Discover more from Football Archaeology

Digging into gridiron history to examine how football's evolution shapes today's game.

Over 1,000 subscribers

News

The Art of Football Officials’ Signals

Timothy P. Brown

May 7, 2023

My story on the evolution of football officials’ signals and their representation in football publications is the lead article on Uni Watch this morning. It includes images from 1918 to the late 1950s. I hope you enjoy it.

The Art of Football Officials’ Signals

I’ll repost the article here in a few days.

If you are into old-time officiating, the following tells the origin stories of football whistles, signals, and flags.

Articles

When Football Officials Tooted on the Field

Timothy P. Brown

March 12, 2018

When Football Officials Tooted on the Field

Officials have whistled football plays dead for many years, but whistles were not used when the game of football began, largely because whistles as we know them did not yet exist. Low volume whistles go back to ancient times, but they could only be heard at limited distances. That changed in the early 1880s when England’s Scotland Yard published a reque…

Read full story

Subscribe for free and never miss a story. Support this site with a paid subscription, buy me a coffee (or two), buy my books, or a blog-used item.

Buy Me A Coffee

My Books on Amazon

Blog-Used Items