Arthur Drewry (3 March 1891 – 25 March 1961) was an English football administrator who served as the fifth president of FIFA, the world

governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ...

of association football, from 1955 to 1961. Drewry had held several football administration posts in his native England, serving as chairman of

The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world a ...

and president of

The Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

Biography

Drewry was born in

Grimsby, Lincolnshire Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town and the administrative centre of North East Lincolnshire, Lincolnshire, England. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes directly to the south-east forming a conurbation. Grimsby is north-east of Linco ...

, and educated at the Grimsby Collegiate School.Our Association Football Correspondent. "Mr. Arthur Drewry." ''The Times'', London, 27 March 1961, pg 19. In 1911 Drewry joined the Lincolnshire Yeomanry and served in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

with the 1/1st Lincolnshire Yeomanry in Palestine. Drewry reached the rank of

quartermaster sergeant Quartermaster sergeant (QMS) is a class of rank or appointment in some armed forces, especially those of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, and formerly also in the United States. Ireland Quartermaster sergeant () appointments in the Irish ...

with his squadron in the Yeomanry. After the war, in 1919, Drewry married the daughter of a Grimsby fish merchant, and Drewry would run his father-in-law's business until his retirement in 1953. In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

Drewry served as North Lincolnshire's head warden and chief fire guard. Drewry held several civic roles in his native Grimsby, serving both as a borough councillor and a Justice of the Peace.

English football administration

Drewry's career in football administration began with his serving as a director of

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...

, the chairman of the club was Drewry's father-in-law, and Drewry himself would also become chairman of the club. Drewry later served as President of the Football League from 1949 to 1955. Drewry served on the Football Association's International Selection Committee from 1944, and after his presidency of the Football League served as chairman of

(FA) from 1955 to 1961. Drewry succeeded Amos Brook Hirst as chairman of the FA; Hirst had resigned due to ill health. As chair of the FA Drewry once proposed awarding a point to league teams for every goal scored to encourage offensive football. Drewry's proposals were rejected by the teams. Drewry played a significant role in the 1950 game between England and the United States in which the English lost 1–0 to the rank outsiders in the

1950 FIFA World Cup The 1950 FIFA World Cup was the fourth edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and held in Brazil from 24 June to 16 July 1950. The planned 1942 and 1946 World Cups were ...

in Belo Horizonte.''The Guardian'', London, 20 March 2003, pg 63. The English national coach,

Walter Winterbottom Sir Walter Winterbottom (31 March 1913 – 16 February 2002) was an English football player and coach. He was the first manager of the England national team (1946–1962) and Director of Coaching for The Football Association (the FA). He ...

, had wanted to rest some players for the next game against Spain, but was over-ruled by Drewry, acting as sole selector, who chose an unchanged team from their last game, a 2–0 win against Chile.

Stanley Rous Sir Stanley Ford Rous (25 April 1895 – 18 July 1986) was an English football referee and the 6th President of FIFA, serving from 1961 to 1974. He also served as secretary of the Football Association from 1934 to 1962 and was an international ...

, Drewry's secretary at the FA, visited him and urged him to include

Stanley Matthews Sir Stanley Matthews, CBE (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English footballer who played as an outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the British game, he is the only player to have been knighted while sti ...

and make other changes to the team, but Drewry was adamant in his desire to keep an unchanged team. After the loss against the United States, Drewry acquiesced to four changes to the team, but England lost their next game to Spain 1–0, and as a result were eliminated from the tournament. In

1953 Coronation Honours The 1953 Coronation Honours were appointments by Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours on the occasion of her coronation on 2 June 1953. The honours were published in '' The London Gazette'' on 1 June 1953.New Zealand list: The re ...

, Drewry appointed a Commander of Order of the British Empire (CBE). Following the Munich air disaster on 6 February 1958 which claimed the lives of a number of Manchester United staff and personnel, Drewry was appointed chairman in March of the fundraising committee for dependents of those involved in the disaster. The funds raised had reached £52,000 () by the time of their disbursement in October 1958. In his capacity as chair of the FA, Drewry was one of six football officials sued by five Sunderland players who were suspended in 1957 for refusing to answer questions about possible illegal payments.''The Guardian'', London, 10 October 1959, pg. 2

served as Drewry's secretary at the FA. Drewry and Rous travelled to Switzerland in 1945, to the headquarters of FIFA to successfully negotiate for the re-admittance of the British

Home Nations Home Nations is a collective term with one of two meanings depending on context. Politically it means the nations of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales). In sport, if a sport is g ...

to FIFA.

President of FIFA

Drewry had been appointed the vice-president of FIFA by

Jules Rimet Jules Rimet (; 14 October 1873 – 16 October 1956) was a French football administrator who was the 3rd President of FIFA, serving from 1921 to 1954. He is FIFA's longest-serving president, in office for 33 years. He also served as the presid ...

, and served as the interim president for the six months following the death of Rimet's presidential successor, Belgian

Rodolphe William Seeldrayers Rodolphe William Seeldrayers (December 16, 1876 – October 7, 1955) was a Belgian football administrator who was the fourth President of FIFA, serving from 1954 to 1955. He was actively involved in the official associations of Belgium s ...

. At the 30th

FIFA Congress The FIFA Congress is the supreme legislative body of the International Association Football Federation (French: Fédération Internationale de Football Association), commonly known by the acronym FIFA . FIFA is the international governing body of ...

in Lisbon, Portugal, Drewry defeated France's M. Larfarge by 38 votes to 16 for the presidency. Drewry oversaw the 1958 FIFA World Cup during his term in office, and ultimately served as president for five years before his death from a year-long illness in 1961. Drewry was the third FIFA president to die in office.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drewry, Arthur 1891 births 1961 deaths British Army personnel of World War I Chairmen of the Football Association Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Councillors in Lincolnshire English football chairmen and investors Grimsby Town F.C. People from Grimsby Presidents of FIFA Presidents of the English Football League Lincolnshire Yeomanry soldiers English justices of the peace 20th-century English businesspeople