1975 U.S. Open (golf)
The quality of the play was generally regarded as poor. Despite the high scores Jack Nicklaus said it was the "easiest" U.S. Open he had ever remembered playing. Runner-up John Mahaffey stated at the end of the event, "This course was never as difficult as the scores looked. I agree with everybody who said it was the easiest Open in history to have won. At least 10 guys could have won it by five shots if they'd played golf." The sportswriter Dan Jenkins regularly panned the performance of the players in his Sport Illustrated cover profile, stating in his opening sentence that "it was a golf tournament that begged to be forgotten."


1975 U.S. Open (golf)
Since moving to the four-day format in 1965, this is the only U.S. Open in which the final round was not scheduled for Father's Day, the third Sunday in June.


1975 U.S. Open (golf)
This was the second U.S. Open at Medinah, the first was held in 1949. It later hosted in 1990, also a playoff, and the PGA Championship in 1999 and 2006, both won by Tiger Woods. Medinah was the venue for the Ryder Cup in 2012.


1975 U.S. Open (golf)
This was the final year that players were not allowed to have their own caddies at the U.S. Open. The other majors and some PGA Tour events had traditionally disallowed players from using their own caddies. The Masters required club caddies from Augusta National through 1982.


1975 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Final round
Frank Beard began the final round with a three-stroke lead, four over Graham and six ahead of Mahaffey. But after bogeys at 16 and 17, he staggered home with a 78 (+7) to finish a shot behind. Mahaffey holed a 40-foot (12 m) putt for birdie at 14, then parred out the rest of the way to post an even-par 71 and 287 total. Graham went to the 18th with a one-stroke lead and a chance to win in regulation, but he hit his approach into a bunker and failed to save par and fell into a tie with Mahaffey.


1975 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Final round
Several other players had an opportunity to join the playoff. Bob Murphy was tied until a bogey at 18 dropped him a shot out of the playoff, and Ben Crenshaw found the water on 17 and also finished a stroke out, as did defending champion Hale Irwin. Second round leader Tom Watson had another difficult day and fell into a tie for ninth. Jack Nicklaus bogeyed the last three holes and finished two strokes out of the playoff.


1975 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Playoff
Graham jumped out to an early advantage in the playoff, recording birdies at 4, 5, and 10 en route to a 71 and a two-stroke win over Mahaffey.


1975 U.S. Pro Indoor
The 1975 U.S. Pro Indoor was a men's WCT tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Wachovia Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It was the eight edition of the tournament and was held from on January 20 through January 26, 1975. Seventh-seeded Marty Riessen won the singles title.


1975 U.S. Pro Indoor, Finals, Singles
Marty Riessen defeated  Vitas Gerulaitis 7–6(7–1), 5–7, 6–2, 6–7(0–7), 6–3


1975 U.S. Pro Indoor, Finals, Doubles
Brian Gottfried /  Raúl Ramírez defeated  Dick Stockton /  Erik van Dillen 3–6, 6–3, 7–6(7–4)


1975 U.S. Pro Indoor – Doubles
Pat Cramer and Mike Estep were the defending champions, but Cramer did not participate this year. Estep partnered Russell Simpson, losing in the second round.


1975 U.S. Pro Indoor – Doubles
Brian Gottfried and Raúl Ramírez won the title, defeating Dick Stockton and Erik van Dillen 3–6, 6–3, 7–6(7–4) in the final.


1975 U.S. Pro Indoor – Singles
Rod Laver was the defending champion, but lost in the second round this year.


1975 U.S. Pro Indoor – Singles
Marty Riessen won the title, defeating Vitas Gerulaitis 7–6(7–1), 5–7, 6–2, 6–7(0–7), 6–3 in the final.


1975 U.S. Pro Tennis Championships
The 1975 U.S. Pro Tennis Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor green clay courts (Har-Tru) at the Longwood Cricket Club in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. It was classified as a Group AA category tournament and was part of the 1975 Grand Prix circuit. It was the 48th edition of the tournament and was held from August 19 through August 25, 1975. Second-seeded and defending champion Björn Borg won the singles title and the accompanying $16,000 first prize money. The tournament started a day late due to rain.


1975 U.S. Pro Tennis Championships, Finals, Doubles
Brian Gottfried /  Raúl Ramírez defeated  John Andrews /  Mike Estep 4–6, 6–3, 7–6


1975 U.S. Women's Open
The 1975 U.S. Women's Open was the 30th U.S. Women's Open, held July 17–20 at Atlantic City Country Club in Northfield, New Jersey, west of Atlantic City.


1975 U.S. Women's Open
This champion was Sandra Palmer at 295 (+7), four strokes ahead of the three runners-up, JoAnne Carner, Sandra Post, and amateur Nancy Lopez. Age 18 and a recent high school graduate, Lopez co-led after 36 holes at 147 (+3).


1975 UAE national football team results
This article details the fixtures and results of the UAE national football team in 1975.


1975 UAE national football team results
The national team was represented at the 1975 Palestine Cup for the 2nd time, but they failed to get through the group stages suffering two defeats without scoring any goals.


1975 UC Davis Aggies football team
The 1975 UC Davis football team represented the University of California, Davis in the 1975 NCAA Division II football season. UC Davis competed in the Far Western Conference (FWC). The UC Davis sports teams were commonly called the "Cal Aggies" from 1924 until the mid 1970s.


1975 UC Davis Aggies football team
The Aggies were led by head coach Jim Sochor in his 6th year. They played home games at Toomey Field. UC Davis finished the season as champion of the FWC for the 5th consecutive season and it was their 6th consecutive winning season. The Aggies finished the season with a record of seven wins and three losses (7–3, 5–0 FWC). With the 5–0 conference record, they stretched their conference winning streak to 13 games dating back to the 1973 season. The Aggies outscored their opponents 245–142 for the 1975 season.


1975 UC Davis Aggies football team, NFL Draft
The following UC Davis Aggies players were selected in the 1976 NFL Draft.


1975 UC Riverside Highlanders football team
The 1975 UC Riverside Highlanders football team represented UC Riverside during the 1975 NCAA Division II football season.


1975 UC Riverside Highlanders football team
UC Riverside competed in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). The team was led by second-year head coach Bob Toledo. They played home games at Highlander Stadium in Riverside, California. The Highlanders finished the season as champion of the CCAA, with a record of seven wins and three losses (7–3, 4–0 CCAA). Overall, the team outscored its opponents 278–192 for the season.


1975 UC Riverside Highlanders football team
Despite winning the conference championship for the second consecutive year, and in 3 of 4 seasons, on December 4, 1975 UC Riverside announced that they were discontinuing their football program. They primary reason given was lack of fan support (attendance). The Highlanders played for 21 seasons (1955–1975).


1975 UC Riverside Highlanders football team, Team players in the NFL
The following 1975 UC Riverside players were selected in the 1976 NFL Draft or later. Dan Bunz & Calvin Sweeney transferred to other colleges as a result of the disbanding of the UC Riverside football program then were drafted out of that new school.


1975 UCI Road World Championships
The 1975 UCI Road World Championships took place on 27 August 1975 in Mettet and Yvoir, Belgium.


1975 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race
The men's road race at the 1975 UCI Road World Championships was the 42nd edition of the event. The race took place on Sunday 31 August 1975 in Yvoir, Belgium. The race was won by Hennie Kuiper of the Netherlands.


1975 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
The 1975 UCI Track Cycling World Championships were the World Championship for track cycling. They took place in Rocourt, Belgium in 1975. Eleven events were contested, 9 for men (3 for professionals, 6 for amateurs) and 2 for women.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team
The 1975 UCLA Bruins football team represented the University of California, Los Angeles in the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. Led by second-year head coach Dick Vermeil, the Bruins won their first Pacific-8 championship in a decade and were 8–2–1 in the regular season. On New Year's Day, UCLA upset previously undefeated and top-ranked Ohio State in the Rose Bowl and climbed to fifth in the final rankings.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Regular season
Coming off an injury-plagued 1974 season at 6–3–2, UCLA began the season ranked #16. A season-opening 37–21 win over Iowa State in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum saw them move up to twelfth; this was followed by a 34–28 win over #10 Tennessee. But they stumbled in a turnover-plagued 20–20 tie at Air Force; second-ranked Ohio State traveled west and handed UCLA its first loss of the season, 41–20 on October 4. After the game, head coach Woody Hayes prophetically told his team that they would be facing UCLA again in the Rose Bowl. UCLA was the only opponent to score more than 14 points in a game all season against Ohio State, and they did it twice.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Regular season
The Ohio State loss dropped the Bruins out of the top 20, but they returned to #13 after wins over Stanford, Washington State, and a key win over California. But another loss, this time to Washington 17–13, dropped them back out of the top 20 and resulted in a five-way tie at the top of the Pac-8 between UCLA, California, Stanford, USC, and Washington.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Regular season
After a pair of wins over the Oregon schools, the Bruins went into their season-ending game against rival USC needing a win to go to the Rose Bowl; a loss or tie would send California to Pasadena. Despite fumbling 11 times and losing 8, UCLA beat the Trojans 25–22. UCLA ended up tied with California for the Pac-8 championship, but advanced to the Rose Bowl on the strength of their 28–14 win over the Golden Bears. The Bruins went into the Rose Bowl ranked #11. Ironically, the 1975 USC-UCLA game was legendary coach John McKay and Vermeil's final game at the Coliseum.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Regular season
It was the only bowl appearance for Vermeil in his two seasons at UCLA; a month later he left for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Game summaries, Ohio State
1st quarter scoring: UCLA – James Sarpy 13-yard pass from John Sciarra (Brett White kick); OSU – Greene 2-yard run (Klaban kick)


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Game summaries, Ohio State
2nd quarter scoring: OSU – Johnson 3-yard run (Klaban kick); OSU – Johnson 2-yard run (Klaban kick); OSU – Greene 17-yard run (Klaban kick)


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Game summaries, Ohio State
3rd quarter scoring: OSU – A. Griffin 17-yard run (Klaban kick); OSU – Klaban 34-yard field goal;	UCLA – Eddie Ayers 2-yard run (White kick)


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Game summaries, Ohio State
4th quarter scoring: UCLA – Ayers 1-yard run (kick failed); OSU – Klaban 42-yard field goal


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Game summaries, Ohio State (Rose Bowl)
1st quarter scoring: Ohio State – Tom Klaban 42-yard field goal


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Game summaries, Ohio State (Rose Bowl)
3rd quarter scoring: UCLA – Brett White 33-yard field goal; UCLA – Wally Henry 16-yard pass from John Sciarra (White kick failed); UCLA – Henry 67-yard pass from Sciarra (White kick)


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Game summaries, Ohio State (Rose Bowl)
4th quarter scoring: Ohio State – Pete Johnson 3-yard run (Klaban kick); UCLA – Wendell Tyler 54-yard run (White kick)


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, Players and coaches, Roster
34 returning lettermen from Coach Dick Vermeil's first team that was 6–3–2 in 1974.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, 1975 team players in the NFL
The following players were claimed in the 1975 NFL Draft.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, 1975 team players in the NFL
The following players were claimed in the 1976 NFL Draft.


1975 UCLA Bruins football team, 1975 team players in the NFL
The following player was claimed in the 1977 NFL Draft.


1975 UEFA Cup Final
The 1975 UEFA Cup Final was played on 7 May and 21 May 1975 between Borussia Mönchengladbach of West Germany and Twente of the Netherlands. Mönchengladbach won 5–1 on aggregate.


1975 UEFA European Under-18 Championship
The UEFA European Under-18 Championship 1975 Final Tournament was held in Switzerland.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year
The 1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year was the 49th year of greyhound racing in the United Kingdom and Ireland.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Summary
The National Greyhound Racing Club officially went metric from 1 January, which would mean all races being measured over metres instead of yards. The Irish authorities decided not to adopt the new system. The annual (NGRC) returns were released, with totalisator turnover at £69,220,977 and attendances recorded at 6,200,118, representing an increase in both.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Summary
Pineapple Grand, a fawn bitch trained by Frank Baldwin was voted Greyhound of the Year after winning the Wembley Spring Cup, Laurels at Wimbledon Stadium and Oaks at Harringay Stadium. Tartan Khan was unlucky not to get the vote after winning the 1975 English Greyhound Derby and the St Leger at Wembley.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Summary
The GRA Property Trust shares were suspended as it was revealed that the company had debts near to £20 million. The future of the company looked bleak.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Tracks
Allied presentations re-opened a new Reading track at Bennett Road, just over one year after the Greyhound Racing Association had closed the venue at Oxford Road. The new venue was built by owner trainer Bill Dore. Three independent tracks also opened at the Loomer Road Stadium in Chesterton at the Horton Road Stadium and at the Queens Park Football Ground (Bedford). Yarmouth Stadium made their debut under NGRC rules by virtue of the permit scheme.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Tracks
Oxford Stadium Managing Director Ian Stevens (son of Con Stevens), acting for Bristol Stadium Ltd, sold Oxford to the City Council housing committee for £235,000 in October. A 27,000 strong petition was lodged with the local authorities and Tory MP Michael Heseltine called for a public meeting with a deadline set to find a new buyer. Shawfield Stadium suffered a devastating fire, destroying most of the facilities. Hull Kingston Rovers bought the Craven Park stadium back from the owners; they had previously sold it in 1938.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, News
Brighton trainer Fred Lugg retired and was replaced by Doreen Walsh, the head kennelhand to George Curtis. Tom Baldwin died aged 77 and John Sherry gained a position as a trainer at Walthamstow Stadium after serving his apprenticeship at the kennels of Wembley trainer Tom Johnston.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, News
Drynham Star broke the Derby Stadium track record over 590 metres in a re-run, despite already having run to the third bend before the hare broke down. Ramsgate trainer Peter Rich, former head man to John Coleman won all eight races at one meeting at his home track producing a 428,793-1 accumulator.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Competitions
Harringay introduced the Golden Jacket, a new event for stayers.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Ireland
Peruvian Style, a light brindle 1973 whelp owned by Deirdre Hynes and trained by Tony Fahy had been beaten in the 1,000 Guineas final by Lively Band at Dundalk. Following this he went on to win the Tipperary Cup, made the semi-finals of the Laurels, won the Harp Lager Stakes at Dundalk and the Waterford Glass Stakes breaking the track record. Twelve consecutive wins were achieved after a Shelbourne Park event win before a winter rest.


1975 UK & Ireland Greyhound Racing Year, Ireland
The Ger McKenna trained Ballybeg Prim was voted Irish Greyhound of the Year after winning the Irish Cesarewitch, Irish St Leger and the Shelbourne 600.


1975 UMass Minutemen football team
The 1975 UMass Minutemen football team represented the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the 1975 NCAA Division II football season as a member of the Yankee Conference in NCAA Division II. The team was coached by Dick MacPherson and played its home games at Alumni Stadium in Hadley, Massachusetts. UMass finished the season with a record of 8–2 overall and 4–1 in conference play.


1975 UNLV Rebels football team
The 1975 UNLV Rebels football team was an American football team that represented the University of Nevada, Las Vegas as an independent during the 1975 NCAA Division II football season. In their third year under head coach Ron Meyer, the team compiled an 7–4 record.


1975 US Open (tennis)
The 1975 US Open was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor clay courts at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, Queens, in New York City, United States. The tournament ran from 27 August until 7 September. It was the 95th staging of the US Open, and the fourth Grand Slam tennis event of 1975. During the final three years at the Forest Hills location, 1975-1977, the US Open was played on a green-colored Har-Tru clay surface, a surface slightly harder and faster than red clay. The switch came after player complaints about the poor state and uneven ball bounce on the grass courts in Forest Hills.


1975 US Open (tennis), Seniors, Men's doubles
Jimmy Connors /  Ilie Năstase defeated  Tom Okker /  Marty Riessen, 6–4, 7–6


1975 US Open (tennis), Seniors, Women's doubles
Margaret Court /  Virginia Wade defeated  Rosemary Casals /  Billie Jean King, 7–5, 2–6, 7–6


1975 US Open (tennis), Seniors, Mixed doubles
Rosemary Casals /  Dick Stockton defeated  Billie Jean King /  Fred Stolle, 6‐3, 6‐7, 6‐3


1975 US Open – Men's Doubles
Bob Lutz and Stan Smith were the defending champions but withdrew from the tournament. Jimmy Connors and Ilie Năstase won in the final 6–4, 7–6 against Tom Okker and Marty Riessen.


1975 US Open – Men's Singles
Manuel Orantes defeated defending champion Jimmy Connors 6–4, 6–3, 6–3 in the final to win the Men's Singles tennis title at the 1975 US Open. Orantes became the 1st man in the Open Era to win the US Open saving match points en route against Guillermo Vilas in the Semi-final.


1975 US Open – Men's Singles, Format
Unlike the previous year, the first three rounds were best of three sets.


1975 US Open – Men's Singles, Seeds
The seeded players are listed below. Manuel Orantes is the champion; others show the round in which they were eliminated.


1975 US Open – Mixed Doubles
Geoff Masters and Pam Teeguarden were the defending champions but lost in the quarterfinals to Alex Metreveli and Olga Morozova.


1975 US Open – Mixed Doubles
Dick Stockton and Rosemary Casals won in the final 6‐3, 6‐7, 6‐3 against Fred Stolle and Billie Jean King.


1975 US Open – Women's Doubles
Rosemary Casals and Billie Jean King were the defending champions but lost in the final 7–5, 2–6, 7–6 against Margaret Court and Virginia Wade. This was Court's 64th and final grand slam title across singles, doubles and mixed doubles, a record she holds to this day.


1975 US Open – Women's Singles
After four consecutive semifinal finishes, Chris Evert defeated Evonne Goolagong 5–7, 6–4, 6–2 in the final to win the Women's Singles tennis title at the 1975 US Open. Reigning champion Billie Jean King did not defend her title.


1975 US Open – Women's Singles, Seeds
The seeded players are listed below. Chris Evert is the champion; others show the round in which they were eliminated.


1975 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
The Men's 1975 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships took place between June 25–27 at Hayward Field on the campus of University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. The Women's Championships took place in less elegant conditions at White Plains High School in White Plains, New York. The meet was organized by the Amateur Athletic Union. This was the last edition to segregate genders.


1975 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
The men's marathon championships were held at the Western Hemisphere Marathon in Culver City, California, on December 7, 1975. The women's Marathon championships were held in the New York Marathon, September 28, 1975.


1975 USA Team Handball Nationals - Women's Open Division
The 1975 Nationals was the first Women's Nationals. The Nationals was a team handball tournament to determine the National Champion from 1975 from the US.


1975 USA Team Handball Nationals - Women's Open Division, Venues
The championship was played at the Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.


1975 USA Team Handball Nationals - Women's Open Division, Modus
The two teams played a Championship serie with 4 games.


1975 USAC Championship Car season
The 1975 USAC Championship Car season consisted of 13 races, beginning in Ontario, California on March 2 and concluding in Avondale, Arizona on November 9. The USAC National Champion was A. J. Foyt and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Bobby Unser.


1975 USAC Championship Car season, Final points standings
Note1: Bobby Allison and George Follmer are not eligible for points. Note2: Jerry Grant scored points at Ontario but competed with an FIA license. Note3: Bentley Warren scored 100 points at Pocono, but forfeited those points due to a rule violation.


1975 USC Trojans football team
The 1975 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. In their 15th year under head coach John McKay, the Trojans compiled an 8–4 record (3–4 against conference opponents), finished in fifth place in the Pacific-8 Conference (Pac-8), and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 247 to 140. The team was ranked #17 in the final AP Poll and #19 in the final UPI Coaches Poll.


1975 USC Trojans football team
Quarterback Vince Evans led the team in passing, completing 35 of 112 passes for 695 yards with three touchdowns and nine interceptions. Ricky Bell led the team in rushing with 385 carries for 1,957 yards and 13 touchdowns. Randy Simmrin led the team in receiving with 26 catches for 478 yards and one touchdown.


1975 USC Trojans football team, 1975 team players in the NFL
The following players were drafted into professional football following the season.


1975 USSR Chess Championship
The 1975 Soviet Chess Championship was the 43rd edition of USSR Chess Championship. Held from 28 November to 22 December 1975 in Yerevan. Former world champion Tigran Petrosian won his fourth title. The qualifying tournaments took place in Cheliabinsk and Kishinev.


1975 UTEP Miners football team
The 1975 UTEP Miners football team was an American football team that represented the University of Texas at El Paso in the Western Athletic Conference during the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. In their second year under head coach Gil Bartosh, the team compiled a 1–10 record.


1975 Uber Cup
The 1975 Uber Cup was the 7th edition of the Uber Cup, the women's badminton team competition. The tournament took place in the 1974-75 badminton season, 14 countries competed. Indonesia won its first title in the Uber Cup, after beating the defending champion Japan in the Final Round in Jakarta.


1975 Uber Cup, Teams
14 teams from 4 regions took part in the competition. As defending champions, Japan skipped the qualifications and played directly in the second round of the inter-zone ties (team matches), effectively the semifinals of the tournament.


1975 Uber Cup, Teams
From the qualifying rounds, four countries progressed to the inter-zone ties. From the Australasian zone, Australia advanced to the next round after beating New Zealand 4–3. From the Asian zone, Malaysia beat India 6–1. In the European zone final, England defeated Denmark 5–2. From the Pan American zone, Canada advanced to the inter-zone ties after defeating the United States 5–2.


1975 Uber Cup, Final round
Japan played in its fourth consecutive Uber Cup final, having won the tournament in 1966, 1969, and 1972. The Japanese women won two of the three singles, but dropped all four doubles to the Indonesian women who were playing before their home crowd. Indonesia thus won the Uber Cup for the first time. It was the final Uber Cup appearance of two great "veterans", Japan's  Noriko Nakayama (née Takagi), who completed her fourth campaign undefeated in singles, and Indonesia's Minarni Soedaryanto who, after playing on Indonesian teams since 1959, finally achieved the ultimate prize.


1975 Uganda National League
The 1975 Uganda National League was the eighth season of the Ugandan football championship, the top-level football league of Uganda.


1975 Uganda National League, Overview
The 1975 Uganda National League was contested by 10 teams and was won by Express FC.


1975 Uganda National League, Leading goalscorer
The top goalscorer in the 1975 season was Chris Ddungu of Kampala City Council FC with 12 goals.


1975 Umbrian regional election
The Umbrian regional election of 1975 took place on 15 June 1975.


1975 Umbrian regional election, Events
The Italian Communist Party was by far the largest party, gaining almost twice the votes of Christian Democracy. After the election, Pietro Conti, the incumbent Communist President, continued to govern the Region at the head of a left-wing coalition with the Italian Socialist Party (Popular Democratic Front). In 1976 Conti was replaced by Germano Marri, a Communist too.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
The United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, also known variously as the Referendum on the European Community (Common Market), the Common Market referendum and EEC membership referendum, took place under the provisions of the Referendum Act 1975 on 5 June 1975 in the United Kingdom to gauge support for the country's continued membership of the European Communities (EC) — often known at the time as the European Community and the Common Market — which it had entered two-and-a-half years earlier on 1 January 1973 under the Conservative government of Edward Heath. The Labour Party's manifesto for the October 1974 general election had promised that the people would decide through the ballot box whether to remain in the EC.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
This was the first national referendum ever to be held throughout the United Kingdom, and would remain the only UK-wide referendum until the 2011 referendum on the Alternative Vote system was held thirty-six years later. It was also the only referendum to be held on the UK's relationship with Europe until the 2016 referendum on continued EU membership, which began the process of the UK leaving the EU pursuant to Article 50 (Brexit).


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
The electorate expressed significant support for EC membership, with 67% in favour on a national turnout of 64%. In a 1975 pamphlet Prime Minister Harold Wilson said: "I ask you to use your vote. For it is your vote that will now decide. The Government will accept your verdict." The pamphlet also said: "Now the time has come for you to decide. The Government will accept your decision — whichever way it goes."


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
The February 1974 general election had yielded a Labour minority government, which then won a majority in the October 1974 general election. Labour pledged in its February 1974 manifesto to renegotiate the terms of British accession to the EC, and then to consult the public on whether Britain should remain in the EC on the new terms, if they were acceptable to the government.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
The Labour Party had historically feared the consequences of EC membership, such as the large differentials between the high price of food under the Common Agricultural Policy and the low prices prevalent in Commonwealth markets, as well as the loss of both economic sovereignty and the freedom of governments to engage in socialist industrial policies, and party leaders stated their opinion that the Conservatives had negotiated unfavourable terms for Britain.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
The EC heads of government agreed to a deal in Dublin on 11 March 1975; Wilson declared: "I believe that our renegotiation objectives have been substantially though not completely achieved", and said that the government would recommend a vote in favour of continued membership. On 9 April, the House of Commons voted by 396 to 170 to continue within the Common Market on the new terms. Along with these developments, the government drafted a Referendum Bill, to be moved in case of a successful renegotiation.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
The referendum debate and campaign was an unusual time in British politics and was the third national vote to be held in seventeen months. During the campaign, the Labour Cabinet was split and its members campaigned on each side of the question, an unprecedented breach of Cabinet collective responsibility. Most votes in the House of Commons in preparation for the referendum were only carried after opposition support, and the Government faced several defeats on technical issues such as the handling and format of the referendum counts.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum
The referendum did temporarily achieve Harold Wilson's ambition to bring the divided Labour Party together on the European issue; however, eight years later, Labour's 1983 general election manifesto pledged withdrawal from the Communities. The referendum significantly strengthened the position of pro-marketeer (later pro-Europe) politicians in the UK Parliament for the next thirty years, but the issue remained a contentious one. In the decades that followed, UK governments integrated further into the European project by ratifying subsequent European treaties. Increasinly, eurosceptic politicians believed that the principle of Parliamentary sovereignty was being eroded, and called for a second referendum on Britain’s membership of what became the European Union (EU).


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background
When the European Coal and Steel Community was instituted in 1952, the United Kingdom decided not to become a member. The UK was still absent when the Treaty of Rome was signed in 1957, creating the European Economic Community (the "Common Market"). However, in the late 1950s the Conservative government of Harold Macmillan dramatically changed its attitude, and appointed Edward Heath to submit an application and to lead negotiations for Britain to enter the Common Market.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background
The application was made at a meeting of the European Communities (EC) in January 1963, but the French president Charles de Gaulle rebuffed and vetoed Britain's request. Despite the veto, Britain restarted talks with the EC countries in 1967; and in April 1970, shortly before the 1970 general election campaign, Heath — who by this time was the Conservative Party leader — said that further European integration would not happen "except with the full-hearted consent of the Parliaments and peoples of the new member countries".


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
The 1970 general election saw all the major political parties commit to either membership or to negotiate with the European Communities. The Conservative manifesto for the election on the issue was committed to negotiating membership but not at any price.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
If we can negotiate the right terms, we believe that it would be in the long-term interest of the British people for Britain to join the European Economic Community, and that it would make a major contribution to both the prosperity and the security of our country. The opportunities are immense. Economic growth and a higher standard of living would result from having a larger market.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
But we must also recognise the obstacles. There would be short-term disadvantages in Britain going into the European Economic Community which must be weighed against the long-term benefits. Obviously there is a price we would not be prepared to pay. Only when we negotiate will it be possible to determine whether the balance is a fair one, and in the interests of Britain.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
Our sole commitment is to negotiate; no more, no less. As the negotiations proceed we will report regularly through Parliament to the country.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
A Conservative Government would not be prepared to recommend to Parliament, nor would Members of Parliament approve, a settlement which was unequal or unfair. In making this judgement, Ministers and Members will listen to the views of their constituents and have in mind, as is natural and legitimate, primarily the effect of entry upon the standard of living of the individual citizens whom they represent.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
The Conservatives won a total of 330 seats (out of a total of 630) on 46.6% of the national vote share, gaining 77 seats, which gave them an unexpected overall majority of about 30 seats. Edward Heath became Prime Minister, and personally led many of the negotiations which began following the election; he struck up a friendship with the new French president Georges Pompidou, who oversaw the lifting of the veto and thus paved the way for UK membership.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
Negotiations on joining the EC first began on 30 June 1970 (coincidentally the same day that the Common Fisheries Policy first came into being) and in the following year a UK Government white paper was published under the title of “The United Kingdom and the European Communities” and Edward Heath called for a parliamentary motion on the white paper. In a  broadcast to the nation ahead of the debate in Parliament he said:


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
In the autumn Parliament will be asked to decide whether to join the European Community (the Common Market). It's a big decision and it’s one that goes far beyond party politics. It's a decision that will affect us fundamentally whether we go in or stay out. Let's be very clear about it, this is a moment of decision that will not occur again for a very long time if ever.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
The debate itself took place between 21 and 28 October 1971, with the House of Commons debating directly whether or not the United Kingdom should become a member of the EC. Conservative MPs were given a free vote, Labour MPs were given a three-line whip to vote against the motion, and Liberal MPs were whipped into voting in favour of the motion. Prime Minister Edward Heath commented in the chamber just before the vote:


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
But tonight when this House endorses this Motion many millions of people right across the world will rejoice that we have taken our rightful place in a truly United Europe!


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
The House of Commons voted 356–244 in favour of the motion, a substantial majority of 112, with the Prime Minister commenting straight afterwards on behalf of the House:


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
Resolved, That this House approves Her Majesty's Government's decision of principle to join the European Communities on the basis of the arrangements which have been negotiated.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
No referendum was held when Britain agreed to an accession treaty on 22 January 1972, or when the European Communities Bill went through the legislative process, on the grounds that to hold one would be unconstitutional; the bill passed its second reading in the House of Commons by just eight votes. The United Kingdom joined the European Communities on 1 January 1973, along with Denmark and the Republic of Ireland. The EC would later become the European Union.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1970 Conservative manifesto commitment and negotiations
Throughout this period, the Labour Party was divided, both on the substantive issue of EC accession and on the question of whether accession ought to be approved by referendum. In 1971 pro-Market figures such as Roy Jenkins, the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, said a Labour government would have agreed to the terms of accession secured by the Conservatives. However, the National Executive Committee and the Labour Party Conference disapproved of the terms. In April 1972, the anti-EC Conservative MP Neil Marten tabled an amendment to the European Communities Bill, which called for a consultative referendum on entry. Labour had previously opposed a referendum, but the Shadow Cabinet decided to support Marten's amendment. Jenkins resigned as Deputy Leader in opposition to the decision, and many Labour MPs abstained in the division.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1974 Labour manifesto commitments
At the February 1974 United Kingdom general election, the Labour Party manifesto promised renegotiation of the UK's terms of membership, to be followed by a consultative referendum on continued membership under the new terms if they were acceptable.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1974 Labour manifesto commitments
Within one month of coming into office the Labour Government started the negotiations promised in its February manifesto on the basis set out in that manifesto.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1974 Labour manifesto commitments
It is as yet too early to judge the likely results of the tough negotiations which are taking place. But whatever the outcome in Brussels, the decision will be taken here by the British people.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1974 Labour manifesto commitments
This could be interpreted as including the option of an election in 1975.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Background, 1974 Labour manifesto commitments
Labour managed to win a very small working majority, and had no need of another general election and the referendum was organised.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Legislation
The government produced a white paper on the proposed referendum on 26 February 1975: it recommended core public funding for both the 'Yes' and 'No' sides, voting rights for members of the armed forces and members of the House of Lords, and finally a proposed single central count of the votes for the whole country. This white paper was approved by the House of Commons. A Referendum Bill was introduced to the Commons on 26 March; at its second reading on 10 April, MPs voted 312–248 in favour.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Legislation
Prior to the Bill's passing, there was no procedure or legislation within the United Kingdom for holding any such plebiscite. The vote, the only nationwide plebiscite to be held in the UK during the 20th century, was of constitutional significance. Referendums had been widely opposed in the past, on the grounds that they violated the principle of parliamentary sovereignty. The first major referendum (i.e. one covering more than one local government area) to be held in any part of the UK had been the sovereignty referendum in Northern Ireland in 1973.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Legislation
How the votes were to be counted caused much division as the Bill went through Parliament. The government was of the opinion that, given that the poll was substantially different from a general election, and that as a national referendum the United Kingdom was a single constituency, an unprecedented single national count of all the votes for the whole country should take place at Earls Court in London over several days, with one declaration of the final result by the National Counting Officer (later in the legislation the title was changed to Chief Counting Officer).


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Legislation
This proposal did not attract the wider support of the Labour Party or the other opposition parties; the Liberal Party favoured individual counts in each of the parliamentary constituencies, and tabled an amendment to this effect, but was defeated by 263 to 131 votes in the House of Commons. However, another amendment, tabled in the Commons by Labour MP Roderick MacFarquhar, sought to have separate counts for each administrative region (the post-1974 county council areas): this won cross-party support, and was carried by 272 to 155 votes.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Legislation
The Act did not specify any national supermajority of 'Yes' votes for approval of the terms; a simple majority of 50% + 1 vote would suffice to win the vote. It received royal assent on 8 May 1975, just under a month before the vote took place.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Referendum question
The question that would be put to the British electorate, as set out in the Act was:


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Referendum question
The Government has announced the results of the renegotiation of the United Kingdom's terms of membership of the European Community. Do you think that the United Kingdom should stay in the European Community (the Common Market)?


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Referendum question
A simple YES / NO answer was permitted (to be marked with a single 'X').


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Referendum question
The question that was used was one of the options in the Government White Paper of February 1975, although during the passage of the Referendum Bill through Parliament, the Government agreed to add the words "Common Market" in brackets at the end of the question.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Referendum question
The referendum took place 25 years before the passing of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 by the Labour government of Tony Blair, which introduced into British law a general procedure for the holding of all future UK-wide referendums, and also created the Electoral Commission, a body that would oversee such votes and also test and research proposed referendum questions.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning
The referendum was called in April 1975 after the renegotiation was formally concluded. Since Prime Minister Harold Wilson's cabinet was split between supporters and opponents of the Common Market, and since members of each side held their views strongly, he made the decision, unprecedented outside coalition government, to suspend the constitutional convention of Cabinet collective responsibility. Cabinet members would be allowed to publicly campaign against each other. In total, seven of the twenty-three members of the cabinet opposed EC membership.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning
Wilson's solution was that ministers speaking in the House of Commons should reflect government policy (i.e. support for EC membership), but would be allowed to speak freely elsewhere, thus avoiding a mass dismissal of Cabinet ministers. In spite of this, one minister, Eric Heffer, was obliged to resign after speaking against EC membership in the House of Commons.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, Yes campaign (Britain In Europe)
The 'Yes' campaign was officially supported by Wilson and the majority of his cabinet, including the holders of the three other Great Offices of State: Denis Healey, the Chancellor of the Exchequer; James Callaghan, the Foreign Secretary; and Roy Jenkins, the Home Secretary.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, Yes campaign (Britain In Europe)
It was also supported by the majority of the Conservative Party, including its newly elected leader Margaret Thatcher — 249 of 275 party members in Parliament supported staying in the EC in a free vote in April 1975 — the Liberal Party, the Social Democratic and Labour Party, the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland and the Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, No campaign (National Referendum Campaign)
The influential Conservative Edward du Cann said that "the Labour party is hopelessly and irrevocably split and muddled over this issue". The 'No' campaign included the left wing of the Labour Party, including the cabinet ministers Michael Foot, Tony Benn, Peter Shore, and Barbara Castle who during the campaign famously said "They lured us into the market with the mirage of the market miracle". Some Labour 'No' supporters, including Eric Varley and Douglas Jay, were on the right wing of the party, but most were from the left. The 'No' campaign also included a large number of Labour backbenchers; upon the division on a pro-EC White Paper about the renegotiation, 148 Labour MPs opposed their own government's measure, whereas only 138 supported it and 32 abstained.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, No campaign (National Referendum Campaign)
"Many Conservatives feel the European Community is not good for Britain ... The Conservative party is divided on it too", du Cann — head of the Conservatives' 1922 Committee — added, although there were far fewer Eurosceptic figures in the Parliamentary Conservative Party in 1975 than there would be during later debates on Europe, such as the accession to the Maastricht Treaty. Most of the Ulster Unionist Party were for 'No' in the referendum, most prominently the former Conservative minister Enoch Powell, who after Benn was the second-most prominent anti-Marketeer in the campaign. Other parties supporting the 'No' campaign included the Democratic Unionist Party, the Scottish National Party, Plaid Cymru, and parties outside Parliament including the National Front and the Communist Party of Great Britain.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, Official party positions
Conservative and Liberal Party conferences consistently supported EC membership for several years up to 1975. At a Labour Party conference on 26 April 1975, the Labour membership rejected continuing EC membership by almost a 2:1 margin. Tony Benn said, "We have had a conference and the decision is clear ... It is very clear that there now must be a move for the Labour Party to campaign."


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, Official party positions
The majority of the Labour Party leadership was strongly for continuing membership, and the margin of the party vote was not a surprise, since only seven of forty-six trade unions present at the conference supported EC membership. Prior to the conference, the party had decided that if the conference voted by a margin of 2:1 or more in favour of a particular option, it would then support that position in the referendum campaign. Otherwise, the 'party machine' would remain neutral. Therefore, the Labour Party itself did not campaign on either side.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, The campaign, funding and media support
The government distributed pamphlets from the official Yes and No campaigns to every household in Britain, together with its own pamphlet which argued in support of EC membership. According to this pamphlet, "the most important (issues in the renegotiation) were FOOD and MONEY and JOBS".


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, The campaign, funding and media support
During the campaign, almost the entire mainstream national British press supported the 'Yes' campaign. The left-wing Morning Star was the only notable national daily to back the 'No' campaign. Television broadcasts were used by both campaigns, like party political broadcasts during general elections. They were broadcast simultaneously on all three terrestrial channels: BBC 1, BBC 2 and ITV. They attracted audiences of up to 20 million viewers. The 'Yes' campaign advertisements were thought to be much more effective, showing their speakers listening to and answering people's concerns, while the 'No' campaign's broadcasts featured speakers reading from an autocue.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, The campaign, funding and media support
The 'Yes' campaign enjoyed much more funding, thanks to the support of many British businesses and the Confederation of British Industry. According to the treasurer of the 'Yes' campaign, Alistair McAlpine, "The banks and big industrial companies put in very large sums of money". At the time, business was "overwhelmingly pro-European", and Harold Wilson met several prominent industrialists to elicit support. It was common for pro-Europeans to convene across party and ideological lines with businessmen. John Mills, the national agent of the 'No' campaign, recalled: "We were operating on a shoe-string compared to the Rolls Royce operation on the other side". However, it was also the case that many civil society groups supported the 'Yes' campaign, including the National Farmers Union and some trade unions.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, The campaign, funding and media support
Much of the 'Yes' campaign focused on the credentials of its opponents. According to Alistair McAlpine, "The whole thrust of our campaign was to depict the anti-Marketeers as unreliable people – dangerous people who would lead you down the wrong path ... It wasn't so much that it was sensible to stay in, but that anybody who proposed that we came out was off their rocker or virtually Marxist."


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Campaigning, The campaign, funding and media support
Tony Benn said there had been "Half a million jobs lost in Britain and a huge increase in food prices as a direct result of our entry into the Common Market", using his position as Secretary of State for Industry as an authority. His claims were ridiculed by the 'Yes' campaign and ministers; the Daily Mirror labelled Benn the "Minister of Fear", and other newspapers were similarly derisive. Ultimately, the 'No' campaign lacked a popular centrist figure to play the public leadership role for their campaign that Jenkins and Wilson fulfilled in the 'Yes' campaign.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Counting areas
The referendum was held nationally across all four countries of the United Kingdom as a single majority vote in 68 counting areas under the provisions of the Referendum Act, for which the then administrative counties of England and Wales and the then newly formed administrative regions of Scotland were used, with Northern Ireland as a single counting area.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Counting areas
The following table shows the breakdown of the voting areas for the referendum within the United Kingdom.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Results
Voting in the referendum took place across the United Kingdom on Thursday 5 June between 07:00 and 22:00 BST. All counting areas started their counts the following day on Friday 6 June at 09:00 BST, and the final result was announced just before 23:00 BST by the Chief Counting Officer (CCO) Sir Philip Allen at Earls Court Exhibition Centre in London, after all 68 counting areas had declared their totals. With a national turnout of 64% across the United Kingdom, the target to secure a majority for the winning side was 12,951,598 votes. The result was a decisive endorsement of continued EC membership, which won by a huge majority of 8,908,508 votes (34.5%) over those who had voted to reject continued membership.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Results
In total, over two-thirds of voters supported continued EC membership. 67.2 percent voted 'Yes' and 32.8 percent voted 'No'. At council level, support for EC membership was positively correlated with support for the Conservative Party and with average income. In contrast, poorer areas that supported Labour gave less support to the question. Approval was well above 60% in almost every council area in England and also in Wales, with the strongly Labour-supporting Mid Glamorgan being the exception. Scotland and Northern Ireland gave less support to the question than the British average. Once the voting areas had declared, their results were then relayed to Sir Philip Allen, the Chief Counting Officer, who later declared the final result.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Results
All the counting areas within the United Kingdom returned large majority 'Yes' votes except for two Scottish regions, the Shetland Islands and the Western Isles, which returned majority votes in favour of 'No'.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Results
NOTE: Unusually for a referendum Yes was the no change (status quo) option.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
On Friday 6 June 1975 at 18:30 BST the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, gave his reaction outside 10 Downing Street as counting continued, although by this point the result was clear:


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
'The verdict has been given by a vote with a bigger majority than has been received by any Government in any general election. Nobody in Britain or the wider world should have any doubt about its meaning. It was a free vote, without constraint, following a free democratic campaign conducted constructively and without rancour. It means that fourteen years of national argument are over. It means that all those who have had reservations about Britain's commitment should now join wholeheartedly with our partners in Europe, and our friends everywhere to meet the challenge confronting the whole nation.'


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
Enoch Powell gave this reaction to the result in a newspaper a few days after the referendum:


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
‘Never again by the necessity of an axiom, will an Englishman live for his country or die for his country: The country for which people live and die was obsolete and we have abolished it. Or not quite yet. No, not yet. The referendum is not a “verdict” after which the prisoner is hanged forthwith. It is no more than provisional … This will be so as long Parliament can alter or undo whatever that or any other Parliament has done. Hence those Golden words in the Government's Referendum pamphlet: “Our continued membership would depend on the continuing assent of Parliament”.’


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
Roy Jenkins said: "It puts the uncertainty behind us. It commits Britain to Europe; it commits us to playing an active, constructive and enthusiastic role in it." Tony Benn said: "When the British people speak, everyone, including members of Parliament, should tremble before their decision and that's certainly the spirit with which I accept the result of the referendum."


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
Jenkins was rewarded for successfully leading the campaign for Britain to remain a member of the European Communities when two years later he became the first and only British politician during the period of British membership from 1973 until 2020 to hold the post of President of the European Commission, which he held for four years from 1977 to 1981.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
The result strengthened Harold Wilson's tactical position, by securing a further post-election public expression of support for his policies. According to Cook and Francis (1979), ‘The left of his party had been appeased by the holding of a referendum, the right by its result’. Following the result, the Labour Party and British trade unions themselves joined European institutions, such as the Socialist Group in the European Parliament, to which they had been reluctant to commit before public approval of EC membership.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
In the House of Commons, the referendum result settled the issue of Europe for two years, until the debate about direct elections to the European Parliament began in 1977.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Reactions to the result
For the next forty-one years, the result provided a major pro-European mandate to politicians, particularly in the UK Parliament and later in the newly devolved establishments in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, until the 2016 EU membership referendum was held on Thursday 23 June 2016, when the UK voted by 51.9% to 48.1% to leave the European Union. On that occasion the relative difference of enthusiasm for membership was reversed, with England and Wales voting to leave, whilst Scotland, London and Northern Ireland voted to stay. At 11pm GMT on 31 January 2020, after 47 years of membership, the United Kingdom left the European Union.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, Sovereignty issues
The question of sovereignty was discussed in an internal document of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO 30/1048) before the European Communities Act 1972, which was not available to the public until January 2002 under the thirty-year rule. Among policy areas listed "in which parliamentary freedom to legislate will be affected by entry into the European Communities" were customs duties; agriculture; free movement of labour, services and capital; transport; and social security for migrant workers. The document concluded that it was advisable to put the considerations of influence and power before those of formal sovereignty.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, TV coverage
Both the BBC and ITV provided coverage throughout the following day, and the BBC programme was presented by David Dimbleby and David Butler. There were several programmes throughout the day. While ITV's coverage was mixed in with live Horse Racing coverage from Epsom of the Epsom Oaks day card and was presented by Robert Kee and Peter Jay. This was the only major UK poll in which Alastair Burnet was not involved in the TV coverage as lead presenter as he was editing the Daily Express at the time of the referendum.


1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, TV coverage
The BBC only kept two hours of coverage - that shown between 2pm and 4pm - and that coverage was repeated on BBC Parliament to mark the 30th anniversary of the referendum in June 2005. It was also reshown to mark the 40th anniversary in June 2015 on the BBC Parliament channel, and was to be shown again to mark the 41st anniversary, ahead of the 2016 EU Referendum. 41 years after the 1975 referendum, David Dimbleby also hosted the BBC's coverage as the UK voted to leave the EU.


1975 United Kingdom local elections
Local elections took place for one third of the seats of the thirty-six metropolitan boroughs on 1 May 1975. The seats had previously been contested in May 1973, when the Labour Party had achieved great success. In the 1975 elections the Conservative Party made widespread gains, with a net gain of 199 seats and Labour had a net loss of 206. The Liberal Party had a net loss of 10 seats, and Independents a loss of 5. "Others", including Ratepayers, Independent Labour councillors and Progressives made net gains of 22.


1975 United Kingdom local elections
The Conservatives gained control of Bury, Stockport and Wirral from no overall control; and Calderdale form Labour. They also became the largest party on Leeds city council.


1975 United Kingdom local elections
Labour retained control of Birmingham by the mayor's casting vote.


1975 United Kingdom local elections
The Liberals failed to gain overall control of Liverpool, and losing seats, but remaining the largest party on the council by a single seat.


1975 United Malays National Organisation leadership election
A leadership election was held by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party in 1975. It was won by incumbent Prime Minister and President of UMNO, Abdul Razak Hussein.


1975 United Nations Security Council election
The 1975 United Nations Security Council election was held on between 20 October and 23 October 1975 during the Thirtieth session of the United Nations General Assembly, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York City. The General Assembly elected Dahomey (now Benin), Libya, Pakistan, Panama, and Romania, as the five new non-permanent members of the UN Security Council for two-year mandates commencing on 1 January 1976. Benin and Libya were elected for the first time.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Rules
The Security Council has 15 seats, filled by five permanent members and ten non-permanent members. Each year, half of the non-permanent members are elected for two-year terms. A sitting member may not immediately run for re-election.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Rules
In accordance with the rules whereby the ten non-permanent UNSC seats rotate among the various regional blocs into which UN member states traditionally divide themselves for voting and representation purposes, the five available seats are allocated as follows:


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Rules
To be elected, a candidate must receive a two-thirds majority of those present and voting. If the vote is inconclusive after the first round, three rounds of restricted voting shall take place, followed by three rounds of unrestricted voting, and so on, until a result has been obtained. In restricted voting, only official candidates may be voted on, while in unrestricted voting, any member of the given regional group, with the exception of current Council members, may be voted on.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result
As Mr. Gaston Thorn of Luxembourg, then-President of the United Nations General Assembly, was absent for all three days of voting, the meetings were chaired by three different Vice-Presidents: Mr. Waldron-Ramsey of Barbados chaired the first two of the meetings on the first day, Mr. Ålgård of Norway chaired over the third meeting, and Mr. Nzengeya of Zaire (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) chaired over the fourth.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result
The United Nations had 143 member states at this time (for a timeline of UN membership, see Enlargement of the United Nations).


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result
Delegates were given ballot papers; they were to write the names of the five states they wished elected to the Council on them. Any ballot paper containing more than five names was declared invalid.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 1
The first six rounds of balloting were held on 20 October 1983 at the 2384th and 2385th plenary meetings of the General Assembly. Dahomey, Libya, Panama, and Romania were elected in the first round, leaving only the Asian seat vacant. As India and Pakistan were the states with the highest number of votes contesting the Asian seat, in accordance with the rules, three rounds of restricted voting would commence.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 1
In these rounds, only the two states that have attained the highest number of votes in the previous round (India and Pakistan) could be voted on, any other votes would be considered invalid. After the three rounds of voting failed to provide an election, the meeting rose. Later in the day, the Assembly had the 2385th meeting, and the voting was continued with unrestricted rounds.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 1
After the first such round of voting proved inconclusive, the President motioned for a change in the schedule; before continuing the vote on the Security Council membership, the 18 members of the Economic and Social Council were elected in one round of voting. After those elections, the elections to the Security Council continued with a fifth round, which was also inconclusive. Mr. Yango of the Philippines then rose to speak and withdrew his country's candidacy. Then the President asked the Assembly on their view on the vote as to should it be continued on this date or not.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 1
Mr. Baroody of Saudi Arabia rose to speak and advised the Assembly not to delay, citing the urgency of the question of Korea and of other matters on the Assembly's agenda; a sixth round of voting commenced, also inconclusive. Then both Mr. Ramphul of Mauritius and Mr. Rios of Panama advised the President to adjourn the meeting, and once the representatives of both India and Pakistan agreed to the motion, the meeting rose.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 2
The seventh round of voting was held on 21 October 1975 during the 2386th meeting. After this inconclusive round of voting, Mr. Baroody of Saudi Arabia rose to speak and appealed to both India and Pakistan not to agree on a one-year period each, as such precedents in similar situations were made known to him. Next to speak was Mr. Bishara of Kuwait; citing rule 76 of the rules of procedure, he motioned for an immediate adjournment of the meeting for 48 hours.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 2
He did this because he found that "this, to put it mildly, unpleasant and indeed unattractive spectacle does not redound to the prestige of this Assembly or do it honour.". The motion was put to a vote and was adopted by 124 votes for and one against, with 5 abstentions, and the meeting rose.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 3
The eighth and final round of voting was held on 23 October 1975 during the 2387th. Mr. Bishara of Kuwait, Chairman of the Asian Group, rose to speak in his national capacity; he appealed to one of the two contesting nations to withdraw from the election. He also assured the country stepping down that Kuwait would do its utmost to get them elected in a future election. Next to speak was Mr. Adjibadé of Dahomey, who seconded Mr. Bishara in his statement, claiming that both Africa and Asia would endorse the withdrawing nation in a future election.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 3
Mr. Ortiz de Rozas of Argentina also backed the idea, stating that "the vast majority of the countries represented here share the views so eloquently set forth by the representative of Kuwait.". Mr. Hoveyda of Iran also joined the initiative, giving full support from the delegation of his country to the country stepping down. Mr. Abdel-Meguid of Egypt also joined the initiative. Next to speak was Mr. Ramphul of Mauritius, stating that the country withdrawing would not lose any prestige.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 3
Mr. Shaikhly of Iraq (the country vacating the Asian seat in the Council at the end of the year) felt that it was a special duty for his delegation to appeal to the contesting countries for one of them to withdraw. Mr. Azzout of Algeria stated his confidence that one of the two countries will withdraw.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 3
Mr. Panyarachun of Thailand joined the initiative for voluntary withdrawal and reminded the Assembly that the delegation of the Philippines has withdrawn from this election, and that when Japan would vacate its seat on the Council at the end of 1976, the Philippines would surely apply for election. Mr. Jaipal of India then withdrew the candidacy of his country, and thanked all those who would support India in a future election. Mr. Akhund of Pakistan then thanked India for withdrawing, and assured them that next time they contest a seat on the Security Council, Pakistan will give them full support.


1975 United Nations Security Council election, Result, Day 3
Finally, Mr. Yango of the Philippines rose to speak. He stated that, although many in the Assembly had given promises of supporting India in a future election, Asia is a big region, and any nation within it has a right to declare its candidacy. Then the vote was taken and Pakistan was elected to the Security Council.


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara
To assist in the decolonization process of the Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara), a colony in North Africa, the United Nations General Assembly in 1975 dispatched a visiting mission to the territory and the surrounding countries, in accordance with its resolution 3292 (December 13, 1974).


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, Purpose of the visiting mission
The mission intended to investigate the political situation in the Spanish Sahara, as well as the conflicting claims to the territory:


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, The mission
The mission was composed of three members. Its head was Simeon Aké, UN ambassador of the Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast); accompanying him were Marta Jiménez Martinez, a Cuban diplomat, and Manouchehr Pishva, from Iran.


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, The mission
It toured Spanish Sahara on May 12–19, 1975, after initially having been denied entry by Spanish authorities. On May 8–12 and again on May 20–22, it visited Madrid, Spain; and from May 28 to June 1, it toured the neighbouring countries Mauritania, Morocco and Algeria; in Algeria - which supported the Polisario since late 1974 - it also met with leaders of the Polisario Front.


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, Findings of the mission, Moroccan Sahara
In the territory, the mission encountered opposing demonstrations by the Polisario Front and the PUNS, both demanding independence, but differing in their approach to the Spanish authorities. Tony Hodges writes:


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, Findings of the mission, Moroccan Sahara
The mission estimated the largest demonstration they witnessed, "organized by the Frente Polisario", in El-Aaiun on May 13, 1975, to have consisted of 15,000 people - significant, since a 1974 census by the Spanish authorities had set the total population at just below 75,000 people.


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, Consequences of the mission report
The mission presented its report to the United Nations on October 15, 1975. The results of the investigation were cited especially by the Polisario Front and its Algerian backers as supportive of their argument, but the debate was largely submerged by the presentation of the opinion of the International Court of Justice on October 16. The court argued that while there were historical ties between both Mauritania and Morocco to the tribes and lands of Spanish Sahara, neither country's claim sufficed to grant it ownership of the territory.


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, Consequences of the mission report
The court also ruled that the Sahrawis possessed a right of self-determination, meaning that any solution to the problem of the status of Spanish Sahara had to be approved by the Sahrawi public. (A position regarded as supportive of the referendum.) As a response to the ICJ verdict, King Hassan II of Morocco announced within hours of the release of the court's findings, that he would organize a Green March into Spanish Sahara to assume ownership of the territory.


1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara, UN General Assembly archive number
The mission's final report is archived in the General Assembly Official Records.


1975 United States Grand Prix
The 1975 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on October 5, 1975, at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in Watkins Glen, New York. It was race 14 of 14 in both the 1975 World Championship of Drivers and the 1975 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. It was the 25th United States Grand Prix since the first American Grand Prize was held in 1908 and the 18th since the first United States Grand Prix at Riverside in 1958.


1975 United States Grand Prix
The race was won by the new world champion, Austrian driver Niki Lauda driving a Ferrari 312T. Lauda took his fifth win for the season by a four-second margin over outgoing world champion, Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi in a McLaren M23. Fittipaldi's West German teammate Jochen Mass finished third. The second place allowed Fittipaldi to confirm runner's up position in the points race after a half-season long battle with Argentine Brabham driver Carlos Reutemann, although Fittipaldi's McLaren team would fall one point short of overhauling Brabham in the Constructors battle to be second behind Ferrari.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
Ferrari had already taken eight poles, five wins, the Drivers' Championship and the Constructors' Championship in 1975, but had never won the United States Grand Prix. Nor had any driver ever won the American race in the year he claimed the title. New world champion Niki Lauda took pole position and won the race to interrupt both of these streaks.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
There was controversy before practice began. The Canadian Grand Prix had been cancelled and the organizers had arrived in the paddock with a writ to freeze the prize money over legal wrangles. There were also disputes with the Grand Prix Drivers' Association over transfer fees and wages.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
The track had been modified for this race by the addition of the "Scheckter chicane" at the bottom of the hill entering the esses. After François Cevert's fatal crash there two years earlier, the corner was deemed to be too fast. Named for the Tyrrell driver who suggested it, the chicane was expected to add nearly five seconds to the lap times.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
Mark Donohue had been fatally injured in practice for the Austrian Grand Prix, and John Watson had replaced Donohue on the Penske team. Penske fielded the brand new PC3 for Watson, Although bearing the Penske name The Englishman used the car in practice, but due to a technical failure was forced to switch to the old PC1, which was in the paddock as a demonstrator, for the race. Lauda was quickest from the start, as the drivers got accustomed to the new layout.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
Vittorio Brambilla briefly registered in with quickest time on Friday, just one hundredth of a second better than Lauda. Lauda's engine developed a vibration, but the Austrian used the spare car to beat the March's time by almost a second. On Saturday, it was Emerson Fittipaldi who briefly held the pole at 1:42.360, but Lauda answered his challenge as well, ending the discussion at 1:42.003. Carlos Reutemann, Jean-Pierre Jarier, Mario Andretti and Brambilla took the rest of the top six positions on the grid.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
On race days, Watson's Penske suffered electrical problems in the morning warmup. As he was being towed in, the crew retrieved the display car from the First National Citibank podium in the paddock and prepared it to enter the race. Lella Lombardi's Williams suffered an electrical failure, and her teammate Jacques Laffite was unable to race after mistaking visor cleaning fluid for his eyedrops. Lombardi tried to use Laffite's car, but she didn't fit.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
Lauda led the field away from the grid and through the new chicane for the first time, followed by Fittipaldi, Jarier, Brambilla, Reutemann and Andretti. Carlos Pace and Patrick Depailler collided on lap 2, both retiring from the race as a result.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
The gap between Lauda's Ferrari and Fittipaldi's McLaren settled at about one second. Mass, who had moved up to sixth, suddenly lost three places to Andretti, James Hunt, and Ronnie Peterson when he accidentally switched off his engine. On the next lap, with Mass now immediately in front of him, Clay Regazzoni smashed his nose against the rear wheel of the McLaren and lost more than a lap as he pitted for a new one. On lap 10, Reutemann's engine expired and Andretti's front suspension collapsed. This left Lauda and Fittipaldi twelve seconds ahead of Jarier, who was five seconds clear of a group containing Hunt, Brambilla, Mass, Peterson and Scheckter.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
Lauda's teammate Regazzoni was caught by the leaders on lap 18, after his lengthy pit stop. He let Lauda by, but held up Fittipaldi for six laps, despite blue flags being waved to indicate that he should be let through. Eventually Regazzoni was black flagged and brought in for a warning on lap 24; Ferrari manager Luca di Montezemolo instructed Regazzoni to continue the race, but withdrew him from the race in protest just after four laps.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
Back on the track, Fittipaldi was now 15 seconds behind Lauda, Jarier had retired with a seized rear wheel bearing, Brambilla dropped back to seventh suffering from loose seat supports, and Hunt, Mass, Peterson and Scheckter were battling for third. Mass overtook Hunt on lap 33. With nine laps to go, Peterson also passed Hunt, who was struggling with his gear selection and brake balance. Three laps from the finish, Mass's brakes began to fade, and Peterson closed, but locked up his left front tire under braking. The resulting flat spot slowed him enough for Hunt to retake fourth on the last lap. Lauda took the win by just under five seconds.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
This was the final race for Tony Brise and Embassy Racing with Graham Hill. On the evening of 29 November 1975, double-world champion Graham Hill was piloting a Piper Aztec light aircraft from France to London. His passengers were team manager Ray Brimble, driver Tony Brise, designer Andy Smallman and mechanics Terry Richards and Tony Alcock. They were returning from Circuit Paul Ricard where they had been testing the GH2 car being prepared for 1976. They were due to land at Elstree airfield before onward travel to London to attend a party.


1975 United States Grand Prix, Summary
Shortly before 10pm, the plane hit trees beside a golf course at Arkley in thick fog. In the ensuing crash and explosion, everyone on board was killed. As the team now only consisted of the deputy team manager and two mechanics, it was impossible to continue, and so the team was closed down.


1975 United States House of Representatives elections
There were 4 special elections in 1975 to the United States House of Representatives:


1975 United States gubernatorial elections
United States gubernatorial elections were held in three states and one territory, on November 1, 1975, in Louisiana, and three days later in Kentucky and Mississippi. No governorships changed hands in these elections, as all three southern states remained under Democratic control.


1975 United States gubernatorial elections
This was the first gubernatorial election in Louisiana's history which was conducted under the nonpartisan blanket primary (a.k.a. "jungle primary") format.


1975 United States gubernatorial elections, Election results
A bolded state name features an article about the specific election.


1975 Uruguayan Primera División, Overview
It was contested by 12 teams, and Peñarol won the championship.


1975 Utah State Aggies football team
The 1975 Utah State Aggies football team was an American football team that represented Utah State University as an independent during the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. In their third season under head coach Phil Krueger, the Aggies compiled a 6–5 record and were outscored by opponents by a total of 240 to 193.


1975 Utah Utes football team
The 1975 Utah Utes football team was an American football team that represented the University of Utah during the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. Head coach Tom Lovat led the team to a 1–4 mark in the WAC and 1–10 overall.


1975 Utah Utes football team, NFL draft
One Ute was selected in the 1976 NFL Draft, which lasted seventeen rounds (487 selections).


1975 VFA season
The 1975 Victorian Football Association season was the 94th season of the top division of the Australian rules football competition, and the 15th season of second division competition. The Division 1 premiership was won by the Geelong West Football Club, after it defeated Dandenong in the Grand Final on 21 September by 28 points; it was the first and only Division 1 premiership won by Geelong West in its time in the Association. The Division 2 premiership was won by Brunswick; it was Brunswick's first premiership in either division since 1938.


1975 VFA season, Division 1
The Division 1 home-and-away season was played over 18 rounds; the top four then contested the finals under the Page–McIntyre system. The finals were played at the St Kilda Cricket Ground.


1975 VFA season, Division 2
The Division 2 home-and-away season was played over eighteen rounds; the top four then contested the finals under the Page–McIntyre system; all finals were played on Sundays at Toorak Park.


1975 VFA season, Notable events, Interleague matches
For the first time since 1968, and the first time since its expulsion from the Australian National Football Council, the Association played an interleague representative match. The match was played in Wangaratta against the Ovens and Murray Football League. The match was played during the lean half of a split-round in the Association fixture, and selection in the team was controversially limited to players from the twelve clubs which were idle that weekend – which automatically excluded 40% of Association players from eligibility. Colin Hobbs (Coburg) captained the team.


1975 VFL Grand Final
The 1975 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the North Melbourne Football Club and the Hawthorn Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 27 September 1975. It was the 79th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for the 1975 VFL season. The match, attended 110,551 spectators, was won by North Melbourne by a margin of 55 points, marking that club's first premiership victory. In doing so, it became the last of the 12 VFL teams to win a flag. The last time North had won a flag prior to that was back in 1918 when they were part of the Victorian Football Association.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Background
North Melbourne had finished runners up the previous season, having been defeated by Richmond in the 1974 VFL Grand Final, and were the only team not to have won a premiership. This was Hawthorn's first appearance in a Grand Final in four years, having defeated St Kilda in the 1971 VFL Grand Final.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Background
North Melbourne lost six of the first nine games of the season before finally hitting their stride, winning eleven of the next thirteen games. At the conclusion of the regular home-and-away season, Hawthorn finished first on the ladder with 17 wins and 5 losses, and North Melbourne had finished third (behind Carlton) with 14 wins and 8 losses.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Background
In the finals series leading up to the Grand Final, North Melbourne defeated Carlton by 20 points in the Qualifying Final before being beaten by Hawthorn by 11 points in the Second Semi-Final. They then met Richmond in the Preliminary Final which they won by 17 points to advance to the Grand Final. Hawthorn advanced straight to the Grand Final on the back of their win in the Second Semi-Final.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Background
Hawthorn captain Peter Crimmins was overlooked for the 1975 Grand Final after being struck down by testicular cancer. Crimmins declared that he was fit to play after playing 5 reserve games, including one final, and both the selection committee and Hawthorn's supporters were divided over whether he should play. Ultimately the match committee decided against playing him in the game, with coach John Kennedy admitting they were fearful a knock could affect him. As he explained later: "It was very hard, it was a unique situation ... Peter wanted to play. The committee was divided. He didn't play. We'll never know what might have happened if he had played."


1975 VFL Grand Final, Teams
The umpiring panel for the match, comprising one field umpire, two boundary umpires and two goal umpires is given below. This was the last Grand final with one field umpire officiating.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Teams
Numbers in brackets represent the number of grand finals umpired, including 1975.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Match summary
North Melbourne were on top from the beginning of the game, accumulating nine goals by half time to Hawthorn's five. After the half, North blew the game open, with its last six goals of the match extending the margin from 24 points to 61. Their final winning margin of 55 points was the biggest in a Premiership decider since the 1957 VFL Grand Final.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Match summary
Contributing strongly for North Melbourne were Brent Crosswell, John Rantall, Keith Greig, John Burns, David Dench, Mick Nolan, Sam Kekovich and Doug Wade. Arnold Briedis kicked five goals for the Kangaroos. Peter Knights stood out for Hawthorn.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Match summary
The selection of full-forward Michael Cooke proved to be disastrous for Hawthorn. His four goals in the Semi Final (his league debut) helped the Hawks book a spot in the premiership decider, for which he kept his spot in the side. However, Cooke struggled in the Grand Final and was replaced without managing a kick. He never played another senior game.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Match summary
It was in this game that Kennedy made his famous "Don't think, do" speech. As he recalled, "It was born out of desperation. We had some academics in the team who did a lot of thinking, so I, more or less in exasperation, said 'Don't think, do!"


1975 VFL Grand Final, Epilogue
For North Melbourne it would be the final league game for captain Barry Davis, full-forward Wade and the versatile Gary Farrant. It was also the last time Rantall played with North as he returned to South Melbourne the following season.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Epilogue
This was the first of two consecutive Grand Finals to be contested between these teams. In the 1976 VFL Grand Final the fortunes were reversed, with Hawthorn running out winners by a margin of 30 points.


1975 VFL Grand Final, Epilogue
This was the last Grand Final to be played under one umpire. The 1976 Grand Final saw the introduction of two field umpires.


1975 VFL season
The 1975 Victorian Football League season was the 79th season of the elite Australian rules football competition.


1975 VFL season, Premiership season
In 1975, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man. A player could be substituted for any reason; however, once substituted, a player could not return to the field of play under any circumstances.


1975 VFL season, Premiership season
Teams played each other in a home-and-away season of 22 rounds; matches 12 to 22 were the "home-and-way reverse" of matches 1 to 11 (except that rounds 14 and 15 were the reverse of 4 and 3 respectively).


1975 VFL season, Premiership season
Once the 22 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1975 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the "McIntyre Final Five system".


1975 VFL season, Grand final
North Melbourne defeated Hawthorn 19.8 (122) to 9.13 (67), in front of a crowd of 110,551 people. (For an explanation of scoring see Australian rules football).


1975 Vancouver Whitecaps season
The 1975 Vancouver Whitecaps season was the second season of the Whitecaps, and their second season in the North American Soccer League and the top flight of Canadian soccer.


1975 Vancouver Whitecaps season
This was manager Jim Easton's last season with the club and the club showed improvement over their inaugural season. The season started brightly with five wins including those over Seattle and Toronto at home. The rest of the season had mixed results, but the Whitecaps well and truly fell out of playoff contention by losing seven of their last ten games. Barring the 3-0 loss away to the Seattle Sounders on July 19, 1975, the games were close one goal losses. In the last two games of the season, the Whitecaps trounced Denver and San Jose 6-0 and 4-0.


1975 Vancouver Whitecaps season
The Whitecaps finished at 0.500 with eleven wins and losses at fourth in the Pacific Division. Local resident Glen Johnston led the Whitecaps with eight goals and seven assists while Sam Lenarduzzi and Bruce Wilson played all 22 games. Sergio Zanatta and Barrie Mitchell also had strong seasons on the score sheet.


1975 Vancouver Whitecaps season
The Whitecaps also played a friendly match against the New York Cosmos and the newly signed Pele on July 7, 1975, with 26,495 in attendance.


1975 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Club, Roster
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


1975 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Club, Team management
Jim Easton was Vancouver Whitecaps manager in 1975 and saw good success during his tenure with a small budget and local players.


1975 Vanderbilt Commodores football team
The 1975 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University in the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. The team was led by head coach Fred Pancoast, who replaced Steve Sloan. In 1974, Sloan had led Vanderbilt to a bowl game for the first time since 1955, before leaving to become head coach at Texas Tech, the team Vanderbilt had faced in the Peach Bowl to close the season. The Vanderbilt squad finished the season with a record of 7–4, but was not invited to a bowl game. Three of the Commodores's four defeats came by margins of more than 30 points while all seven of their victors were by ten or fewer points.


1975 Vanderbilt Commodores football team, Season
Vanderbilt defeated Rice, Tulane, Army, Chattanooga, Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. The Commodores lost to Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and Ole Miss. Vanderbilt started off with three wins and four losses before winning their last four games of the season including the regular season finale against rival Tennessee. Vanderbilt's final record was 7–4 with a mark of 2–4 in the SEC.


1975 Venetian regional election
The Venetian regional election of 1975 took place on 15 June 1975. Ten new seats were added to the Regional Council following the 1971 census.


1975 Venetian regional election, Events
Christian Democracy was by far the largest party, securing a full majority. After the election, Christian Democrat Angelo Tomelleri was re-elected President of the Region at the head of a coalition comprising also the Italian Republican Party, which anyway left in 1977.


1975 Venezuelan Primera División season
The 1975 season of the Venezuelan Primera División, the top category of Venezuelan football, was played by 8 teams. The national champions were Portuguesa.


1975 Villanova Wildcats football team
The 1975 Villanova Wildcats football team represented the Villanova University during the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. The head coach was Dick Bedesem, coaching his first season with the Wildcats. The team played their home games at Villanova Stadium in Villanova, Pennsylvania.


1975 Virginia Cavaliers football team
The 1975 Virginia Cavaliers football team represented the University of Virginia during the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. The Cavaliers were led by second-year head coach Sonny Randle and played their home games at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia. They competed as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, finishing in last. After a 1–10 campaign with many blowout losses, Randle was fired as head coach.


1975 Virginia Senate election
The 1975 Virginia Senate elections were held on November 4, 1975, alongside the Virginia House of Delegates election. All 40 seats in the Senate of Virginia were up for election.


1975 Virginia Slims Championships
The 1975 Virginia Slims Championships were the fourth season-ending Tour Championships, the annual tennis tournament for the best female tennis players in singles on the Virginia Slims Circuit. The 16 best players, based on points average, qualified for the tournament provided they had played at least six tournaments. The singles event consisted of an elimination round and the eight winners were subsequently divided over two round robin groups (Gold and Green). The winners of each group played each other in the final and additionally there were play-off matches for third, fifth and seventh place. The tournament was played on synthetic carpet (Sporteze) and was held in the week of March 31 to April 5, 1975, at the Los Angeles Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California. This was the first year the tournament switched from October to April.


1975 Virginia Slims Championships, Finals, Doubles
Margaret Court /  Virginia Wade defeated  Rosemary Casals /  Billie Jean King, 6–7(2–7), 7–6, 6–2.


1975 Virginia Slims of Akron
The 1975 Virginia Slims of Akron, also known as the Akron Tennis Open,  was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor courts at the Richfield Coliseum in Akron, Ohio in the United States that was part of the 1975 Virginia Slims circuit. It was the third edition of the tournament and was held from February 3 through February 9, 1975. Chris Evert won the singles title and the accompanying $15,000 first-prize money.


1975 Virginia Slims of Akron, Finals, Doubles
Françoise Dürr /  Betty Stöve defeated  Chris Evert /  Martina Navratilova 7–5, 7–6


1975 Virginia Slims of Boston
The 1975 Virginia Slims of Boston, also known that year as the US Indoor Championships,  was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Boston University Walter Brown Arena  in Boston, Massachusetts in the United States that was part of the 1975 Virginia Slims World Championship Series. The tournament was held from March 3 through March 8, 1975. Martina Navratilova won the singles title and earned $15,000 first-prize money.


1975 Virginia Slims of Boston, Finals, Doubles
Rosie Casals /  Billie Jean King defeated  Chris Evert /  Martina Navratilova 6–3, 6–4


1975 Virginia Slims of Chicago
The 1975 Virginia Slims of Chicago  was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Chicago Amphitheatre  in Chicago, Illinois in the United States that was part of the 1975 Virginia Slims World Championship Series. The tournament was held from February 10 through February 15, 1975. Third-seeded Margaret Court won the singles title and earned $15,000 first-prize money.


1975 Virginia Slims of Chicago, Finals, Doubles
Chris Evert /  Martina Navratilova defeated  Margaret Court /  Olga Morozova 6–2, 7–5


1975 Virginia Slims of Dallas
The 1975 Virginia Slims of Dallas, also known as the Maureen Connolly Memorial, was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Moody Coliseum  in Dallas, Texas in the United States that was part of the 1975 Virginia Slims World Championship Series. It was the fourth edition of the tournament and was held from March 17 through March 23, 1975. Fourth-seeded Virginia Wade won the singles title and earned $15,000 first-prize money.


1975 Virginia Slims of Dallas, Finals, Doubles
Françoise Dürr /  Betty Stöve defeated  Julie Anthony /  Mona Schallau 7–6(5–4), 6–2


1975 Virginia Slims of Detroit
The 1975 Virginia Slims of Detroit  was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Cobo Hall & Arena  in Detroit, Michigan in the United States that was part of the 1975 Virginia Slims World Championship Series. It was the fourth edition of the tournament and was held from February 18 through February 22, 1975. First-seeded Evonne Goolagong won the singles title and earned $15,000 first-prize money.


1975 Virginia Slims of Detroit, Finals, Doubles
Lesley Hunt /  Martina Navratilova defeated  Françoise Dürr /  Betty Stöve 2–6, 7–5, 6–2


1975 Virginia Slims of Houston
The 1975 Virginia Slims of Houston  was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston, Texas in the United States that was part of the 1975 Virginia Slims World Championship Series. It was the fifth edition of the tournament and was held from March 10 through March 15, 1975. Second-seeded Chris Evert won the singles title and earned $15,000 first-prize money.


1975 Virginia Slims of Houston, Finals, Doubles
Françoise Dürr /  Betty Stöve defeated  Evonne Goolagong /  Virginia Wade 2–6, 6–3, 7–6(5–2)