Tolstoy Cup
The Tolstoy Cup is a football match played between the students of the Department of Peace Studies at the University of Bradford and the Department of [War Studies, King's College London|Department of War Studies] at King's College London. The first match was played in 1992 and succeeding games came at intermittent intervals until 2007, when the event became an annual one. Following a six year hiatus, largely due to the covid-19 virus, the fixture was replayed on 9 June 2024 as part of the Peace Studies Golden Jubilee Conference at the University of Bradford.
The competition is named after War and Peace, the 1869 novel written by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy.
Rivalry
The rivalry between "Peace Studies" and "War Studies" is one of the great sporting rivalries, being featured at number four on the Financial Times list of "Great college sports rivalries". Although it does not match the history or tradition of university rivalries such as the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, the competition is still often covered by the national media including the BBC, The Independent and Bradford's Telegraph and Argus. The second leg of the 2007 match played at Bradford City's Valley Parade attracted over 200 spectators.
Symbolism
Symbolically, War Studies adopt a red and black stripe, while Peace Studies typically play in light blue colours. Rather than their own, both sides have at times played with the names of notable figures related to their studied disciplines on their shirts: 'D. Lama', 'M. L. King' and 'Gandhi' for Peace and 'Nelson', 'Caesar' and 'Clausewitz' for War.