The Netherlands came late to 19th-century industrial revolution but when modernization occurred, it prompted an almost feverish cultural and social 'Anglomania'. Elite youngsters enthusiastically appropriated sports such as cricket and football, which were introduced and promoted by English native speaker …

This article illustrates the ‘visual turn’ approach to sports history in an analysis of traditionally under-researched material from the late nineteenth century. Focusing on football (‘soccer’) action photography, we argue that interpreting this visual material contributes significantly to the exploration …