Football's popularity soars as Pompey are only the second southern team to become Champions, Mike Ticher writes
The long-term significance
Never has football been more popular than in the third full season after the war. Or, to put it another way, never have people’s lives been so bereft of entertainment and escape that they gorged themselves even on the Third Division South. Clothes rationing ended in 1949, but half-time tea and sugar were still restricted until the 1950s, as were petrol and soap. Almost 18 million glamour-starved people watched First Division football (compared with nearly 13 million for the Premiership last season). But the most remarkable figures were in the third divisions, where the presence of Raich Carter and Tommy Lawton pushed average crowds above 30,000 at Hull and Notts County, respectively. Seven current League clubs drew their record crowd that season.