The historic Prince Hassan Pacha 100 Yards Challenge Cup has gone on loan to the National Football Museum as part of their new exhibition Black in the Game which celebrates Black excellence in English football.
Black in the Game which is in the National Football Museum’s Score Gallery until March 2026 showcases the cultural impact, unique achievements and untold stories of African and Caribbean communities within the English game.
The exhibition champions the historical pioneers, the Three Lions ground-breakers, and those changing the game on and off the pitch, from Premier League clubs and grassroots communities to backroom staff, match officials and administrators behind the scenes.
The exhibition has been co-curated with representatives from across football’s Black heritage community. It features iconic objects, many of which will be on display at the museum for the very first time.
Included in the display is the Amateur Athletic Association Prince Hassan Pacha trophy, one of athletics’ oldest trophy’s having been awarded to the winner of the Amateur Athletic Club (later Amateur Athletic Association) 100 yard dash (later the 100 meters) since 1871. The trophy itself was donated by Prince Hassan Pacha, third son of the ruler of Egypt, Khedive Ismail Pasha in 1871, while studying at Oxford University. He attended the championships of the Amateur Athletic Club and, there being no official trophy, decided to present this one to be given each year to the winner of the event.
The winner in 1880 and 1881, and then again in 1886 and 1887 was Arthur Wharton, a supremely talented competitor across many sports. His 1886 win at the AAA Championships at Stamford Bridge saw him equal the amateur world record of 10 seconds for the 100 yards. Alongside sprinting success he was also a cricketer, playing in the Yorkshire and Lancashire leagues, a rugby player for Darlington and Rotherham, and would go on to become England’s first professional black footballer in the Football League. Playing as a goalkeeper for various clubs in the Northeast during the 1880s alongside his other sports, Wharton signed as a professional footballer for Rotherham Town in 1889. He moved to Sheffield United in 1895, and played also for Stalybridge Rovers, Ashton North End and Stockport County in a career that ran until 1902.
You can find Wharton’s name on the Prince Hassan Pacha Cup at the National Football Museum until the 15th March 2026.