The Dayne's Cup: The Historic Cup You've Never Heard Of
The FA Cup was founded in 1871. Copa Del Rey was founded in 1903. The U.S. Open Cup was founded in 1914. Coppa Italia was founded in 1922. DFB Pokal was founded in 1935. What do all of these have in common? Clearly they're are all famous domestic Cup competitions. They also happen to be very historical. However, there is another cup competition just as historic as these; unfortunately known by too few.
The Dayne’s Challenge Cup, founded in 1906, happens to be the oldest ongoing sports tournament in Utah, a state in the western United States which is often forgotten about. Most people who are familiar with Utah will talk about the beautiful red rock formations, such as the historic arch in Southern Utah; or maybe the legendary snow and skiing in the famous Wasatch Mountains in Northern Utah. However the Dayne’s Challenge Cup is so historic, that soccer fans across the US should equate Utah with this fantastic cup competition. After all, the first soccer club in Utah was founded in 1882 in Salt Lake City; six years before the first club in the famous football loving Brazil was founded (São Paulo Athletic Club, 1888). So, what exactly is the Daynes Cup?
In 1906, the Daynes Challenge Cup was founded by jeweler J. Fred Daynes. The Cup he constructed and donated was an exact replica of the original aforementioned FA Cup. It was made of pure silver in 1906, valued at $500 (equivalent to $17,000 in 2024 US dollars).
The actual competition began in 1906. Besides WWI, WWII, and Covid-19, it has been played every year since. In 2023, the 102nd Daynes Challenge Cup Final was won by Red Devils FC in a sudden death penalty shootout 5-4, after tying the match up 3-3 in the 85’. They became back-to-back champions, having also won in 2022. Since the beginning, it has been hosted by the Utah Adult Soccer Association. In its current form, the Daynes Challenge Cup is contested by every team in the State’s association Premier Division.
In the early years, there were two powerhouses in the state. The first was Salt Lake AFC from the state’s capital, with all of the resources that come from being in the capital city such as: money and a larger player pool. The other powerhouse was from the small mining town of Eureka. This team was built from hard-nosed miners, mostly immigrants from England. These two clubs would battle it out for the better part of two decades. The Inaugural Daynes Challenge Cup, hosted in 1906, was won by Salt Lake AFC, becoming the State Champions (the Daynes Challenge Cup also acted as the State Championship from 1906-1939). With the added resources Salt Lake had, they were able to recruit an “expert” from Scotland, Alex “Sandy” McWhirter. “It is claimed for him that he wears medals as an exponent of the socker game,” wrote the Salt Lake Herald. In 1907, Eureka avenged their loss from the previous year to beat Salt Lake for their first title. These two clubs would trade Daynes Cup victories for the next three years (Salt Lake winning again in 1908, Eureka in 1909, and Salt Lake again in 1910). Because of the competition between these teams, as well as Salt Lake being almost an all Scottish club and Eureka an all English club, this turned into a heated rivalry. Because of this, these first five Cup Finals drew attendances of around 500 spectators each year; a respectable crowd size for the sport in the early years. After these first few years, Eureka was “dead.” They would revive the club in 1912 with not much success until winning the Inaugural Schubach Cup in 1916 as their final triumph of a club. Salt Lake would go on to win three more Daynes Cups, for a total of 6.
After the very early years, the cup began to be dominated by clubs with different nationalities. In the 1920’s, Caledonians (a Salt Lake based club made up of immigrants from Great Britain: Welsh, Scots, and English) dominated.
In the 1930’s, two other clubs began challenging Caledonians. These two clubs were Vikings, a club formed by Norwegians in 1922, and AC Germania, a club formed by Germans in 1927. Both of these clubs still exist and are the oldest clubs in the State of Utah. Alf Engen, a famous Norwegian Skier, often thought of as the Father of Utah Skiing. Today the Alf Engen Ski History Museum in Park City Utah honors his accomplishments in winter sports. He was also a great footballer for his Viking team. According to his son Alan, those who knew him thought Alf was a better soccer player than skier. He was already a celebrity in his native Norway as a soccer star when he came to the U.S. in the 1920’s. He quickly stood out as the most versatile player on the Vikings team as a central midfielder. He could score from thirty yards out with either foot and was known for his ability to head the ball into the net. His brothers, Sverre and Karre were also part of this powerhouse team.
Helmuth Fluehe from Einbeck Germany was the star of the AC Germania team. After shortly arriving in Utah and playing for AC Germania, he switched and played for Vikings and became good friends with Alf Engen. After four years, he switched back to AC Germania where he played for seven years. He helped AC Germania win the Daynes Cup and State Championship in 1937, 1938, and 1939. He continued to play during WWII against German POWs at Fort Douglas.
Due to WWII there was an 11 year break in the competition. It resumed in 1951, with Vikings, AC Germania and Caledonians continuing their dominance in the state. From 1959-1967 AC Alemania, a new German club, won the Cup every year (nine years in a row). In the 1970’s, Utah began to see an influx of Hispanic immigrants; teams like Pan World SC who won in 1977, 1978, 1980, and 1981. In 1970 and 1976, BYU hoisted the Cup with the help of some remarkable coaches. In 1970 they won with manager Bruno Gerzeli, who had a 14 year playing career in Italy (mostly Serie B and Serie C) and Colombia. In 1976 they won with manager Shavji “Jim” Dusara, who had recently been the manager of Tanzania during their 1968 and 1972 Olympic Qualifying campaigns. Sadly, in the 1980’s the Daynes Cup was stolen while at a local jeweler to have more names added. The base of the cup is original and in the state association’s possession. However, the Cup itself has never been recovered.
In the 1990’s, more Hispanic and South American immigrant teams dominated like Flamengo SC winning in 1992 and 1993. Botas de la Frontera SC won in 1996, 1997, and 1999.
Since the 2000’s, the Daynes Cup has been won by local Salt Lake teams in the Utah Adult Soccer Association Premier Division (with the exception of Clearfield High School winning in 2000). The teams are:
Olympique Montreux, SS Lazio FC, Vikings SC and Red Devils FC.
This brings us to today. The Daynes Cup has existed for over 100 years. Most are surprised to hear the words Soccer, Utah, and History being used in the same sentence. After all, the most popular and professional club in the state, Real Salt Lake, has only existed for 20 years. That is a relatively short “history,” but I guarantee wherever you may be, there is football being played outside of the top professional clubs. The Daynes Challenge Cup in Utah, which is the very essence of grassroots and local soccer and therefore to some small and insignificant; but to me it is a part of Utah’s rich history which should be cherished and cheered for.
By Brock Mildon
Sources:
The J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah online database
The History of Soccer in Utah, Roy Webb, 2007
Correspondence with Utah Adult Soccer Association