Christmas truce: how sport united the Western Front

The Christmas Truce happened on Christmas Day 1914, when the sounds of gunfire and exploding shells on the Western Front subsided during World War I. During the unofficial cease-fire, soldiers from both sides came out of their trenches and forgot about the feud.

A Christmas miracle

Beginning on December 24, many German and British troops fighting on the Western Front sang Christmas carols to each other across the front lines. At dawn on Christmas Day, some Germans came out of their trenches and approached Allied positions, greeting them with holiday greetings across the neutral strip, and in their native languages. At first the soldiers feared it was a ruse, but when they saw the unarmed Germans, they climbed out of their trenches and exchanged handshakes with their enemies. The men even gave each other symbolic gifts: cigarettes and food they had with them.

The Christmas truce of 1914 occurred five months after the outbreak of war in Europe and was one of the last such examples. It was never repeated: further attempts to organize a temporary ceasefire were thwarted by threats from officers and disciplinary action. Nevertheless, the Christmas miracle of 1914 was proof – albeit brief – that even in times of armed conflict, humanity can triumph.

No to war, yes to sport

How can men who don’t speak the same language express friendship? They would play soccer.

Of course, the matches were not serious. One of them lasted only an hour, after which both teams were exhausted. Shell craters and huge soldier’s boots made the game much more difficult. “Footballers” who fell into the mud were pulled out by their opponents to the applause of the spectators sitting on the parapets.

Historical reconstruction of the 1914 match

A private in the 6th Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment named Ernie Williams, who was 19 at the time, portrayed in Peter Hart’s book Fire and Movement: The British Expeditionary Force and the Campaign of 1914 how soccer brought the two sides together. And in a 1983 interview, he shared his memories of that day.

“The ball came out of nowhere, I don’t know where it came from, but it was from their side, not ours. It was a real soccer game. Some people took their jackets off and put them up as goalposts. One guy hit the goalposts and the first goal was cheered by both teams. I think there were at least a couple hundred people there. I had a go too – I was pretty good at 19 at the time. Everyone seemed to be cheering. There was no hostility,” Williams recounted.

Historical reenactment of the 1914 match

The former soldier recalled that some Germans spoke English, but the Scots hardly understood German. There were no referees in the matches, though they were not needed for such a game, Williams said. “It’s like playing with kids in the street, just kicking the ball around. No points, no score – ‘hand-to-hand combat.’ Nothing like soccer that’s on TV. It was impossible to play in the boots we wore,” shared a military man.

During World War I, no one expected celebrations on the battlefield, but this truly magical story is proof that even a world war can’t destroy the spirit of Christmas.