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English footballer and manager (1874–1938)
the association football player

Stephen Bloomer (20 January 1874 – 16 April 1938) was an England international footballer and manager who played for Derby County – becoming their record goalscorer – and Middlesbrough. The anthem "Steve Bloomer's Watchin'" is played at every Derby home game and there is a bust of him at the Pride Park Stadium. He is also listed in the Football League 100 Legends and English Football Hall of Fame. During his career, Bloomer was a prolific goalscorer for both club and country. A quick thinking forward, he was able to shoot powerfully and accurately with either foot and his speciality was the daisy cutter – a low shot, hit with great power, speed and accuracy. In 535 First Division games he scored 314 goals and, after Jimmy Greaves, he is the second highest all time goalscorer in the top flight of English football. He also scored 28 goals in 23 appearances for England. He helped Derby to win the Second Division title in 1911–12, and to finish second in the First Division in 1895–96; he also played on the losing side in four FA Cup semi finals and three FA Cup finals (1898, 1899 and 1903). Bloomer also played baseball for Derby Baseball Club and helped them become British champions three times in the 1890s. After retiring as a footballer he became a coach and worked with clubs in Germany, the Netherlands and Spain. During World War I he was interned at Ruhleben, a civilian detention camp. The highlight of his coaching career came in 1924 when he guided Real Unión to victory in the Copa del Rey.

Bloomer was born in Cradley, Worcestershire (now the West Midlands) to Caleb Bloomer (a blacksmith / iron foundry worker) and Merab Dunn, on 20 January 1874. He was the eldest of six children. The family moved to Litchurch, Derbyshire five years later. Caleb began working for Ley's Malleable Castings foundry in Derby which was founded by Francis Ley. At the age of 12 Bloomer left school, and started working as an apprentice for a local blacksmith. This helped him to build strength. Bloomer had an aptitude for football that he later described as "a natural gift". He first made an impression on the Derby football scene playing for St. Chad's Choir on 11 April 1887. Bloomer was on the losing side of the 1887 Derbyshire Boys' Shield under 15 final on this date, and impressed despite his team losing 14–0 to a dominant St Luke's Choir. His mother died on 27 November 1887 at 87, Yates Street in Derby. In 1888, soon after his 14th birthday Stephen began working as a 'striker' at Ley's iron foundry, where his father Caleb, and uncle Farley worked. In 1888 he also began playing football for Derby Swifts in the Derbyshire Minor League. On 20 December 1890, at Belper he scored seven goals against Belper Town in a 22 2 win. In 1891 he appeared in the Midland League for Derby Midland, playing in a 1–1 draw with Burton Swifts on 27 March.

Derby County merged with Derby Midland in June 1891, and Bloomer was a Derby County player for the start of the 1891–92 – the fourth season of the Football League. He chose to retain his amateur status because he wanted to help out his team Derby Swifts in their shield competition. Bloomer turned out for the third team twice, and the second team once in this season. He signed a professional contract for Derby County on Thursday 28 April 1892. Mr. Clarke, the Secretary of Burton Wanderers also tried to sign Bloomer for his club. Two days after he signed for Derby, he tried to persuade Bloomer to sign for his club, but he refused. He was approached by Mr. Clarke again on Monday 2 May 1892, and this time signed a professional contract with Burton Wanderers A hearing of the case was held at Crewe, on 25 January 1893. He scored in all of his first 10 international appearances, which remains a record for number of consecutive scoring appearances. He netted 19 times during these games, including 5 goals against Wales on 16 March 1896, winning three British Home Championships. He became England's all time top goalscorer on 2 April 1898, when he surpassed Tinsley Lindley's total of 14 with two goals against Scotland. On 18 March 1901, he scored four goals against Wales, becoming the first player to score two hat tricks for England and also the first to score four goals for England twice, as England once again won the British Home Championship. At the end of 1901, his goal tally stood at 25 in just 14 games. Bloomer played for England 11 times over the next 6 years, all in the British Home Championship, winning four more, bringing England's total to eight during his career, however he only scored 3 more goals during this period. He captained England once; against Scotland on 3 May 1902. He finished his international career in 1907 as England's longest serving player and England's all time top goalscorer with 28 goals. He held the record until his tally was overhauled by Vivian Woodward in 1911. During his international career Bloomer's teammates included his County teammate John Goodall as well as Frank Becton, Billy Bassett, Jack Reynolds, Ernest Needham, Fred Spiksley, Sam Wolstenholme and Woodward.

After retiring as a player Bloomer went to Germany in July 1914 to coach Britannia Berlin 92. However within three weeks of arriving the First World War broke out. When Germany declared war on Russia, his contract was cancelled at once, and Herr Fauber, President of Britannia Berlin 92 advised Bloomer to get out of Germany as soon as possible but he could not get out of the country. Britain declared war on Germany on 4 August 1914. According to the Derby Daily Telegraph, which relayed details in a letter written from Bloomer to his wife, he was arrested as a prisoner of war on 5 November 1914, although another source gives the date of his arrest as 6 November 1914. The camp contained between 4,000 and 5,500 prisoners. Gradually a mini society evolved and football became a popular activity. The Ruhleben Football Association was formed and cup and league competitions were organised with as many as 1,000 attending the bigger games. The teams adopted the names of established teams and in November 1914, Bloomer captained a Tottenham Hotspur XI, that also included Dutton, to victory in a cup final against an Oldham Athletic XI. On 2 May 1915, an England XI featuring Pentland, Wolstenholme, Brearley and Bloomer played a World XI captained by Cameron. Bloomer also played cricket at the camp and in May 1915 a Rubleben XI, featuring Bloomer and Brearley, played a Varsities XI in the Rubleban Cricket League. In July 1916 a Lancashire XI, featuring Bloomer, beat a Yorkshire XI that included Wolstenholme. In summer the prisoners turned to cricket on 'The Oval', played to packed houses. Bloomer established the camp batting record with an innings of 204 and recorded bowling figures of 6 for 15. There was athletics too. Bloomer won the 'Old Age Handicap' at the Ruhleben Olympics, sprinting the 75 yards in 9.6 seconds. Everybody in camp knew 'Steve'. When he finally left Ruhleben in March 1918, a farewell football match was staged in his honour. Bloomer was released to neutral Holland, where he was employed as a coach of Blauw Wit Amsterdam. He was not allowed to return home until the end of the war. Bloomer later said of his time in Ruhleben, "Myself and many others would not have survived without football."

Immediately after World War I Bloomer briefly coached Blauw Wit Amsterdam in The Netherlands. He returned to England on 22 November 1918, and became player coach of the Derby County reserve team, retiring from playing in January 1920. He was coach of the Derby first team in 1921. Between May and August 1922, he was in Montréal, Canada coaching the Grenadier Guards football team during their close season. He arrived back in England on 11 August 1922, and resumed his coaching duties with Derby County. In 1923 he became coach of Real Unión in Spain and subsequently guided them to victory in the 1924 Copa del Rey.

On 13 May 1893, he played at first base for St. James's in a 17 34 defeat against Vulcan, at Derby. This was the first match of the 1893 1894 Derbyshire Baseball Association. The Vulcan team contained many members of the old Derby Baseball Club which had disbanded in 1890, but had reformed again later in that same year. On 10 June 1893, Steve Bloomer played for a Rest Of League team against Derby in a 22 26 defeat. Bloomer then played baseball for Derby Baseball Club, making his debut for the team at the age of 20 on 5 May 1894, at the Baseball Ground in Derby. The Derby County goalkeeper, Jack Robinson also made his debut on the same day. Derby got to the semi final of the English cup in 1894, and lost to the Thespians. The team won the English Baseball Cup on 17 August 1895 at Derby's Baseball Ground beating Fullers in the final, with Steve Bloomer playing at first base. They won 16 matches and lost just five in that season. The English Cup was won again by Derby in 1897, when they beat Middlesbrough in the final. The trophy was won for a third time by Derby, beating Nott'm Forest 14 3 in the final on 19 August 1899. Bloomer captained the team in the final and played at second base. Derby County formed a baseball team in 1900 which Steve Bloomer played for in that season. Their first game was played on 19 May 1900. It contained, with Bloomer and among others, players who were or had been, members of Derby County football team up to that date: Enos Bromage, Hugh McQueen, Jonathan Staley, John Goodall, and Jimmy Methven. They played in a local league against Derby, Ilkeston, Belper, Chesterfield and Nottingham Forest. However, both Derby baseball teams do not appear to have existed after 1900.