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Football

Shrewsbury School crest

Shrewsbury holds an enviable record and is seen as one of the foremost schools for football in the country.

There are 19 different School teams who play matches against other schools and there is an extensive House League programme for those who are not in the main school teams to ensure that players of all abilities can enjoy the beautiful game.

We are proud that our Boys' 1st XI regularly competes in the latter stages of some of the most prestigious national school tournaments each year. At the beginning of the 2023/24 they became ISFA 6’s National Champions. The 2022/23 season saw Shrewsbury history made as the Boys' 1st XI made it through to the ESFA Cup Final - a competition that sees over 370 state and independent teams enter in the first round. Previously, in the 2021/22 season, the team celebrated an unbeaten run in the Hudl Independent Schools League (ISL); another first for the School.

The Boys' 1st XI enters the Boodles Cup and the English Schools Trophy. Shrewsbury won the Boodles Cup in 2000 and 2010 and has also won the Midlands Independent Schools League and the Shropshire Schools Cup on several occasions. 

Join us for an Open Day or book a visit and find out more

In October 2022, Shrewsbury was proud to launch the Girls' Football Programme. The launch of the Girls’ Football programme was also championed by two professional sportswomen, former England player Laura Bassett and current Manchester United player Aoife Mannion, who visited the School to meet with our girls’ football team for a Q&A session, offering the best advice to our up-and-coming players. Take a look at the news article to learn more.

Watch the video below to see highlights from the ESFA Cup Final 2023.

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Our Grounds

On our 110-acre site, there are nine full-size grass pitches, three smaller training pitches and two artificial Astroturf surfaces.

Shrewsbury has a dedicated team of expert ground staff that maintains all of the sports pitches during the season and away from it. Our 'Top Common' has full irrigation, which allows us to have first-class playing and training surfaces all year round.

Pre-season training takes place in August for the 1st XI and Under 15 squads and is a chance for current and new pupils to showcase their talent and prepare for the season ahead.

Shrewsbury players gain national recognition

Shrewsbury has a proud heritage of producing footballers that win international honours in age group ISFA representative teams including players receiving full caps.  

As well as national school representation, we also have players involved with professional clubs with current pupils in academies including Aston Villa and Shrewsbury Town.

Watch our video to hear from our latest ISFA representatives.

History of Football at Shrewsbury

Shrewsbury's footballing history dates back to the origins of the sport. The oldest copy of the Laws of the Game in the world currently resides in the School's Moser Library, Salopians having played a prominent part in the meetings held to codify the game in the mid-19th century.

Many of the early Salopian footballers often reached full international status, in the days before the game became professional.

Old Salopians have continued the tradition of success and have won the Arthur Dunn Cup on many occasions, including the first, fiftieth and centenary finals.

View a copy of the original Laws of Football

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