The Eton Wall Game

The Eton Wall Game

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This is as exclusive as sports get. The Eton Wall Game has just one important match a year, there's just one pitch in the world, and you have to be connected to Eton College - one of the world's most exclusive schools - to play.

But while the outfits and rules of the game seem like something from a bygone era, the sport is still going strong today.

. ETON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

One big match takes place per year around St Andrew's Day, when Eton's Collegers (scholarship holders) and Oppidans (full-fee-paying pupils) go head to head. The game is played up against an 110-meter-long wall that was built in 1717, on a pitch just five meters wide. Both teams try to get the ball down to the other end of the pitch to score a goal, but this is no easy matter - the last one was scored in 1909.

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Slideshow

A boy on the Collegers team pulls up his socks during the Eton Wall Game, which originated in 1766.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

A boy on the Collegers team pulls up his socks during the Eton Wall Game, which originated in 1766.

With their faces painted purple and white, the Collegers walks towards the pitch.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

With their faces painted purple and white, the Collegers walks towards the pitch.

Some of the players climb the wall before the game kicks off.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Some of the players climb the wall before the game kicks off.

Eton College Chapel is visible in the background as the Collegers have a team talk during half time.
. ETON, UK. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Eton College Chapel is visible in the background as the Collegers have a team talk during half time.

Etonians sit on the wall to watch Collegers and Oppidans compete.
. ETON, UK. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Etonians sit on the wall to watch Collegers and Oppidans compete.

The Collegers and Oppidans teams play the game. The idea is to move the ball along the wall with your feet and score a goal at the far end.
. ETON, UK. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

The Collegers and Oppidans teams play the game. The idea is to move the ball along the wall with your feet and score a goal at the far end.

The Collegers and the Oppidans run for the ball.
. ETON, UK. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

The Collegers and the Oppidans run for the ball.

The rules of the game are somewhat similar to parts of football and rugby.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

The rules of the game are somewhat similar to parts of football and rugby.

Oppidans stand on the pitch.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Oppidans stand on the pitch.

Etonians watch the game.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Etonians watch the game.

The referee waits for play to restart.
. ETON, UK. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

The referee waits for play to restart.

A player stretches out to kick the ball.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

A player stretches out to kick the ball.

A player ends up on the floor.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

A player ends up on the floor.

A player's feet are pressed up against the wall.
. ETON, UK. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

A player's feet are pressed up against the wall.

Etonians watch the game behind a rope barrier.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Etonians watch the game behind a rope barrier.

Members of the Oppidans team kneel by the wall during the game.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Members of the Oppidans team kneel by the wall during the game.

A member of the Collegers team stands with his hands on his hips.
. LONDON, United Kingdom. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

A member of the Collegers team stands with his hands on his hips.

Both teams pose for a photograph after the game.
. ETON, UK. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Both teams pose for a photograph after the game.

"It’s highly possible that one of the boys in these pictures will enter Downing Street as Prime Minister one day."
Eddie Keogh, Reuters Photographer

Wouldn’t it be lovely if we could step back in time? I know I never will, but occasionally you come across a scene that has barely changed for hundreds of years. This was certainly the case when I visited Eton College this week to photograph the annual Eton Wall Game between the Collegers (scholarship holders) and the Oppidans (full-fee-paying pupils).

Sport doesn’t get more elite than this. There is only one important match a year, there is only one pitch of its kind in the world and you need to be connected to Eton College, one of the most exclusive public schools in the world, to play. Bear in mind that this school has produced 19 British prime ministers including the present one, Mr David Cameron. It’s highly possible that one of the boys in these pictures will enter Downing Street as prime minister one day.

The game has a long history here with the first recorded one taking place in 1766. It encompasses elements of both soccer and rugby, but the unusual bit is that it’s all played up against a brick wall 110 meters long on a pitch that is only five meters wide.

I won’t attempt to explain the myriad of rules, needless to say you need to go to a good school to understand them all. Understanding Harry Potter’s game of Quidditch is easier.

Prince Harry most famously played the game back in 2002. I imagine I would have been rubbing shoulders with a few more photographers there that day.

Now, wouldn’t it be lovely if we could step forward in time? Imagine a future where the game’s popularity has grown around the country. It’s now being shown live on Sky Sports and this Sunday’s headline fixture is Eton v Millwall. Maybe that’s just one wall too far…