The history of the Staffordshire Bull Terrier in Finland began in 1964 and is closely linked to the American-born Steve Stone, who imported the first Staffordshire Bull Terrier into the country that year. In early spring 1964, Stone was also involved in establishing the Northern Star Staffordshire Bull Terrier Club of Finland (NSBTC) together with Hakon Westermarck and Olavi Åberg. At this early stage, the group had limited experience with the breed and the dogs involved were very young, but their efforts nevertheless laid the foundation for the breed's development in Finland.
The first Staffordshire Bull Terrier imported into Finland was the red fawn bitch Bandits Belle-Lettres, known as "Bella", who arrived on 6 April 1964. She was owned by Steve and Maini Stone. Later the same year, two additional Staffords were imported. One was the bitch Bandits Mountainash Xmas Anna, known as "Sherry", owned by Hakon Westermarck and associated with the affix Finnstaff's. The other was the male Towans Lord John, known as "Beau", bred by Colin and George Smith in the United Kingdom and owned by Olavi Åberg. Although Sherry was not immediately registered with the Finnish Kennel Club, she is noted as becoming Finland's first Staffordshire Bull Terrier champion, gaining her crowned CC in Kouvola in May 1966.
During the first years, Steve Stone received assistance from John Gordon of the Bandits affix in the United Kingdom. However, the documented history makes it clear that not all early dogs carrying the Bandits affix were necessarily bred by that kennel, and that Gordon appears in several cases to have acted as an intermediary between British breeders and Finnish buyers. This has contributed to some ambiguity in the early pedigrees.
The growth of the breed in Finland was rapid compared with the other Nordic countries. In 1965, the number of Staffords increased from three to six when Steve Stone returned from Crufts with three additional dogs. During the following winter, the population doubled again when the first two litters were born, bringing the total number of Staffords in Finland to twelve. Within only a few years, the breed population exceeded thirty dogs.
Another significant figure in the early Finnish Stafford history was Colin Smith, who first visited Finland as a judge in 1966. He later settled permanently in Finland with his wife and became an important contributor to the breed's further development, particularly after Steve Stone returned to the United States in 1966.
By the late 1960s, Staffordshire Bull Terriers were firmly established in Finland. In 1968, the official Staffordshire Bull Terrier club was formally recognised under the Finnish Terrier Club, with Hakon Westermarck elected as its first chairman. The breed continued to grow steadily through the following decades, supported by early organisation, regular breeding activity, and sustained use of imported British breeding stock.
Compared with Denmark and Norway, Finland developed a more continuous and structured Staffordshire Bull Terrier population from an early stage. Several early lines were carried forward through multiple generations, giving the Finnish population greater long-term continuity. This early organisation and consistency meant that Finland was one of the leading Nordic countries for the breed for many years, both in terms of registrations and in the development of an established and knowledgeable breed community.