1963 - The Pools Panel Gets Going

Former Footballer Ted Drake and later Manager Of Chelsea F.C. joined the board of the Pools Panel at it’s early stages. AOP

In January, decades after the Football Pool Promoter’s Association was formed, Vernons and the other pools companies come together for one more time to introduce a board known as the Pools Panel. This action is an immediate response to issues resulting from matches being postponed and their results adjudicated due to the Big Freeze – a particularly cold winter that year. The board is offered a shedload of money and a luxurious stay at a swanky hotel to predict the outcomes of the week’s fixtures. On 23rd January, the members predict 7 draws, 8 away victories and 23 home victories; their results are broadcast on television. The deductions are then used to settle pools coupons of abandoned fixtures. Initially joined by former footballers Ted Drake, Tommy Lawton, Tom Finney and George Young and ex-referee Arthur Edward Ellis, the Pools Panel soon sees other ex-players and officials signing up for membership.