As far as records go, it’ll take an extraordinary effort to reach the milestone set by League Two side Port Vale, who recently became the only active team in the Football League to have at least one win to their name against the other 91.
Presently, 92 teams make up what can be considered the English football pyramid, including 20 of those playing in the associated Premier League. The 92 teams make up the top four flights of professional English football, and almost all of the 92 have played at least once in all four divisions since their respective conceptions.
The Valiants, remarkably, became the only active side to record a win against all the other 91 eligible teams at some point during their history, including those currently playing in the highest rung of the English football pyramid. On March 26, Port Vale recorded a 2-0 win over fellow League Two promotion playoffs candidate Sutton United and, in doing so, hit the aforementioned milestone.
Former Manchester United player – and a Red Devils’ academy graduate – James Wilson set the Valiants on their way to a record-breaking result on Saturday, as he scored the opening goal in the seventh minute. Football league stalwart Jamie Proctor added a second in the 23rd, securing the win, the points, and the milestone for the League Two outfit.
Amid a promotion push, Port Vale’s win counted for more than the record they had just broken; the Valiants are currently placed fourth in League Two and are hoping to return to League One for the first time since the 2016/17 season.
Established in the late 1870s, Port Vale recorded their first-ever competitive win over a current Football League side back in 1892, when they beat Leicester City, 3-1. On the way to the record, which took 130 years to be established, the Stoke-on-Trent-based side beat the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United, and Arsenal during the early years of their conception; most of their years since were spent in the lower rungs of English football.
