Isaias White Méndez (2 June 1869 – 16 June 1914) was an English-Spanish footballer and businessman who was a founding member and the first secretary of Sevilla FC. He is recognized as a key figure in the early development of organized football in Spain, having organized the first official football match played in the country on 8 March 1890.
Early Life
White was born in Seville, Spain, on 2 June 1869, the fourth child and only son of Maria Méndez Montes and Isaiah White Lewis. His father was an English engineer from Gloucestershire, England, and co-owner of Portilla, White, y Cía, one of the most important mechanical engineering and metal construction companies in Spain in the second half of the 19th century. White was baptized on 12 June 1869 in the parish church of San Vicente in Seville. Under the British Nationality Act of 1772, he was considered a British subject despite being born in Spain, as his father was English.
Founding of Sevilla FC
On 25 January 1890, during a celebration of Burns Night at a café in Seville, White and several other British expatriates—including Hugh MacColl and Edward Johnston—founded Sevilla FC. White was elected as the club's first secretary. Sevilla FC became the second-oldest football club in Spain and the oldest exclusively dedicated to football.
First Official Match in Spain
On 25 February 1890, White, acting as secretary of Sevilla FC, wrote a letter to the Huelva Recreation Club proposing a friendly match. The match took place on 8 March 1890 at the Hipódromo de Tablada in Seville. Sevilla won 2–0, becoming the first team in Spanish football history to win an official match. White is believed to have scored the second goal, playing under the pseudonym "Clown Yugles," reportedly because he took the field wearing a nightdress resembling a patterned pajama suit.
Later Career and Life
White continued to play for Sevilla FC as a forward from 1890 to 1893. After his father's death in 1894, he took over the family business, Portilla, White, y Cía. He also assisted in the reactivation of Sevilla FC in 1905 after the club had faded due to a lack of opponents. White died in Seville on 16 June 1914 at the age of 45.
