The White Rovers
The White Rovers were one of British national, was established in 1891 in Paris football club. He is one of the oldest clubs that practiced the Association variant of this ball game there; be 10:1 victory on March 1, 1892 against the International Athletic Club is the oldest recorded football match in France.
From the founders are known by name are Jack Wood, who was shortly before had professional reasons to France and had been playing football in England, also his brother Tom and two Scots named McBain and McQueen. The club was open to interested people of all nationalities, but had mainly British and Americans as members.
The Rovers (or " Routiers " in French) initially had to fear no French opponents; in addition to the aforementioned runaway victory they achieved in 1892 also a 5-1 win over Standard AC and January 1893 3-2 over the Club Français, about even the German magazine Games and Sports reported in detail. At Easter 1893 they invited the Marylebone F. C. from London to Paris, and this subject with 1:3, while a Parisian selection with 0:3 and 0:7 standard AC even lost to the English amateur club. In January 1894 was the White Rovers from the oldest French Football Federation, the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques ( USFSA ) was added and participated in the same year attend its first national championship, which in these " children years of football" but still on Paris and its environs limited. After a 11-0 against the CA Neuilly and a surprisingly meager 1-0 against the Club Français it came the end of April 1894 in the finals for the meeting against the standard AC. For the first time, the Rovers could not defeat a domestic opponents (2-2 after extra time ), and then the two clubs agreed a rematch on May 5. Both teams were ten Englishman and a Frenchman on the court - and this time the match for the Coupe Gordon Bennett, named after the founder of the Cup, the editor of the New York Herald, even with a 0-2 defeat of Routiers ended. Their lineup is narrated: Thomas; Cotton, Cox; Pullar, Exell, Gamay; Wilson, Pares, J. Wood, Young, F. Roques.
In 1895, the White Rovers qualified again after beating Paris Star (8:1) and Club Français ( 2-1 after extra time ) for the final and lost it again against Standard AC with 1:3.
From 1896 the championship was held in a round robin, which was still limited to the Paris region; seven of their eight games won the Rovers, came here on a goal difference of 35:2 - only against the Club Français put it a defeat with 1:4 quite clearly, so that for the third time in succession jumped out only the runner-up for the club. A year later the Routiers stood at the end points with standard AC at the top, and since the goal difference at the time did not count, there was a play of both teams. The point of the game had the White Rovers against the rivals still won, but when it came to the championship, they had to admit defeat with 2:3 and were for the fourth time in a row with empty hands.
1898 - many players were now returned to the UK or the USA - landed the club with 00:30 and 12:20 gates points knocked off in last place of the highest Parisian League; mindful of its tradition and success but he did not have to stay, but he could no longer team together in 1899 and broke up in the same year. On December 12, 1898, the team lost against German selection in Paris 0:7 - this meeting was the first of the so-called German Ur - internationals.
Venue
The White Rovers operated their sport on land that belonged to the railroad company Chemins de fer de l' Ouest, which was near the train station Bécon -les- Bruyeres in the western Paris suburb of Courbevoie.