Oldest surviving FA Cup name sold for three-quarters of a million

 The most established enduring FA Cup, which had pride of spot when the National Football Museum was in Preston, has been offered to a riddle purchaser for nearly £760,000.

The prize, which is engraved with the opposition's previous victors including Preston North End, was set available to be purchased by West Ham co-proprietor David Gold who had possessed it since 2005.

Gold purchased the "exceptional bit of English football history" for £478,000, saying at the time he was protecting it for the country. Presently there are fears it will wind up abroad.

After some "lively" offering at Bonhams in London yesterday, the valued parcel went for £759,062. The purchaser demanded staying mysterious.

The 50.7cms tall prize supplanted the first FA Cup which disappeared from a shop window in Birmingham in 1896 where it was on show subsequent to being won by Aston Villa. It was accepted to have been dissolved down.

The new cup, a definite copy cast from a similar shape as the first, was introduced to the opposition's champs somewhere in the range of 1896 and 1910, preceding being introduced to FA President Lord Kinnaird for his administrations to football.

It bore the names of all the past FA Cup champs going back to 1872, including North End's well known Invincibles side which won the class and cup twofold in 1888/89.

The prize stayed with the Kinnaird family for a very long time before Gold got it in 2005 when he was the proprietor of Birmingham City.

After a year he credited it to the National Football Museum in Preston to be the focal point of a show commending the historical backdrop of the FA Cup.

Exhibition hall chief Kevin Moore said at that point: "We are pleased that Mr. Gold bought this extraordinary bit of football legacy to put something aside for the country."

It stayed on show in Preston until 2009 when the exhibition hall was dubiously moved to Manchester.