A “penalty” is not a tea drink ("penaltea"), but there have been several puns. A football/soccer riddle has been cited in print since at least 2001 and has been printed on many images:
Q: What tea do footballers drink?
A: Penaltea.
A soccer version has been cited in print since at least 2005:
Q: Which tea do soccer players drink?
A: Penaltea!
A hockey version was posted on Twitter on May 1, 2015:
Q: What tea do hockey players drink?
A: Penaltea.
10 June 2001, Sunday Telegraph (Surry Hills, New South Wales) “THe FUnday Telegraph” by Matthew Frilingos, pg. F1:
What tea do footballers drink?
Penaltea.
8 May 2005, The Sunday Mail (Brisbane, Queensland), “Soccer Jokes,” Sunday Magazine, pg. 103:
Which tea do soccer players drink?
Penaltea!
Google Groups: Humor Club
Humor & Sports
R.K.
11/12/05
-: HUMOR AND SPORTS ! ! :-
>>1. What tea do footballers drink ? Answer: Penal-tea.
Google Books
Key Lardo:
A Chet Gecko Mystery
By Bruce Hale
Orlando, FL: Harcourt, Inc.
2006
Pg. 42:
“What tea do soccer players drink?”
“Huh?”
“PenalTea!” She cackled.
13 June 2006, Liverpool (UK) Echo, “Your JOKES,” pg. 22:
What tea do footballers drink?
Penaltea.
Twitter
❤️ FizzyDuck ❤️
@FizzyDuck
What do footballers drink? Penaltea!
2:28 PM - 19 Jun 2009
Twitter
Marlen Treviño
@MarlenTrevino
What tea do soccer players drink?... > PenalTea! (super silly hahahaha!)
5:48 PM - 22 Aug 2009
Google Books
Sensible Nonsense.. Frank’s Comic Pack:
Humour Pack Series
By Frank Paul
BookBaby
2014
Pg. ?:
What tea do footballers drink ?Penaltea !
Twitter
Emma Nagy
@emmajnagy
What tea do hockey players drink?
Penaltea
10:48 AM - 1 May 2015
Twitter
Dragon
@Dracostian
What tea do hockey players drink? Penaltea!
#puns
3:36 PM - 6 May 2015
Twitter
Creepy Catches
@REALLlFEHEROES
What tea do hockey players drink? Penaltea!
7:16 PM - 21 May 2015
Google Books
Martha Mayhem Goes Nuts!
By Joanne Owen
London, UK Piccadilly Press
2018
Pg. ?:
‘What kind of tea do footballers drink?’
‘I don’t know, Jack,’ said Martha, sounding as sad as a deflated balloon.
‘Penaltea! Get it?’
Twitter
Lucky Score
@LuckyScoreNet
What tea do footballers drink ?
Penaltea !
#Joke from #SportJokes in #Jokes, #Humor and #Satire
5:30 AM - 26 Jan 2018
Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.
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Above, Big Apple Corner at 54th Street and Broadway in Manhattan. Google Maps.
Above, John J. Fitz Gerald, from the Aug. 15, 1931, Binghamton (NY) Press, pg. 14.
Listen to Robert Emmerich introduce "The Big Apple," a hit song from 1937. Music written by Bob and performed by Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven with Bob on piano. Lyrics written by Buddy Bernier and sung by Edythe Wright. Audio provided by Dorothy Emmerich.
Also listen to a 1937 "The Big Apple" song by Ozzie Nelson and his Orchestra. See a 1929 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald and a 1931 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald.
This site is edited by Barry Popik.