Players' Union

The Players' Union (1907) was the popular name for the Association of Football Players’ and Trainers’ Union in the United Kingdom; the original association that became the Professional Footballers' Association.

This was the second attempt at the unionisation of professional football players after the failure of the Association Footballers' Union which dissolved itself in 1901.

First meeting

The Players' Union was formed at a meeting on December 2, 1907 when Charlie Roberts and Billy Meredith (who had been involved in the AFU) convened the organisation of the Association of Football Players’ and Trainers’ Union (‘AFPTU’) (which the Press called ‘The Players’ Union’) at the Imperial Hotel, Manchester [http://www.a1tourism.com/uk/imperia.html] .

This Union was formed because the Football League had ratified a maximum wage for footballers in 1901 at £4. This severely limited the opportunity to earn wages that allowed the best players in the country to forego the need to take paid employment outside of football. Prior to this individual clubs had set their own wage policies throughout the country.

The Union, basically, led from where the previous AFU had left the situation: that is by challenging the introduction of a maximum wage and the restraint on transfers. Their objectives were made clear in 1909 and it was this which caused the Football Association to withdraw their recognition of the Union which at that time was seeking to join the Federation of Trade Unions (‘FTU’).

The Union threatened strike action but the Football Association responded to this by banning those affiliated with the AFPTU "sine die".

The Manchester United players continued to strike but the lack of resolve elsewhere would have led to the failure of this movement if it had not been for Tim Coleman at Everton breaking ranks with his colleagues and striking in support of what the press had classified as 'The Outcasts FC' at Manchester United. Coleman's intervention resuscitated support for the cause and the Union, having regained its strength of numbers, settled for official recognition and the allowing of bonus payments in order to supplement the maximum wage. These were essentially conciliatory gestures; the maximum wage would be a yoke under which players would suffer for the next 60 years [cite news
last = Moore
first = Glenn
title = How players won football's 100 years war
publisher = The Independent (London)
date = 10 January 2007
url=http://sport.independent.co.uk/football/news/article2140210.ece
accessdate=2007-07-24] .

Jimmy Guthrie

Between 1946 and 1957 the Chairman of the Union was Jimmy Guthrie. His book 'Soccer Rebel', published in 1976, documents his chairmanship and the struggle of the Union to improve the lot of professional footballers in the years preceding the abolition of the maximum wage.

Footnotes

References

*cite book
author=Jimmy Guthrie
title=Soccer Rebel: The Evolution of the Professional Footballer.
publisher=Pentagon Books
year=1976
id=ISBN 0-904288-08-0