There are many stories about how the world's most popular flick-football game got its name.

Originally it was to be called 'The Hobby', but for legal reasons this name could not be registered. It was found however, that the Latin name for the 'Hobby' bird is Falco Subbuteo… and from there onwards, 'Subbuteo' was born.

From post-war game to worldwide legend

1940s

Peter Adolph launched the Subbuteo Table Soccer game in 1947 from his base in Tunbridge Wells, England. It was an instant success.

The original 'Assembly' set was made up of two cardboard teams, a celluloid ball and two metal-framed goals with paper netting. A playing pitch was not included, so the instructions advised recipients to "... mark your pitch (chalk provided) on an ex-army blanket" and thousands of people did just that.

The first sets were made up of two cardboard team sheets with printed players (which needed to be cut out), 20 small plastic bases for the outfield players, and two rectangular brown bases for the goalkeepers (with metal rods for control). The goal frames were assembled from metal wire (the crossbars were a separate piece), and the goal was finished with a card net. Players were also given a piece of chalk to keep score with.

1960s

In the 1960s, Subbuteo released a range of new 3D plastic moulded figures, as well as a range of accessories, including floodlights and TV towers.

Following the euphoria of the 1966 World Cup, Subbuteo mania was born, with factories across Europe now producing plastic men.

1970s

At the peak of Subbuteo's popularity in the 1970s, you could get over 300 teams - as well as a huge range of new accessories, including throw-in figures, corner kickers and stadiums. In a recent survey (2002) it was estimated that over 90% of fathers in the UK over 30 owned Subbuteo sets.

1980s

In the 1980s there were nearly 7 million Subbuteo players worldwide and the company were producing over 750 kits. Andrea Piccaluga, table football world champion, had his flicking finger insured for £150 000.

1990s

New development of a new, one piece moulded plastic base, still with the same iconic figures inserted into them were created in the 90s. With a huge fan base, flick-football fans throughout the world continued to play and build their squads.

2000s

As the new Millennium dawned, the legend continues, with photo realistic players from some of the best clubs in the world, state of the art pitch, dream team stadium, collectors skill sets and advanced bases.

Subbuteo is even bigger than ever and fathers, mothers, sons and daughters will enjoy playing Subbuteo for years to come.