Rare Newcastle United medal from 1885 bought for £16 may now be worth thousands

A medal given to the Newcastle East End players who lifted the 1884/85 Northumberland Challenge Cup, having beaten Sleekburn Wanderers 1-0.
-Credit: (Image: David Copland)


A rare Newcastle United medal from 1885, which was bought for £16, may now be worth thousands. North East based memorabilia collector and dealer, David Copland, purchased the medal from a jewellery store in Newcastle.

Eleven of these medals were given to the Newcastle East End players who lifted the 1884/85 Northumberland Challenge Cup, having beaten Sleekburn Wanderers 1-0. With Newcastle East End later becoming Newcastle United, this trophy will go down in history as the first that the club ever won.

David, 69, said: "I tend to scour local jewellers, and on that day, I was looking for any interesting medals that I could find. Anything which is 19th century and football related, I tend to pick up, as there will always be a market there, especially if it is linked to a club or a player.

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"My initial research when I got home suggested that I was right to be excited, but after buying it in January of 2020, the pandemic started and I had forgotten about it. I have since spoken to the Newcastle United historian, who helped me confirm that the medal is almost 140 years old."

David is planning on working with Graham Budd auctions, a leading name in the sports memorabilia industry, as he has worked successfully with them in the past. In terms of the price, there is another similar situation which can provide some context.

A medal awarded to Newton Heath, the former name of Manchester United, fetched over £20,000 when it was auctioned by Graham Budd. There could be a fluctuation, as the Newcastle medal is silver rather than gold, and it is also from almost 10 years earlier than its Manchester counterpart.

David continued: "I try to save as many medals as possible before they get melted down, as you never know when one can have an incredible story behind it like this. As far as I'm aware, this is the only one of these medals to still exist, and I have provisionally been told that we're looking at something in the lower thousands

"It's now just a case of sorting out the next steps and waiting to see what happens, but I'm looking forward to seeing the reaction that it gets from those who have an interest in Newcastle United and the history of the club."