In August 1887, Scottish Cup holders, Hibernian, who beat Dumbarton FC 2-1 in the Scottish Final, took on Preston North End (just about the top English club at the time) in a friendly at Hib's Easter Road ground. It was advertised all over Edinburgh as "The Association Football Championship of the World". Hibs won 2-1 and had the opportunity to call themselves, the World Champions. There were not too many other "competitions" going on at the time.
Uruguay, of course, eventually were able to claim this accolade 43 years later when the first "FIFA" World Cup was played in 1930.
The "marketing" effort, by the England and Scotland FAs was a bit lame, especially since Hibs had no trophy to hoist. The following year, Scottish Cup winners, Renton (below) could lay claim to World Champions!. They were one of the first three clubs founded in the Scottish Association in 1872; the other two were Dumbarton and Vale of Leven.
Fresh from thrashing Cambuslang (who?) in a record 6-1 to win the 1887-8 Scottish FA Cup Final, Renton met English FA Cup winners, West Bromwich Albion in May 1888. WBA had beaten PNE 2-1 in the English FA Cup final.
The game was billed as the "Official World Championship of the United Kingdom and the World".
It rained very heavily on the day and Renton ripped WBA apart 4-1. The English didn't want to play the game after hearing that four lives had been lost in Glasgow that week. They soldiered on however and did not lift the foot high pewter trophy which was won by the "UK and World Champions".
Less than a month later, Renton went south to Preston NE and beat them 4-2. Preston were shortly to become Champions of the English Football League, unbeaten in their 1888-9 season.
Both FAs regarded that the bragging rites was a ludicrous concept and the "claim" was never mentioned again (outside Renton).
Renton, by the way is in West Dunbartonshire, and the club clams to have played the first ever competitive Cup tie in Scotland when they kicked off early on the first day of competition v Kilmarnock on 18th October 1873, they won 2-0 but eventually lost final to Queen's Park 3-0.
They then had Cup success in 1885 and were runners-up the following year.A "secret ingredient" in the players diet was chicken bree, a mixture or port wine and eggs. Renton were ahead of their time in preparation apparently. Alex Jackson and John O'Hare were from the village.
The Renton club took part in the English FA Cup in 1886-7 beating Accrington Stanley, Blackburn Rovers and losing to Preston NE in the third round.
Preston had previously beaten the Old Foresters (Forest School, Epping), then beat the Old Carthusians in the quarter-final and then lost to WBA in the semis.
(Cambuslang FC is in Greater Glasgow and the club became defunct in the 1890s)
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