It would be easy to boil down Arthur Wharton’s achievements to his role as the first professional black footballer in the English Football League, but it would also be incredibly downplayed.
Moving from Ghana to England at the age of 19 in 1882, Wharton went on to become one of history’s most well-rounded sportspeople, venturing into cricket, football, athletics and cycling.
His talents could not be confined to a single sport. He was the first recorded person to sprint 100 yards in 10 seconds and played for a number of teams both in goal and on the wing across Yorkshire and Lancashire.
Darlington, an amateur team, took Wharton on as their goalkeeper in the 1885-86 season, where he developed some curious customs. These included swinging from the crossbar, crouching in the corner of the goal, and preferring to punch the ball away rather than catch it.
After being scouted by Preston North End, he helped them reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup in 1886-87. During their third round victory against Renton, Athletic News described his performance as “one of the best exhibitions of goalkeeping I have seen for a long time”.
Wharton took a brief hiatus from football to focus on his running, but returned in 1889 with Rotherham Town. Throughout his career, he also played for Sheffield United (where he featured in the First Division), Stalybridge Rovers, Ashton North End, and Stockport County.
Despite an extraordinary career, Wharton died in poverty at 65-years-old in 1930. Due to his dire financial situation, he was sadly buried in an unmarked pauper’s grave and practically forgotten about for over 60 years.
In 1997, an anti-racism campaign by Football Unites, Racism Divides succeeded in installing a headstone to remember Wharton’s remarkable contributions to English sport. Since then, numerous campaigns have gained traction in erecting statues of the sportsman, including in the FIFA headquarters and St George’s Park National Football Centre.
More recently, a blue plaque was unveiled where Rotherham Town played, 134 years to the day since Wharton first played for them.
Image Credit: Chronicle Live