Links With The Past: 1939/40 Leicester City Season Ticket

Heritage
12 Oct 2020
1 Minute
In the latest edition of LCFC.com's Links With The Past series, Club Historian John Hutchinson uncovers an 81-year-old LCFC Season Ticket, which dates from the only unfinished season in Football League history.

Supporter David Hardy, whose family has supported Leicester Fosse and Leicester City for six generations, recently donated this Season Ticket from 1939/40 to the Club’s archives.

It has great historical significance because the outbreak of the Second World War on 3 September, 1939 caused the season to be cancelled after only three games.

Signed by the Club Secretary, each slip offered entry for the corresponding fixture.

The Season Ticket belonged to David’s late grandfather. It cost two pounds seven shillings (£2.35), which would be £154.60 in today’s values.

It admitted the holder to the ‘Reserved Stand-Gents’ at Filbert Street, the Club's home venue between 1891 and 2002 - spanning 111 years before moving to King Power Stadium.

Each match for the season had a number and the corresponding number on the perforated slips in the Season Ticket booklet gained admittance on matchday.

This particular Season Ticket includes hand-written entries.

Only three numbered slips of the 44 available in the booklet were able to be used prior to the season being cancelled.

The fixture lists contained in the booklet indicate that these slips would have been used for the first team match against Manchester City, and two reserve fixtures from the three played before war was declared.

A document in the Club’s archives reveals that Season Ticket Holders were given a credit note for 10 shillings (50p) to be taken in part payment for future season ticket once the war was over.