Professional Footballer

[Siely]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/MHylrKB09Y3TD3NWZrb2Qw/the-first-professional-footballer

My own FH shows some links to the early development of the Football League in the UK which is the oldest Football Championship in the world starting in the 1880s.

Interested in the early professional footballers and their
 teams.

[jaywit]

This gives you the original teams.

https://www.efl.com/about-the-efl/history/

Why not start by Googling each teams history?

[Siely]

My amateur reading is revealing the importance of early football teams in the old industrial worker population which has changed dramatically, however the sport of football itself has never been so successful and wealthy.  A part of my FH would have supported local team West Bromwich Albion, one of the earliest teams.
 

[CaroleW]

In what way were your ancestors "linked to the development of the Football League"?  What were their respective roles?  What were their names?

What documented info do you have confirming their involvement in the development of the FL?

Your last reply is written as though they just supported WBA which is a completely different "role" to that suggested in your opening post.   

Which particular "early professional footballers" are you referring to as there will be many & what research are you yourself doing into finding the answers you are looking for? 

[Siely]

Early football has no official records or statistics books that I know of (unlike cricket needless to say) . Cricket records / statistics are continually referred to in cricket commentary, but it is rare to hear in football.  If it wasn't for the huge efforts of individual fans I doubt if rhere would be any colllections at all.

[KGarrad]

Have you read the Wikipedia Article?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Bromwich_Albion_F.C.

Including the "History" section.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_West_Bromwich_Albion_F.C.

[KGarrad]

As for the history of the Football League, try these articles:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Football_League

https://www.efl.com/about-the-efl/history/

https://www.footballhistory.org/league/football-league.html
Which includes stats!

And: https://www.footballhistory.org/league/football-league-statistics.html

P.S. It took me less than 5 minutes to find these links.

[Siely]

Yes thank you, there are some very good online sites.  I'm trying to make a slightly different point though. Unlike cricket which has Wisdens , football does not seem to have an official year book or a schoolboys version of the same.
"Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, or simply Wisden, colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually"

[CaroleW]

So what exactly is the purpose of your post?