| A&BC Chewing Gum. A&BC Chewing Gum hold a special place in the history of football card production, producing a stunning array of high quality cards over a long period of time. The level of interest in these cards has led to this website displaying all of A&BC's football related output, dating back to 1954. A special 6-part history of A&BC Chewing Gum has been produced by this website. Click to begin Part 1. To view A&BC Scottish football cards click here. |
| 1954 | ||
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'All Sport' series.
A set of 120 black and white photograph cards with plain backs. The
chewing gum was issued in a wrapper which said 'All Sport, Picture
Bubble Gum'. There was a coupon on the wrapper which you could use to
send away with 1/- to 'All Sports", 59 Oak Grove, Cricklewood, London,
NW3. The coupons could be used to acquire an album 'Send 1/- and only 5
coupons for your super giant 20 page album containing a full history of
all the sportsmen and sportswomen in this series'. Number in set: 120 (36 footballers) Gallery: N/A Checklists: N/A |
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| 1958/59 | ||
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Topstars - Famous Footballers. A&BC Chewing Gum's first
dedicated football card sets. There are two series of these cards,
numbers 1 to 46 (Series 1) and 47 to 92 (Series 2). For Series 1 there are two versions of the set, commonly referred to as 'Planet', due to an offer printed at the top of some of the cards. In Series 1, the 'Planet' cards have black and red backs, while the non-Planet cards have blue and red backs. Interestingly, there are also two different card printing sizes for the Series 1 non-Planet cards, with some cards slightly larger and with a larger printed image than other cards in the set. Click here for a discussion and images of the card size variations. All cards in Series 2 have, or originally had, the Planet offer at the top and therefore have black and red backs. The text of the offer is 'Send your name and address with 1/- P.O. for 32 page FOOTBALL ALBUM to PLANET LTD., 50 Hampstead Road, N.W. 1. The wrapper has text which states 'Send 1 wrapper and 1/- P.O for your TOPSTAR ALBUM'. Write your name and address on separate paper. The address on the wrapper is A&BC Chewing Gum Ltd., London N.W. 9. Click to view the Topstars Album of Famous Footballers. Number in set: 92 Gallery: Series 1, Series 2 Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist Special: Topstars Album of Famous Footballers Special: Card size variations |
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| 1959/60 | ||
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Footballer. A set of
98 red backed cards issued in two series, Series 1 (1 to 49) and Series
2 (50 to 98). The backs have a 'Football Quiz', which is how this set is
often referenced. The wrappers do not have an album offer, but state 'Manufactured under licence with Topps Chewing Gum Inc., N.Y., U.S.A.'. This ties in with the A&BC history which reports that Topps bought in to A&BC in 1959 (see A&BC Chewing Gum history Part 2). Number in set: 98 Gallery: Series 1, Series 2 Checklists: Series 1, Series 2, Team checklist |
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| 1960/61 | ||
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Footballers - Black backs.
A set of 84 cards issued in two series, Series 1 (1 to 42) and Series 2 (43 to 84). There are thought to be two wrappers with this set, perhaps one for each series, with a price rise in between? The wrappers state 'Send 5 wrappers and 1/- postal order with your name and address to A.& B.C. Chewing Gum Ltd., Harold Hill, Romford, Essex for your album'. Number in set: 84 Gallery: Series 1, Series 2 Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1961/62 | ||
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Footballers.
A set of black and white photograph cards with
signatures printed over the photos, plain backs. Issued in two series,
Series 1 (1 to 32) and Series 2 (33 to 64). Number in set: 64 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1962/63 | ||
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Footballers - Bazooka.
An attractive set of 80 cards plus two
checklists, repeating the 'colour-framed' style from the 1960/61 black
backs. I'm not sure whether this was issued as two series (i.e. one half
of the cards issued at the start of the season and the other half
later), but they do have two checklists. Number in set: 82 Gallery: Cards 1-40, Cards 41-82 Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1963/64 | ||
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Footballers - Make-a-Photo.
Issued in two series, Series 1 (1 to 55) and Series 2 (56 to 110). Number in set: 110 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1964/65 | ||
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Footballers - Quiz.
A&BC continue to grow the size of the sets, this time issuing the cards
in three series, Series 1 (1 to 58), Series 2 (59 to 103) and Series 3
(104 to 149). Number in set: 149 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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1966/67 |
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Footballers.
A set of 220 black and white cards in two series (1-110 and 111-220)
issued in pairs, but most often seen as singles. The 2nd series differs
in that the player name is printed on the front of the card. There are 8 checklist cards for the 1st
series, all being parts of a picture of the 1966 England World Cup
Winning Team. The 8 checklists from the 2nd series form a picture of the
runners-up - West Germany. The sets must have been produced in September 1966, since they include details of transfers which occurred early in the 1966/67 season e.g. Card 95 Colin Dobson but not October transfers e.g. Card 177 Dominic Sharkey.
Number in set: 220 |
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World Cup
Footballer Stickers (also known as World Cup Stamps).
50 stickers/stamps sold by A&BC. These are very, very rare. For the price of 1d. you received a piece of bubble gum, plus one sticker. Some stamps depict players (vertical), while others depict players and their teams (horizontal). Many thanks to one particular website visitor who contributed most of these images.
Number in set: 50 |
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Promotional badges.
These badges include the text 'Featured in A&BC's Footballer Bubble
Gum'. Douglas Coakley, one of original founders of A&BC Chewing Gum, tells me
that the badges were produced as promotional items to giveaway at sales
and marketing events to promote the bubble gum packs and football cards.
He can't recall the exact dates, but the featured players strongly
suggest the 1966 World Cup Squad. Originally throw-away items, these
badges are now very collectable. They are surprisingly small, being 18mm
or 0.7" diameter. Number in set: 12 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1967/68 | ||
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Footballer (Star Players).
A small set of colourful cards, sometimes referred to as 'Black backs'.
No checklists.
Number in set:
55 |
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England's Stars pin-ups. An attractive set of 'pin-up' posters given away
in the packets of Star Players. Since these pin-ups were squeezed into
the bubble gum packets they always have the creases. Number in set: 12 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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| 1968/69 | ||
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Footballer
- Yellow backs. My own all-time favourite set of football cards. A
neat, classy set with a Football Quiz and Magic Answer on the back.
Series 1 comprises cards 1 to 54 (Checklist is card 1), and Series 2
comprises cards 55 to 101 (Checklist card 55). Number in set: 101 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Series 1 (1-54), Series 2 (55-101), Team checklist Special: A&BC Chewing Gum variants and error cards Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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Team
pennants.
Team pennants folded in the yellow back card packets, hence the
folds whenever you see these attractive pennants. The pennants have
instructions to 'Cut out Pennant along black line' but thankfully not
too many boys seem to have done this. They were issued with Series 1 of
the Yellow Backs in 1968. Number in set: 26 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist |
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Team emblems.
These shiny cards don't scan too well. They were issued with Series 2 of
the Yellow Backs in 1968. Number in set: 20 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist |
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| 1969/70 | ||
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Football
- Green backs. Another popular A&BC set. The backs included a
Football Facts quiz. Series 1 comprises cards 1 to 64, Series 2 cards 65
to 117 and Series 3 cards 117 to 170. The 3 checklist cards are
unnumbered. Two players (Lawrence and Woodfield) have card number 117.
Number in set:
174 |
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Crinkle-cut
photographs. Attractive
black and white photograph cards with a
crinkle-cut edge. Numbers 1 to 18 were issued with Series 2 of the Green
Backs. Numbers 19 to 36 were issued with Series 3. Number in set: 36 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Series 1 (1-18), Series 2 (19-36), Team checklist |
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World Cup
Posters. A super set of
posters. You bought the posters through buying the bubble gum packets
(6d each). The player photographs (see below) came for free with the
posters. Number in set: 16 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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World Cup
Footballers. Super
attractive cards for the 1970 England World Cup Squad. Available in two
forms - with or without an embossed Jules Rimet trophy. These cards were
issued with the World Cup Posters above. Number in set: 37 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1970/71 | ||
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Footballer
- Orange backs. A large set of attractive cards, issued in 3 sets.
Series 1 comprises cards 1 to 84 (checklist), Series 2 cards 85
(checklist) to 169 and Series 3 cards 170 (checklist) to 255. The
galleries available for this set include full player appearances for
1970/71 plus team results home and away, with goalscorer. An interesting feature of this set is that it includes 21 of the 22 sides playing in the First Division in 1970/71. Huddersfield Town, promoted from the Second Division in 1969/70, are not included. Number in set: 255 Gallery: Arsenal, Blackpool, Burnley, Chelsea, Coventry City, Crystal Palace, Derby County, Everton, Ipswich Town, Leeds United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, Stoke City, Tottenham Hotspur, West Bromwich Albion, West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Checklists Checklists: Series 1 (1-84), Series 2 (85-169), Series 3 (170-255), Team checklist Special: Orange-back wrappers gallery Special: A&BC Chewing Gum variants and error cards Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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Pin-up posters. An attractive set of 'pin-up' posters
issued with Series 1 of the Orange Backs. Since these pin-ups were squeezed into the bubble gum packets they always have the creases.
Number in set:
14 |
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Action Transfers. Very small stickers which include the instructions
'Peel off back and rub picture with ball point'. Most of these
transparencies would have been so attached to school books and other
surfaces, so very few have survived intact. These transfers were issued
with Series 2 and 3 of the Orange Backs. Number in set: 72 Gallery: Set gallery Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1971/72 | ||
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Footballers
- Purple backs. Perhaps not one of A&BC's better designed sets. The
backs are stylish, but the fronts don't have the same appeal as in
previous years. Series 1 comprises cards 1 to 109 (checklist 57), Series
2 cards 110 to 219 (checklist 170) and Series 3 cards 220 to 290
(checklist 277). Number in set: 290 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Series 1 (1-109), Series 2 (110-219), Series 3 (220-290), Team checklist Special: Purple-back wrappers gallery Special: A&BC Chewing Gum variants and error cards Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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Football
club crests. A set of strange looking stickers which were issued
with Series 2 of the Purple backs. They belonged in an album
(cost 8p) which could be ordered from: A&BC Footballer Album A&BC Chewing Gum Ltd. Spilsby Road, Romford, Essex Number in set: 23 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Set checklist |
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Footballer
Superstars. Attractive stickers which were issued with Series 3 of
the Purple backs. These
stickers, like the crests, advertise the A&BC Footballer Album to stick
them in. Number in set: 23 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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| 1972/73 | ||
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Footballers
- Orange/Red backs. A&BC back to basics with a well-designed set of
attractive cards. This set comprises 2 series: cards 1 to 109 (checklist
45), and 110 to 219 (checklist 154). Number in set: 219 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist Special: Orange-red-back wrappers gallery Special: A&BC Chewing Gum variants and error cards Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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Football
card game. I have no idea what A&BC thought they were doing issuing
a card game. The quality of the printing is terrible, as you can see
from the scan. The images are printed in all different directions and
often off the sides of the cards! These cards were issued with Series 2 of the Orange/Red backs. The images on the cards appear identical to the images on the Footballer cards, without the backgrounds.
Number in set:
22 |
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| 1973/74 | ||
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Footballers
- Blue backs. A&BC entered the era of scary hairstyles with a classy
and popular set. The set was issued in 2 series: cards 1 to 131
(checklist 36) and 132 to 264 (checklist 182). Quality control was still
not a priority for A&BC with cards 235, 262 and 264 never issued.
Number in set: 262 (including the two
variants of the checklist) |
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Crinkle-cut
photographs. Another A&BC
set of black and white photographs, similar to the 1969/70 set but these
tend to be action, rather than head, shots. Quality is again an issue,
with the paper tending to age and therefore make this set appear older
than they really are. These cards were issued with Series 2 of the
Blue back set. Number in set: 32 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Set checklist, Team checklist |
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Giant Team Posters.
Large posters of the top English and Scottish teams, each with 12 player
portraits. The posters were collectable from packets of gum costing 4p
each. Number in set: 16 Gallery: N/A Checklists: Set checklist Special: A&BC counter boxes gallery |
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| 1974/75 | ||
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Footballers
- Red backs. The last ever A&BC Footballers production before the
takeover by Topps. A small set, only 132 cards, and no special
giveaways. Checklist card is number 13.
Number in set: 132
Checklists:
Set checklist,
Team checklist |
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Cup Winner, Bag of Fun.
Over the years there has been much speculation amongst collectors about
whether or not A&BC ever issued 'Lucky bags', which were, allegedly,
paper bags containing an assortment of football cards leftover from
previous issues. The images shown at right, kindly sent in by a couple of website visitors, are of a paper bag from a previously unknown company called 'A&BC Novelties' albeit from the same address as A&BC Chewing Gum Limited. What these bags contained is not clear, but at least one visitor has confirmed that they included 1974 World Cup souvenir posters (each measuring 6" x 4½"), forming a set of 12. Frustratingly these posters do not include the A&BC name. What is going on here? Well, by this time A&BC had been in dispute with Topps for some time and were heading towards their unfortunate demise late in 1974. The World Cup was held in June/July 1974 so it is not clear what A&BC Novelties were trying to do, or who was running the 'new' company. Douglas Coakley does not remember issuing these Cup Winner, Bag of Fun bags, though he does recall 'Lucky Bags' (date unknown). Click for an incomplete image gallery of the set of 12 1974 World Cup souvenir poster cards. |
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