Well...what can we say. Back in 1998, a rumour flew around the annals of football that a new idea was about to surface. An idea so radical, so exciting that it would change the way football was watched within just a few short years. And the result?

10 years on and Masters Football has carved out an inpenetrable niche in the football landscape
that transcends regular league action to bring fast-paced, nose-to-nose rivalry that fans across the UK clamber to see.

From Hoddle to Wright, Wilkins to Rush, Barnes to Gazza and Zola to Di Matteo - Masters Football has invited some of the world's greatest living legends to take to the haloed blue carpet and strut their stuff.

And over the years we've seen it all. Dancing ladies being chatted up backstage by well-known strikers, hate-filled tackles being made within seconds of the whistle, raucous and bawdy songs being sung with gusto from the sidelines - at a Masters event everything seems to happen, and all
of it captured on glorious live TV!

Below is a compilation of some of the more momorable moments over the last ten years of Masters Football...

# 1 First Ever Indoor Red Card Tedd McMinn - Derby Masters It was said that it couldn't happen in an indoor game but Masters proved it could as Derby Masters player Tedd McMinn was escorted from the field for dangerous play in 2000. A red card in Masters means automatic suspension from the event and the rest of the series, with a decision on the player's future to be decided by a Masters committee. McMinn was allowed back after a year but Derby fans feel aggrieved to this day.
# 2 Attempted Murder of Matt Le Tissier Gavin Maguire - Portsmouth Masters Several players have lost it on the Masters pitch over the years but none more so that Portsmouth's Gavin Maguire. In 2003 he found himself part of a team being hurrumped by Southampton 4-0 and basically cracked, hauling down Le Tissier by the neck in what looked like a judo move. Referee Kevin Lynch duly sent him off, young children were comforted by their parents and normal action was allowed to resume.
# 3 Government come calling 2002 European expansion thanks to Masters The world was a different place in 2002 but the Government of the day was still in need of a PR push. With Masters Football enjoying record crowds and enormous publicity, Tony Banks MP took the decision to celebrate the expansion of Europe by employing Masters to stage a pan-european series in one of the last ever events to take place at London Arena. Gazza played, the UK lost, europe went home happy.
# 4 Masters introduce sinbins FA sanction Masters for first trial The notion of fair play has always been central to the Masters ethos and in 2003, we approached and subsequently got the green light from the FA to trial run sinbins to help combat player disquiet. Players who have enjoyed the two minute spell out of the action include Neville Southall, Tommy Johnston and Matt Le Tissier - all of whom should have known better! The sinbin continues to rule with an iron fist to this day.
# 5 Spurs collapse 2007 London Masters shock Several teams in Masters have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory but none more so brilliantly than Spurs in 2007. 3-0 up at half time in the final against fierce rivals Chelsea, they were cruising but the look on Spurs fans' faces said it all. A whirlwind second half saw the teams trade 5 goals and the match finished 4-4, with Chelsea running out winners on sudden death penalties. The Masters office was unusually quiet come Monday morning.
# 6 Lynch mob Referee clanger signals first video replay One of the founding fathers of Masters Football discipline, referee Kevin Lynch was a revered and respected figure, but his authority was challenged when he gave a goal during the 2004 London Masters, despite the fact the goal had come directly from a rebound off of the VIP Box, some fifteen feet behind the pitch. Play was stopped as attention turned to Sky's video replay, the first time in history a referee's decision had been challenged and changed mid-game.
# 7 Horror fall - UPDATED Motherwell fan (Craig Holmes) survives 10ft plunge The travelling fans of Motherwell have long been a part of the Scottish Masters and in 2007, the 100 strong crowd were in fuller voice than normal, as they watched Owen Coyle's men literally destroy the opposition to make their first Grand Final. So excited was one fan however, his celebrations post-game led to him toppling over the railings and falling 10ft onto the arena concrete. Paramedics were called but the chap was fine and continued dancing. And he didn't spill a drop apparently.
# 8 Italian legend makes debut Zola plays for Chelsea Many a legend has made their mark in Masters but when Zola signalled his intention to pull on the strip of the Chelsea Masters, the phone lines went into meltdown. No debut in history has seen such a spike in interest and fans of each London team were genuinly excited about seeing the Italian meastro. We were not to be disappointed as he pulled the strings alongside Wise and Poyet to record an impressive Chelsea victory.
# 9 Louis & Ben Masters helps community by employing duo Each business has its duty to its local community and Masters is no different. For three forgetful months during the summer of 2006, we saved the residents of North London by employing Louis and Ben, two hard-nosed business types (as you can tell from the picture) to spearhead our promotions department. Both were ...urm...great to have around. We are still to find a record of what they did mind...
# 10 Spackman stalker revealed Events Manager snapped looking scary A well respected player in his day, Nigel Spackman has become one of the leading football pundits on TV and a champion of Masters Football. So we were disappointed to discover that whilst he was enjoying the limelight of being voted Player of the Tournament during last year's Coventry Masters, our own Events Manager Adam Craig was lurking in the background looking weird. Sorry Nigel.