Sotheby's Auction House Sheffield FC sold the world's oldest soccer rules book for $1.42 million. This photo shows one of the pages from the 1857 pamphlet.

LONDON -- The world's oldest soccer rules book has been sold for $1.42 million.

The handwritten pamphlet from 1857 was put on auction at Sotheby's in London as part of an archive of Sheffield FC, the world's oldest soccer club.

Sheffield FC sold the 154-year-old document to raise money for the club, which plays seven tiers below the Premier League.

The rule book contains many innovations that are still part of the modern game, such as the corner kick, cross bar and indirect free kick.

Sheffield FC chairman Richard Tims says there was "huge international interest, reflecting the truly global appeal of both the game itself and its remarkable evolution."



Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press