like they were on home soil in ‘66 at Wembley under Bobby Moore. Grant said: “The Italians are the best in the world. The Belgians have a great youth set up with a lot of players coming through. Spain has a great player in Carlos Flores but he can’t make it. There’s a lot of relieved people out there.
“Some outsiders worth watching include the Maltese, who are very professional. Their national association is recognised by their Olympic Committee. They get a lot of funding. Subbuteo’s a cross between football, chess and snooker. It’s sport in miniature.
“If anyone thinks we are grown men playing with toys, come down on Saturday and Sunday and you will see a completely different approach.”
A Nostalgic Throwback
For those of a certain generation, memories of flicking your players around a table-top pitch after having been out all day kicking a ball about will basically sum up childhood. Now, we’re not saying we’re of that generation – no, no, no, we’re hip and with it. But for those of that generation [ahem] the latest collaboration from Mitre will come as an absolute flashback to yesteryear, because they’ve partnered with none other than Hasbro to produce a special SUBBUTEO drop that sees the pair launch iconic minis as well as a full-size ball.
It’s all aboard the nostalgia train, as Mitre once again team up with Hasbro, a leading toy and game company, for a limited-edition drop around the iconic tabletop football game SUBBUTEO.
A Limited-Edition Collaboration
With only 300 produced, the Mitre x SUBBUTEO Delta is a limited-edition 18-panel ball, brought up to modern day with thermally bonded seams for zero water uptake and supreme durability. The classic black and white colour palette is a nod to the SUBBUTEO brand which marries perfectly with Mitre’s signature delta chevrons - throwing back to the original Delta ball from the 80s.
As well as the full size ball, there’s also the option to pick up a set of Mitre x SUBBUTEO mini balls, adding an additional level of authenticity to proceedings on table-top pitches across the globe, bringing back the original designs of the Mitre x SUBBUTEO mini balls from back in the day.
Accompanying the drop is the news that, for the first time ever, Mitre will be partnering with the FISTF Elland Cables SUBBUTEO World Cup 2024 as the Official Ball Provider of the tournament. The brand will supply mini balls for the family fun day event and Delta SUBBUTEO Balls as prizes for the category winners.
Taking place in Tunbridge Wells, the home of SUBBUTEO from 20–22 September 2024, the tournament will see over 400 players from 26 countries participate with over 58 games played simultaneously in the early stages.
Alan Lee, Chairman of English Subbuteo Association, said: “We’re thrilled to have Mitre on board as part of the Eland’s Cables World Cup event. Having such a prestigious brand associated with the World Cup event is really important for both fans and players to keep the excitement around a very much loved, iconic game, especially in a World Cup year. Mitre have been really kind to help support from providing product for our family fun day event and we’re excited to kick off the event in SUBBUTEO’s home town of Tunbridge Wells this September.”
Simon Rowe, Senior Vice President of Mitre & Global Sports Marketing at Pentland Brands, adds: “This is a collaboration that just makes total sense. We know SUBBUTEO is a big part of football fans’ childhoods and as a brand we have a history with the game that goes way back to the nineties, so this latest collab is epic!
“Football culture is so important to everything we believe in at Mitre, in all its forms. It’s great to be supporting the FISTF Elland Cables SUBBUTEO World Cup and we’re confident these limited-edition balls will prove a hit with fans and bring back plenty of happy memories around the SUBBUTEO table.”
The Mitre x SUBBUTEO Delta Limited Edition ball (£45.00) and Mitre x SUBBUTEO Mini Ball Football Pack (£11.00) will be available on mitre.com from Wednesday 18 September 2024 while stocks last.
