The oldest football magazine is....
The oldest football magazine is....
If we define a Football Magazine (as opposed to a Football Newspaper) as having the following characteristics:
The content is exclusively about football.
It is not a comic aimed at children or teenagers.
It is available to the mass market not a footballing sub group of the game.
It is published periodically (weekly or monthly not daily.)
It is printed on better quality paper than newspaper stock.
Based on these (subjective) definitions this creates the following judgements:
First Football newspaper : The Goal: The Chronicle of Football was first published 22nd November 1873. According to J.A.H. Catton it was issued by a Mr E.M. Fraser of the Crescent,169 Camden Road, London ,N.W.The British Library has it running for only 21 or 22 editions and ceasing on April 25th 1874.
Oldest European Football Newspaper (and still running): La Gazzetta dello Sport in 1896- Italian
Oldest British Magazine : The Book of Football. It was a serialised magazine published in 12 fortnightly instalments during the course of the 1905/06 season.
Oldest British Football Magazine: Charles Buchans Football Monthly in 1951. As opposed to the Book of Football this was designed to come out every month and did so for over twenty years.
BBritains oldest Football Weekly Magazine:Raich Carter's Soccer Star.
Britains oldest "Glossy" Football Weekly Magazine:Jimmy Hill's Football Weekly.
Oldest British Football Magazine still running: World Soccer since 1960.
Oldest European Football Magazine still running: France Football 1946 (started as a newspaper and is now a magazine)
Oldest Worldwide Football Magazine still running: El Grafico in 1919- Argentinian.(started as a newspaper and is now a magazine celebrating it's 90th anniversary)
Oldest British Football comic: The Scorcher in 1970.
Oldest football specific "Boys Paper":The Boys Realm's Football Library" in 1909.
(Before "Comics" there was "Boys Papers" and according to Adam Riches in his excellent book "Football's Comic Book Heroes" the first exclusively football Boys paper was "The Boys Realm's Football Library". )