Twenty years ago today, the very last edition of the Sports Argus was printed, marking the end of a 109-year era. Football and sports fans of a certain vintage look back fondly at the beloved 'Pink', which first launched in February 1897. The final copies on May 13, 2006, carried tributes from West Midlands sports stars and letters from devoted readers celebrating its tradition and mourning its demise.
A Saturday Night Staple
Long before the National Lottery, queues formed outside newsagents in Birmingham, the Black Country, and beyond on Saturday teatimes as fans awaited their football fix. Those who attended matches timed their journeys home to coincide with the arrival of Argus vans to get a second opinion on what they had witnessed. Some believed supporters were more likely to buy it if their team had won. With limited football success in the region since 2006, the lack of victories would have hit circulation anyway, had the internet not arrived first.
The Final Edition
The last edition showed why the format had had its day. By 2006, the Argus had evolved from its original strapline 'A Journal Of All Manly Pastimes' from 1897, but time had moved on even further. It was FA Cup final day, with Liverpool facing West Ham at the Millennium Stadium. The match went to extra time after a Steven Gerrard screamer made it 3-3, forcing the paper to press while the game was still ongoing. Shrewd sub-editors used the headline 'Nailbiter!'—and Liverpool won 3-1 on penalties.
The Internet's Impact
By the last Saturday edition, readers could check results online, making the Pink outdated upon arrival. Results from the Premier League to the Birmingham AFA were online before the Argus hit the streets. The internet and social media sounded the death knell for Saturday pinks across the country.
My journalism career included non-league freelancing for the Argus. I phoned in match reports from a plug-in telephone at football grounds. There's nothing quite like anxiously reading a hasty rewrite over a dodgy phoneline to a seemingly hard-of-hearing copytaker when a last-minute goal ruins your intro. Great times!
The Sports Argus is gone but not forgotten. Whether you bought a copy, read it over a stranger's shoulder at the bus stop, or glanced at a well-thumbed edition in the pub, take a moment to remember the Pink.
