Life Stories
Fergus Sutter
Beginnings
Fergus Suter was born in Glasgow in 1857. He worked for a time as a stonemason, but his talent as a footballer drew him into a career as a semi-professional. Fergus played for Partick from when the club was founded in 1875 but money tempted him south to play for Darwen in 1878.
Britain’s First Professional Footballer?
Darwen, near Blackburn, was on the working-class side of English football’s class divide. Fergus Suter had a job in the owner’s cotton mill, but was really paid to play football. His team-mates were working men like himself. Suter’s most famous match for Darwen was a 5-5 draw against Old Etonians in the FA Cup. In 1880, Fergus was persuaded to join Blackburn Rovers, Darwen’s richer neighbours, who paid him more money. He stayed at Blackburn for nine years, achieving much success. Blackburn won three FA Cup finals in a row in 1884, 1885 and 1886.
Legacy
Fergus Suter’s time at Blackburn lasted long enough for professionalism to be legalised, in 1885, and for the Football League to be formed in 1888. By then Suter was in decline; he played in only one Football League match before retiring as a player. He stayed in Lancashire, managing the Millstone Hotel in Darwen. Fergus Suter died in Blackpool in 1916.
Thinking points
Fergus Suter was from a working-class background in a tough district of Glasgow, on Clydeside. He was one of the first (semi)professional footballers, brought south to industrial Lancashire because of their valuable skills. This was controversial; professionalism in football was not legal until 1885. Many teams Fergus played against were “gentlemen amateurs”; rich aristocratic men educated at private schools like Eton.
Educators could look at the life story of Fergus Sutter and work with young people to consider this question:
- What can we learn from the life story of Fergus Suter about football, diversity and class differences in late 19th century England?
- How does this story shed light on the professionalisation of the game?
Find out more
An interesting, if fictionalised view of Fergus Suter’s time playing for Darwen and Blackburn can be viewed in the Netflix series The English Game (reviewed here by Football Makes History), which shows a vivid contrast between Fergus Suter, working-class professional, and aristocratic Lord Kinnaird, the Old Etonian who became President of the FA.
COVER Image
Fergus Suter played for Darwen and Blackburn Rovers from 1878 to 1889.
Life Story
33
LIFE STORIES To discover now
Do you wanna know more?
HISTORY CAN BE EXPLORED THROUGH THE LIVES OF INDIVIDUALS
Stories
Browse our collection of stories about football history and inclusion. With the history of football being made up of millions of stories, of individuals and communities, of movements and processes, we offer stories that can inspire our cultural conversations today.
Videos
Get to know untold stories where individuals are making history with football. When faced with insurmountable challenges, individuals past and present can use football as a cultural force to foster positive change in society. We honour these individuals and tell their ‘untold’ stories in short videos.
Educational Resources
Explore our innovative educational resources that use football’s history, heritage and legacy to engage young people. The resources include ready-made lesson plans and historical source collections for school history education as well as toolkit with activities for non-formal settings.
Trending Stories
Refugees
In the wake of the 2015 migration peak, activists and volunteers across Europe have been involved in supporting refugees, sometimes with the simple act of offering space and friendship to participate in football through grassroots clubs to help newcomers integrate.
Fergus Suter: Working-Class Professional
Fergus Sutter was one of the first (semi)professional footballers, playing against aristocratic players. A story of origins.
LATEST POST You may also be interested in

The rise of female referees in professional men’s football
Although there have only been ten female referees in the top leagues of men’s football in Europe over the last 30 years, seven of them are currently active.

Discover women’s football then and now a game of quartet
Where are the women’s football quartet cards?

Football and Hooliganism
Teaching students about the causes of football hooliganism through the analysis of case studies and development of potential solutions.

March in Football
What moments in football history have we highlighted in the last month? How do they provide us with historical mirrors to the present?

1. Deutscher Damenfußballclub 2 – 1 Dick, Kerr Ladies
On this day in 1981 a game that never happened took place. Or: How can counterfactual history help us shift perspectives?

A game for equality
Today in 1895, a football game was played as women were claiming equality in a patriarchal society.