The Black And White Years: 10 Festive Photos Of Footballers Wassailing At Their Club Christmas Party

Chris Wright

24th, December 2017

1 Comment

Generally speaking, these days you only really tend to hear about club Christmas parties as and when they get called off by disgruntled managers who think that sapping yet more morale out their beleaguered players will be the key to hauling them out of the relegation mire.

Thankfully, December was a lot more carefree and festive back in the good old days, as this little collection of archive photos duly attests…

Embed from Getty Images

Oh, what japes! Liverpool’s players and directors blow up balloons in preparation for the club’s Christmas party, 1936

Embed from Getty Images

A snappily-dressed Pat Jennings, Alan Sunderland, Willie Young and Pat Rice gather the kids for a photo with Father Christmas Arsenal’s Christmas party, 1970

Embed from Getty Images

Emlyn Hughes is on Santa duty as he poses for a photo with his two children at the Liverpool Christmas shindig, 1974

Embed from Getty Images

Notoriously stern hardman Tommy Smith (back row, centre) comes perilously close to cracking a smile at the Liverpool Christmas party, 1974

Embed from Getty Images

Sammy McIlroy, Willie Morgan, Stuart Pearson, Gerry Daly and Lou Macari gussy up, throw on their chaps and cock their shotguns for Manchester United’s ‘Wild West’ themed Christmas party, 1974

Embed from Getty Images

Hopefully not a veiled comment on their form at the time, Roy McFarland (right) and a few of his Derby County teammates receive a Christmas turkey from Santa Claus, 1976.

Embed from Getty Images

John Gregory, then of Northampton Town, celebrates Christmas with a cigar, 1976

Embed from Getty Images

Manchester United players (Willie Morgan, Lou Macari, Alex Stepney and Sammy McIlroy are all in their somewhere as the Manchester United players celebrate Christmas with their families, 1975

Embed from Getty Images

After the debacle with the kids the year before, Manchester United obviously decided to have a more adult-orientated Christmas party in 1976

Embed from Getty Images

Knitwear-a-Go-Go: Manchester United trio Gordon Strachan, Bryan Robson and Sammy McIlroy don their finest glad-rags for Chrimbo, 1980

Posted in Featured, Newsnow, Photos, Retro, Top 10s & lists

Share this article: Email

1 Comment

  1. ERG1008 says:

    These are great and love the Skol pump.
    Think the top Arsenal one is late 70s rather than 1970 and the Man Utd last one is definitely mid 80s as Strachan didn’t sign until 1984.

Leave a Reply