Conclusion: playing the long-ball game: future directions in the study of football and migration

Football and migration have been entwined since the late nineteenth century. Indeed the development and diffusion of the game beyond British soil occurred as a consequence of the movements of migrant workers. Railwaymen, electrical contractors, sailors and tradesmen were amongst some of the earliest migrants to take the game to others countries and continents. Arguably, most famous amongst this group was Charles Miller, the son of a Scottish railway engineer. Born in São Paulo, Brazil, but educated in Southampton, England, when Charles Miller returned to Brazil in 1894 he took with him two footballs and a copy of the rules of association football. Widely credited as the ‘father of football’ in Brazil, Miller is also remembered in Southampton. A mural leading to Southampton FC’s St Mary’s stadium depicts an image of him framed alongside a representation of the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro. An inscription reads: “In 1894 Charles Miller took two footballs to Brazil and the rest is history …” The images and text underline the ubiquity of migration in the development of the modern game.