In the nine seasons between 1896 and 1904 Derby County reached the Semi Finals of the FA Cup seven times and the Final three times. But they did not win the Cup until 1946. The team's legendary bad luck in the competition was blamed on a gypsy curse. According to some versions of the tale, the Baseball Ground was constructed upon a Romany camp (after its angry inhabitants had been evicted briskly enough to inspire harsh words); others say that the Rams simply trained upon ground which the Gypsies had set aside for one of their camps.

When Derby County won through to the Final in 1946, some people felt that the curse would rear its head again. A journalist, no doubt scenting a good story, took the Ram's captain Jack Nicholas to a Gypsy camp. Palms were crossed with an appropriate amount of silver in order to get the curse lifted.

In the 1970's Don Revie, the manager of Leeds United claimed to have discovered (and bought) off a Gypsy curse that lingered over the Yorkshire club. Revie was, of course, no stranger to publicity stunts and most Rams fans realised that he'd simply pinched, word for word, the story of the Baseball Ground's vengeful Romany.