Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional
association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
club based in
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
, Wales. It competes in the
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
, the second tier of the
English football league system
The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs in England, with five teams from Wales, one from Guernsey, one from Jersey and one from the Isl ...
. Founded in 1899 as Riverside A.F.C., the club changed its name to Cardiff City in 1908 and entered the
Southern Football League
The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English fo ...
in 1910 before joining the
English Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...
in 1920. The team has spent 17 seasons in the top tier of English football, the longest period being between 1921 and 1929. Their most recent season in the top flight was the
2018–19 Premier League season.
Cardiff is the only team from outside England to have won the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
, doing so in
1927. They have also reached three other cup finals in English competitions, the
1925 FA Cup Final
The 1925 FA Cup Final was an association football match contested by Sheffield United and Cardiff City on 25 April 1925 at Wembley Stadium in London, England. The final was the showpiece match of English football's primary cup competition, the ...
against
Sheffield United
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
, the
2008 FA Cup Final
The 2008 FA Cup Final was an association football match between Cardiff City and Portsmouth held at Wembley Stadium, London, on 17 May 2008. The final was the showpiece match of English football's primary cup competition, the 2007–08 Footba ...
against
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
and the
2012 Football League Cup Final against
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
, suffering defeat on each occasion. They have won the
Welsh Cup
The FAW Welsh Cup ( cy, Cwpan Cymdeithas Pêl-droed Cymru), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the most ...
on 22 occasions, making them the second-most successful team in the competition's history behind
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
.
With the exception of a short period this century, the team has played in home colours of blue and white since 1908, from which their nickname "The Bluebirds" derives. Cardiff's first permanent ground was
Ninian Park
Ninian Park was a football stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales, that was the home of Cardiff City F.C. for 99 years. Opened in 1910 with a single wooden stand, it underwent numerous renovations during its lifespan and hosted fixture ...
, which opened in 1910; it remained in use for 99 years until the club moved into the
Cardiff City Stadium
The Cardiff City Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Dinas Caerdydd) is a stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales. It is the home of Cardiff City Football Club and the Wales national football team.
Following expansion of the Ninian Stand in July 2014 ...
in 2009. Cardiff has long-standing rivalries with nearby clubs
Swansea City, with whom they contest the
South Wales derby
The South Wales derby is a local derby between Welsh association football clubs Cardiff City and Swansea City. The fixture has been described by ''The Independent'' as one of the fiercest rivalries in British football. Although based in Wales, ...
, and
Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...
, with whom they contest the
Severnside derby
The Severnside derby is a local derby in Association football, football in the United Kingdom between Wales, Welsh club Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff City and either of the England, English clubs, Bristol City F.C., Bristol City or Bristol Rovers F ...
. The club's record appearance holder is
Billy Hardy, who made 590 appearances in a 20-year playing spell with Cardiff, and their record goalscorer is
Len Davies
Leonard Stephen Davies (28 April 1899 – 1945) was a Welsh professional footballer. Born in Cardiff, he trained as a marine engineer before becoming a footballer, making his senior debut for his hometown club Cardiff City in 1919 in the South ...
with 179 goals.
History
Early years (1899–1920)
Following a meeting at the home of
lithographic
Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...
artist
Bartley Wilson
Walter Bartley Wilson (3 January 1870 – 19 November 1954) was an English lithographic artist and the founder of Cardiff City Football Club. Born in Bristol, he moved to Cardiff in 1897 where he became involved with Riverside Cricket Club. Enc ...
in Cardiff,
the club was founded in 1899 as Riverside A.F.C. as a way of keeping players from the Riverside Cricket Club together and in shape during the winter months.
In their first season, they played
friendlies against local sides at their
Sophia Gardens
Sophia Gardens ( cy, Gerddi Sophia) is a public park in Riverside, Cardiff, Wales, on the west bank of the River Taff. International test cricket matches and county cricket matches are held in the Sophia Gardens cricket ground, the home of ...
ground. In 1900 they joined the
Cardiff & District League
The Cardiff & District League is a football league covering the city of Cardiff and surrounding areas in South Wales. The leagues are at the seventh to tenth levels of the Welsh football league system.
Area of the league
Clubs within the boun ...
for their first competitive season. When
King Edward VII granted Cardiff city status in 1905, the club put in a request to the
South Wales and Monmouthshire Football Association to change their name to Cardiff City.
The request was turned down as they were deemed not to be playing at a high enough level. To enhance their standing, the team arranged to join the
South Wales League in 1907. The following year they were granted permission to change the name of the club to Cardiff City.
Although growing in stature, the club was forced to turn down the opportunity to join the newly formed Second Division of the
Southern Football League
The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English fo ...
due to a lack of facilities at their Sophia Gardens ground. Over the next two years, Cardiff played friendlies against some of Britain's top professional sides, including
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the a ...
,
Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...
, and
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
. The matches were played at grounds in Cardiff and nearby towns so as to gauge the level of public interest in the team.
The club eventually secured land to build their own stadium,
Ninian Park
Ninian Park was a football stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales, that was the home of Cardiff City F.C. for 99 years. Opened in 1910 with a single wooden stand, it underwent numerous renovations during its lifespan and hosted fixture ...
, which was completed in 1910. The club turned professional the same year. They made their first signing the following year with the acquisition of
Jack Evans from fellow Welsh side Cwmparc.
With the new ground in place, Cardiff joined the Southern Football League Second Division
and appointed their first manager,
Davy McDougall
David McDougall was a Scottish football player who played his club football for Partick Thistle and Rangers in Scotland, Bristol City in England, Distillery and Glentoran in Ireland and Cardiff City and Newport County in Wales. He joined Ca ...
, who became
player-manager
A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...
. They went on to finish in fourth place in their first year in the league. The board decided to replace McDougall with
Fred Stewart, who had previous managerial experience with
Stockport County
Stockport County Football Club are a professional association football, football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they wer ...
.
He set about adopting a more professional approach, signing several players with Football League experience, including brothers
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
and
George Burton and
Billy Hardy. Stewart led the team to promotion in his second season by winning the Second Division title. They remained in the First Division for the next decade, and finished in the top four on two occasions.
1920s success and later decline (1920–1945)
In 1920, the club submitted a successful application to join the
Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
and were placed into the
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
for the
1920–21 season.
Stewart brought in several players with Football League experience, breaking the club's transfer record on two occasions to sign
Jimmy Gill
James J. Gill (9 November 1894 – 1964) was an English professional footballer. He was born in Sheffield.
Gill began his career at hometown side Sheffield Wednesday in 1913. With the club suffering financial difficulties he was sold to Cardi ...
and later
Jimmy Blair from
The Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...
. They played their first match in the Football League on 28 August 1920, defeating Stockport County 5–2. The side finished the season in second place to win promotion to the
First Division.
They finished behind
Birmingham City
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...
on
goal average
A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines.
A goal is roughly similar to a purpose or ai ...
, and reached the semi-final of the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
.
In their third season in the top-tier, the team finished runners-up to
Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...
because of a goal average difference of 0.024.
Cardiff drew their final match 0–0 as club record goalscorer
Len Davies
Leonard Stephen Davies (28 April 1899 – 1945) was a Welsh professional footballer. Born in Cardiff, he trained as a marine engineer before becoming a footballer, making his senior debut for his hometown club Cardiff City in 1919 in the South ...
missed a penalty.
![CardiffCityFC League Performance](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/CardiffCityFC_League_Performance.svg)
The
following season was the first time Cardiff appeared at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
, having reached their first FA Cup final.
The team lost 1–0 to
Sheffield United
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
following a goal from
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
international
Fred Tunstall
Fred Tunstall (28 May 1897 – 21 July 1971) was an English football player and coach who played for Darfield St George's, Scunthorpe & Lindsey United, Sheffield United, Halifax Town
FC Halifax Town is a professional association footba ...
.
The
1926–27 season, when they finished in 14th position, was Cardiff's worst performance in the top tier of English Football since winning promotion six seasons before. However, they reached their second FA Cup final in the space of two years.
On
St George's Day
Saint George's Day is the feast day of Saint George, celebrated by Christian churches, countries, and cities of which he is the patron saint, including Bulgaria, England, Georgia, Portugal, Romania, Cáceres, Alcoy, Aragon and Catalonia.
Sa ...
, 23 April 1927, at Wembley Stadium in London, Cardiff became the only non-English side to win the FA Cup by defeating
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
1–0 in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
;
Hughie Ferguson
Hugh Ferguson (2 March 1895 – 8 January 1930) was a Scottish professional footballer. Born in Motherwell, he played for Parkhead at junior level as a semi-professional and was one of the most sought after young players in Scotland before sig ...
scored the only goal of the game in the 74th minute. He received the ball from
Ernie Curtis and hurried a tame shot toward the goal;
Dan Lewis, the Arsenal goalkeeper, allowed the shot to slip through his grasp and knocked the ball into the net with his elbow. Captain
Fred Keenor
Frederick Charles Keenor (31 July 1894 – 19 October 1972) was a Welsh professional footballer. He began his career at his hometown side Cardiff City after impressing the club's coaching staff in a trial match in 1912 organised by his former s ...
received the FA Cup trophy at the end of the match from King
George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936.
Born duri ...
only seven years after Cardiff City had entered the Football League.
When the team returned to Cardiff the next day, a crowd of around 150,000 people lined the streets to welcome them.
The side also won the
Welsh Cup
The FAW Welsh Cup ( cy, Cwpan Cymdeithas Pêl-droed Cymru), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the most ...
in 1927, defeating
Rhyl
Rhyl (; cy, Y Rhyl, ) is a seaside town and community (Wales), community in Denbighshire, Wales. The town lies within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Flintshire (historic), Flintshire, on the north-east coast of Wales at ...
2–0. They went on to win the
FA Charity Shield
The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier Le ...
after beating amateur side
the Corinthians 2–1 at
Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to:
* Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England
** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066
* Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge
* Stamford Bridge (stadium), in L ...
.
The club entered a period of decline after their cup success. They were relegated from the First Division in the
1928–29 season, despite conceding fewer goals than any other side in the division.
They suffered a second relegation two years later, dropping into the
Third Division South
The Third Division South of The Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to ...
for the first time since they joined the Football League.
During their first season in the division, Cardiff recorded their biggest-ever win when they beat
Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
by a scoreline of 9–2. They finished the
1932–33 season in 19th place, resulting in manager Fred Stewart tendering his resignation from his post after 22 years in charge.
Club founder Bartley Wilson stepped in to replace Stewart. Results continued to be disappointing, and in March 1934,
Ben Watts-Jones
Benjamin Watts J. Jones (born 1885, year of death unknown) was a Welsh football manager and chairman.
Jones originated from Swansea. He served as a director and chairman of Swansea Town, helping them gain admission to The Football League in 1921, ...
was given the opportunity to manage the club he had supported as a youngster. He was unable to turn the team's fortunes around; they finished the season at the bottom of the table, and had to apply for re-election to the league.
Watts-Jones remained in charge for another three years until
Bill Jennings replaced him. Cardiff remained in the Third Division South until the Football League was suspended following the outbreak of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Post war and European competition (1945–2000)
In their first season since the resumption of the Football League, under new manager
Billy McCandless
William McCandless (20 December 1893 – 18 July 1955) was an Ireland national football team (IFA), Irish international football player and manager. As a player McCandless normally played at left-back, most notably at Rangers F.C., Rangers where ...
, Cardiff finished the
1946–47 season as champions of the Third Division South and returned to the Second Division. McCandless left the club soon after and was replaced by
Cyril Spiers
Cyril Henry Spiers (4 April 1902 – 21 May 1967) was an English association football goalkeeper who played for Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur and Wolverhampton Wanderers. He later went on to manage at Football League clubs for more than twenty ...
who led the side to promotion in the
1951–52 season.
Cardiff returned to the top tier of English football for the first time in 23 years and stayed there for five seasons.
They were relegated after in 1957, after struggling in the bottom half of the table for three seasons.
They returned to the First Division for two seasons between 1960 and 1962 before they were again relegated.
![Canton End at Ninian Park geograph-2999342-by-Steve-Daniels](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Canton_End_at_Ninian_Park_geograph-2999342-by-Steve-Daniels.jpg)
During the 1960s, Cardiff participated in
European competition The European Competition is a student competition in which students of all ages submit creative, artistic, or written pieces of work on the activities of the European Union. Tendered by European Movement Germany, it is the oldest student competition ...
for the first time as a result of winning the Welsh Cup, which granted qualification to the newly created
European Cup Winners Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourna ...
. Their first ever match in European competition was in the tournament during the 1964–65 season against Danish side
Esbjerg fB
Esbjerg forenede Boldklubber (; commonly known as Esbjerg fB or EfB in short) is a Danish professional football club based in Esbjerg, West Jutland, that plays in the 2nd division, the third-tier of the Danish football league system. Foun ...
. The team won 1–0 on aggregate over two legs, the only goal being scored by
Peter King. They went on to reach the quarter-finals before being knocked out by
Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. (), commonly referred to as Zaragoza, is a football club based in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, that currently competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system. Zaragoza holds its home games at La ...
.
Despite their exploits in Europe, the team were still struggling in league competition under the stewardship of
Jimmy Scoular
James Scoular (11 January 1925 – 19 March 1998) was a Scottish football player and manager. Known as a tough, combative player with precise passing skills, Scoular made over 600 appearances in the Football League with Portsmouth, Newcastle ...
, finishing in 20th position in the Second Division.
Two years later the team reached the semi-final of the Cup Winners Cup after victories over
Shamrock Rovers
Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...
,
NAC Breda
NAC Breda (), often simply known as NAC, is a Dutch professional football club, based in Breda, Netherlands. NAC Breda play in the Rat Verlegh Stadium, named after their most important player, Antoon 'Rat' Verlegh. They play in the Eerste Divi ...
, and
Torpedo Moscow
Football Club Torpedo Moscow (russian: link=no, ФК "Торпедо" Москва, ''FK Torpedo Moskva''), known as Torpedo Moscow, is a Russian professional football club based in Moscow that was founded in 1924 and returned to the Russian Pre ...
set up a tie with German side
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
,
whose squad contained several
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
internationals. This remains the furthest any Welsh side has advanced in European competition. After a 1–1 draw in the first leg, over 43,000 fans turned out at Ninian Park to watch Hamburg win 3–2.
During the
1970–71 season, Cardiff reached the quarter-finals of the Cup Winners Cup where they faced Spanish side
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
. The first leg of the tie was held at Ninian Park where 47,000 fans watched one of the most significant victories in Cardiff's history when
Brian Clark headed in to give Cardiff a 1–0 win.
They were later eliminated after losing the second leg 2–0.
The team remained in the Second Division for 19 of the 20 seasons between 1962 and 1982, having been relegated to the Third Division for the 1975–76 season.
Cardiff were continuously in the lower two divisions of the Football League between 1985 and 1993. The club appointed several managers in attempts to turn the team's performances around with limited success.
They were relegated to the
Fourth Division once in the
1985–86 season and, despite returning to the Third Division on two occasions, they finished in their lowest-ever league position in
1996
File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
—22nd of 24 in Division Three.
In 1995, Cardiff and other Welsh clubs competing in English leagues were banned from entering the Welsh Cup by the
Football Association of Wales
The Football Association of Wales (FAW; cy, Cymdeithas Bêl-droed Cymru) is the Governing bodies of sports in Wales, governing body of association football and futsal in Wales, and controls the Wales national football team, Welsh national foo ...
after pressure from
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
, who did not want teams playing in two national cup competitions. Their final match in the competition was a 2–1 defeat to Wrexham in the
1995 final.
Foreign investment (2000–present)
In August 2000, Lebanese businessman
Sam Hammam
Sam, SAM or variants may refer to:
Places
* Sam, Benin
* Sam, Boulkiemdé, Burkina Faso
* Sam, Bourzanga, Burkina Faso
* Sam, Kongoussi, Burkina Faso
* Sam, Iran
* Sam, Teton County, Idaho, United States, a populated place
People and fictio ...
purchased control of the club and replaced Steve Borley as chairman.
Shortly after taking over, he controversially pledged to get the entire Welsh nation to support Cardiff by renaming the club "The Cardiff Celts" and changing the club colours to green, red and white. After lengthy talks with senior players and fans, he decided the best policy was not to change the name of the club. The club crest was redesigned; the new design incorporated the Cardiff City bluebird in front of the
Flag of Saint David
The flag of Saint David ( cy, Baner Dewi Sant) is normally a yellow cross on a black field, but it has also appeared as a black cross on a yellow field or with an engrailed cross. It represents the 6th-century Saint David ( cy, Dewi Sant; ...
and featured the club's nickname superimposed at the top of the crest.
Hammam funded the transfers of several new players to the club, and new manager
Lennie Lawrence
Robin Michael Lawrence (born 12 December 1947) is an English former football manager, player and football consultant who is non-executive director at EFL League Two side Hartlepool United.
Lawrence was a semi-professional at Croydon, Carshalt ...
guided Cardiff to promotion when they won the Second Division play-off in
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
against
Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...
. Substitute
Andy Campbell came off the bench to score the only goal in extra time and ensure Cardiff's return to Division One after an 18-year absence.
The club experienced increasing financial difficulties over the next few years and plans for a new stadium failed to gain approval from
Cardiff Council
Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...
because of concerns over financial security in 2006.
Hammam then agreed to a takeover by a consortium led by new chairman
Peter Ridsdale
Peter Ridsdale (born 11 March 1952) is an English businessman and advisor to the owner at Preston North End. He was until December 2011 the Chairman of Football Operations at Plymouth Argyle. Ridsdale was previously the chairman of Leeds United ...
and the lead developer of the new stadium, Paul Guy. During the 2007–08 season, Cardiff reached the semi-final of the FA Cup for the first time in 81 years after beating Middlesbrough 2–0 on 9March 2008.
After coming through their semi-final against
Barnsley
Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
with a 1–0 win at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
on 6April with a goal from
Joe Ledley
Joseph Christopher Ledley (born 23 January 1987) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder.
He started his career with then Championship side Cardiff City where he spent six years. He helped the club to the F ...
, they eventually lost 1–0 to
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
in the final.
![Cardiff City celebrations 2018](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Cardiff_City_celebrations_2018.jpg)
In May 2010,
Datuk Chan Tien Ghee took over as club chairman following a takeover bid by a Malaysian consortium;
Vincent Tan
Vincent Tan Chee Yioun (; born 1952) is a Malaysian Chinese businessman and investor. He is the founder of Berjaya Corporation Berhad, a diversified conglomerate listed on the Malaysian stock exchange. Besides holding stakes through the Berj ...
also invested and joined the board. Tan later became the Cardiff's majority shareholder after buying out several other directors and acquired around 82% of the club's shares. In 2011, the club appointed
Malky Mackay
Malcolm George Mackay (born 19 February 1972) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player, who is currently the manager of Ross County. Mackay, who played as a defender, began his playing career in Scottish football with Quee ...
as manager. He took the side to the
League Cup
In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
final for the first time in the club's history during his first season.
The following season, Cardiff won the
2012–13 Championship title and with it gained promotion to the top tier of English football for the first time after 52 years. On 18 August 2013, Cardiff played their first ever away Premier League match against
West Ham United
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
, losing 2–0. Cardiff won only three games in the first half of the season and, on 27 December 2013, Mackay was sacked by Vincent Tan and replaced by
Ole Gunnar Solskjær
Ole Gunnar Solskjær (; born 26 February 1973) is a Norwegian professional football manager and former player who played as a forward who last managed Premier League club Manchester United. As a player, Solskjær spent the majority of his care ...
. Despite the change in management, Cardiff were relegated to the Championship after a single season following a 3–0 away defeat to
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
. Solskjær himself was sacked on 18 September 2014 after a disappointing start to the following Championship season, and replaced by
Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a professio ...
manager
Russell Slade
Russell Mark Slade (born 10 October 1960) is an English professional association football, football manager, who was most recently managerial consultant of League Two club Stevenage F.C., Stevenage.
Having had an extended career at reserve t ...
.
In October 2016,
Neil Warnock
Neil Warnock (born 1 December 1948) is an English former football manager and player. He is also a television and radio pundit. In a managerial career spanning five decades, Warnock has managed sixteen different clubs from the Premier League to ...
was appointed first team manager of Cardiff. Warnock took over the team with Cardiff second from the bottom of the table after two wins from eleven games, and guided the side to a 12th-placed finish after a good run of form. The start of the 2017–18 season saw Cardiff break a club record by winning their opening three league games of a season, the first time in the club's 107-year professional history. They proceeded to clinch promotion to the Premier League after finishing second in the table. However, they were relegated back to the Championship after a single season.
Warnock resigned as manager in November 2019 following a poor start to the season and was replaced by
Neil Harris. Harris guided Cardiff to a 5th-placed finish before suffering defeat in the Championship playoff semi-final. After a run of six straight defeats, Harris was sacked on 21 January 2021. His replacement,
Mick McCarthy
Michael Joseph McCarthy (born 7 February 1959) is a professional football manager, pundit, and former player. He was last in charge of EFL Championship club Cardiff City.
McCarthy began his playing career at Barnsley in 1977, and he later had ...
, was appointed the following day, starting brightly ny winning 7 and drawing 3 of his first 10 before guiding Cardiff to an eighth-placed finish. However, after a run of poor form the following season, McCarthy was relieved of his duties with the side 2 points above relegation. The club's under–23 manager
Steve Morison was appointed as caretaker manager before signing an 18 month contract after guiding the Bluebirds to safety.
Support
Cardiff has a large catchment area from which to draw its supporter base. With only two professional teams (Swansea City and
Newport County) sharing the South Wales region, the club enjoys considerable support from both the city of Cardiff and the surrounding
South Wales Valleys.
As a Welsh club playing in the English football league system, national identity is believed to be a major factor in fan support, and some of the club's matches are considered to be Welsh cross-border rivalries with England.
During the 1980s, as the club struggled in the lower divisions of English football, crowds dropped to an average of 3,000 per match. An increase in the club's fortunes saw a steady improvement in crowd numbers. The average attendance at home matches rose from 3,594 to 12,522 between 1997 and 2002. Promotion to the second tier in 2003 brought further increases in numbers. The opening of the Cardiff City Stadium led to average attendances reaching 20,000 fans, culminating with highs of between 28,000 and 31,000 during two seasons in the Premier League.
Despite this increase, the club has often been regarded as attracting fewer spectators than similarly placed teams. This has been attributed to several factors such as the club's controversial change to red shirts between 2012 and 2015—some supporters being perceived as
fairweather fans, and a lack of atmosphere.
![Canton Stand do the Ayatollah](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Canton_Stand_do_the_Ayatollah.jpg)
Welsh national identity also contributes to the supporter culture of the club. "
Men of Harlech
"Men of Harlech" or "The March of the Men of Harlech" (Welsh: ) is a song and military march which is traditionally saidFuld, James J., ''The Book of World-famous Music: Classical, Popular, and Folk'', Dover, 5th ed. 2000, p. 394 to describe even ...
", a song largely made famous by the 1964 film ''
Zulu'', which depicted a battle involving a Welsh regiment, and "I'll Be There", a take on a miner's song that was popular during the
1926 United Kingdom general strike
The 1926 general strike in the United Kingdom was a general strike that lasted nine days, from 4 to 12 May 1926. It was called by the General Council of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in an unsuccessful attempt to force the British governm ...
, are both frequently sung before and during matches.
The Ayatollah, an act involving raising both arms up and down above the head in a patting motion, has become synonymous with the club and its supporters as a celebratory gesture since its adoption in the early 1990s.
The action has become popular with Cardiff fans outside football to show support for the club with boxer
Nathan Cleverly
Nathan Cleverly (born 17 February 1987) is a Welsh former professional boxer who competed from 2005 to 2017. He is a two-time light-heavyweight world champion, having held the WBO title from 2011 to 2013, and the WBA (Regular) title from 2016 ...
, Olympic swimmer
David Davies and rugby player
Gareth Thomas all having performed the action at some points of their careers.
Rivalry
![Dean, Mike (2)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Dean%2C_Mike_%282%29.jpg)
Known as the
South Wales derby
The South Wales derby is a local derby between Welsh association football clubs Cardiff City and Swansea City. The fixture has been described by ''The Independent'' as one of the fiercest rivalries in British football. Although based in Wales, ...
, Cardiff City's most significant rivalry is with nearby neighbours
Swansea City, and over 100 games have been played in all competitions between the sides. Swansea's first competitive match following their founding in 1912 was against Cardiff in the Southern Football League.
The rivalry had been relatively friendly until the 1970s and 1980s. Economic issues, such as the
UK miners' strike, rivalry between the two cities and an increase in
football hooliganism
Football hooliganism, also known as soccer hooliganism, football rioting or soccer rioting, constitutes violence and other destructive behaviours perpetrated by spectators at association football events. Football hooliganism normally involves ...
led to numerous violent clashes between fans at the matches. One game in 1993 was dubbed "The Battle of Ninian Park" for its particularly severe violence and resulted in away fans being banned from attending any matches between the sides for four years.
Cardiff player
Jason Perry described the period as "the dark, dark days of the derby". When the ban was dropped, "bubble trips" were introduced for away fans who could only attend matches via police-escorted convoys to and from the stadium.
Further political divide between the two cities was caused by the
Welsh devolution referendum in 1997 when Cardiff was chosen as the site for the newly created
Senedd
The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gove ...
, despite the majority of the city voting against devolution.
Swansea, which largely voted in favour of devolution, received funding for a
national swimming pool instead.
Alan Curtis, who played for both sides, commented, "I think Cardiff has always been perceived
..to receive whatever funding is going around. It seems to me that everything gets channelled in that direction".
Further afield, the club has a rivalry with
Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...
, known as the
Severnside derby
The Severnside derby is a local derby in Association football, football in the United Kingdom between Wales, Welsh club Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff City and either of the England, English clubs, Bristol City F.C., Bristol City or Bristol Rovers F ...
, and to a lesser extent,
Bristol Rovers
Bristol Rovers Football Club are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
They play home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield, they have been c ...
. There is also a lesser rivalry with Welsh neighbours
Newport County due to the proximity of the two Welsh cities; they have rarely played against each other since the 1980s due to Cardiff being in higher leagues. In total, they have only ever played 20 Football League games against each other. A survey by
Football Fans Census
Football Fans Census (sometimes known as FFC), is the trading name of Football Fans Central Ltd, a small market research company which specialises in research into the views and opinions of English football supporters.
When the free-to-air dig ...
in 2003 saw Swansea, Bristol City, and Newport listed as Cardiff's main three rivalries, with
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
matching Newport in third.
In the 1980s, a hooligan group known as the
Soul Crew
The Cardiff City Soul Crew ( cy, Criw Enaid Dinas Caerdydd; commonly known as the Soul Crew) football hooligan firm, associated with the Welsh football club Cardiff City. From its formation in 1983 onwards, the Soul Crew would on many occasions ...
emerged from within the club's fanbase. The group became notorious for their violent clashes with rival supporters and brawls between sets of supporters at football matches and other events.
Stadium
Ninian Park
![Ninian Park Cardiff](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3a/Ninian_Park_Cardiff.jpg)
Cardiff's first ground was at Sophia Gardens recreational park, where the team played from their founding in 1899 until 1910. With increasing support for the club, Bartley Wilson contacted Bute Estate, who owned large amounts of Cardiff at the time, in an attempt to find land suitable for building a stadium. They eventually agreed on an area of waste ground on Sloper Road. The land was a former rubbish tip and required extensive work to get a playable surface, but with the assistance of Cardiff Corporation and volunteers, the work was completed.
The original intention was to name the ground Sloper Park,
but Ninian Park was chosen instead after
Lord Ninian Crichton-Stuart
Lieutenant-Colonel Lord Ninian Edward Crichton-Stuart (15 May 1883 – 2 October 1915) was a Scottish senior officer in the British Army and Member of Parliament. He was killed in action in the First World War. The second son of the Honourabl ...
, who was a driving force behind the ground's construction. The ground hosted its first match on 1September 1910 with a friendly against
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
;
Lord Crichton-Stuart ceremonially kicked off the game.
The stadium was built with one stand. A second, which replaced an earth embankment and could hold 18,000 people, was opened in 1928. It hosted its first international match in March 1911 with a Welsh match against
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
.
Towards the end of its lifespan, the ground was replaced for international fixtures by
Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park ( cy, Parc yr Arfau Caerdydd), also known as The Arms Park, is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. It is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green. The Arms Park was host to the British E ...
as doubts mounted over the safety of the aging ground. The club's record attendance in the ground is 57,893 which was achieved during a league match against Arsenal on 22 April 1953. The scaling down of grounds throughout the 1970s and 1980s due to safety fears, which saw the ground capacity fall to 22,000, meant that the record stood until the ground's closure. In its final years of use, the club was forced to seek special dispensation from authorities to keep the remaining standing areas of the ground open beyond the three-year period given to clubs at Championship level or above to remove them.
Cardiff City Stadium
![Cardiff City Stadium Pitch](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Cardiff_City_Stadium_Pitch.jpg)
In June 2009, the club completed construction of a 26,828-seat stadium on the site of the now-demolished old
Cardiff Athletics Stadium
The Cardiff Athletics Stadium (also known as Leckwith Athletics Stadium) was an athletics and football stadium in Cardiff, Wales. It opened in 1989 and was demolished in 2007, replaced by the Cardiff International Sports Stadium.
The Card ...
at a cost of £48 million.
The ground was named the "Cardiff City Stadium". Three of the four stands retained the names used at Ninian Park—the Grange End, the Canton Stand and the Grandstand—and the fourth stand was named the Ninian Stand.
The ground's naming rights were expected to be sold, the club hoping to generate up to £9 million income; they remain unsold.
Although a pre-season friendly against
Chasetown
Chasetown is a village in the town of Burntwood in Staffordshire, England. It is split between the civil parishes of Burntwood and Hammerwich.
History
Chasetown developed in the mid 19th century as a coal mining village. At first the village wa ...
was played at the ground with limited capacity to test safety features, the stadium was officially opened with a friendly against Scottish side
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
on 22 July 2009. The first competitive match played at the ground was on 8August 2009, the opening day of the 2009–10 season, as Cardiff won 4–0 over
Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England. The side currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The tea ...
. When it opened, the
Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Rugby ( cy, Rygbi Caerdydd) are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions.
Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms ...
rugby union club left their Cardiff Arms Park home to share the new stadium with Cardiff City. The move proved unpopular among fans of the rugby club, which returned to Cardiff Arms Park in 2012.
A few years after the stadium was built, plans to upgrade and expand the stadium were initiated. The expansion plans were completed in August 2014, and the seating capacity was raised to 33,316. In March 2015, it was announced that the Ninian Stand extension was to be shut for the
2015–16 season due to poor ticket sales, dropping the capacity to 27,978. It was reopened the following year due to an increase in demand.
Colours, kit and crest
Colours
When Riverside A.F.C. was formed in 1899, the club used a chocolate-brown and amber checkered shirt.
Following the club's name change to Cardiff City in 1908, they adopted a blue shirt and white or blue shorts and socks, although for the first nine years black socks were used. Kit changes over the club's history have included all blue kits, the introduction of a yellow vertical stripe during the 1970s, and alternating blue stripes.
In 2012, Cardiff controversially changed their home kit colours from the traditional blue, white and yellow to red and black, the first time the club had not worn blue as its primary colour since 1908. The crest was also changed to one in which the
Welsh Dragon
The Welsh Dragon ( cy, y Ddraig Goch, meaning 'the red dragon'; ) is a heraldic symbol that represents Wales and appears on the national flag of Wales.
As an emblem, the red dragon of Wales has been used since the reign of Cadwaladr, King of ...
was more prominent than the traditional bluebird. These changes were made to "appeal in 'international markets as part of a "major investment plan" unveiled by chairman Vincent Tan. The rebranding provoked strong opposition from the fans, who organised protest marches and demonstrations to voice their displeasure at the changes. Despite Tan previously stating that the club would only return to wearing blue if another owner was found, on 9January 2015, after three seasons playing in the red kit, the club reverted their home kit back to blue with a red away kit in a bid to "unite" the club.
Crest history
From 1908 Cardiff played in unadorned shirts. This changed in 1959 when they played in shirts with a simple crest featuring an image of a
bluebird
The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas.
...
. The following season their shirts were plain and unadorned and remained so until 1965 when they played in shirts with the word "Bluebirds" embroidered.
A new crest, similar to the one used previously, and again featuring a bluebird, was introduced in 1969. Variations of this crest have been used over the years. In the 1980s, extra features including words and motifs were added. A major change was made in 2012, when owner Vincent Tan attempted to rebrand the club to expand its appeal outside Wales. This change gave large prominence to the Welsh Dragon, reducing the bluebird to a minor feature. In March 2015, Cardiff announced a new crest which would once again feature the Bluebird predominantly with a
Chinese dragon
The Chinese dragon, also known as ''loong'', ''long'' or ''lung'', is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture at large. Chinese dragons have many Outline of life forms, animal-like forms such as Bixi (my ...
replacing the standard Welsh dragon.
Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
Players
First-team squad
Out on loan
Retired numbers
Under-23 and Academy
Cardiff runs a youth academy catering to groups from ages seven to eighteen years. Recent players to come through the youth system include Wales internationals:
Joe Ledley
Joseph Christopher Ledley (born 23 January 1987) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder.
He started his career with then Championship side Cardiff City where he spent six years. He helped the club to the F ...
,
Chris Gunter
Christopher Ross Gunter (born 21 July 1989) is a Wales, Welsh Association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football), defender for AFC Wimbledon and the Wales national football team, Wales national team. An attacking D ...
,
Aaron Ramsey
Aaron James Ramsey (born 26 December 1990) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Nice and the Wales national team. Ramsey mainly plays as a box-to-box midfielder, but has also been deployed on the left ...
,
Adam Matthews
Adam James Matthews (born 13 January 1992) is a Welsh footballer who plays as a right back for Omonia and for the Wales national team. Matthews has also played for Cardiff City, Celtic, Sunderland and Charlton Athletic, having had loan spel ...
,
Darcy Blake
Darcy James Blake (born 13 December 1988) is a Welsh former professional footballer. During his career, he won 14 caps for Wales at international level, scoring once, and made more than 100 appearances in the Football League.
He began his care ...
,
Declan John
Declan Christopher John (born 30 June 1995) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a left wing-back for Bolton Wanderers and the Wales national team.
Club career Cardiff City
Born in Merthyr Tydfil, John progressed through the academ ...
,
Rabbi Matondo,
Mark Harris and
Rubin Colwill prior to the youth system being granted academy status,
Robert Earnshaw
Robert Earnshaw (born 6 April 1981) is a Welsh former international footballer who played as a forward. He is the only player to have scored a hat-trick in the Premier League, all three divisions of the English Football League, the League Cup, ...
and
James Collins.
Notable former players
Backroom staff
Source:
Manager history
Source:
Records
![Gary Medel Cardiff City](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Gary_Medel_Cardiff_City.jpg)
The record for the most appearances in all competitions is currently held by
Billy Hardy who appeared in 590 matches for the club between 1911 and 1932, including in the Southern Football League.
Phil Dwyer
Philip John Dwyer (28 October 1953 – 30 November 2021) was a Welsh professional Association football, footballer. Born in Cardiff, he began his career with his hometown club Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff City, joining the side as an apprentice ...
has made the most appearances in the Football League era, having played in 575 matches.
Len Davies
Leonard Stephen Davies (28 April 1899 – 1945) was a Welsh professional footballer. Born in Cardiff, he trained as a marine engineer before becoming a footballer, making his senior debut for his hometown club Cardiff City in 1919 in the South ...
is the club's top goalscorer with 179 goals in all competitions. Seven other players,
Peter King,
Robert Earnshaw
Robert Earnshaw (born 6 April 1981) is a Welsh former international footballer who played as a forward. He is the only player to have scored a hat-trick in the Premier League, all three divisions of the English Football League, the League Cup, ...
,
Brian Clark,
Carl Dale,
Derek Tapscott
Derek Robert Tapscott (30 June 1932 – 12 June 2008) was a Welsh professional footballer who played as a forward. Tapscott played for Barry Town, Arsenal, Cardiff City, Newport County, Cinderford Town, Haverfordwest County and Carmarthen ...
,
Jimmy Gill
James J. Gill (9 November 1894 – 1964) was an English professional footballer. He was born in Sheffield.
Gill began his career at hometown side Sheffield Wednesday in 1913. With the club suffering financial difficulties he was sold to Cardi ...
and
John Toshack
John Benjamin Toshack (born 22 March 1949) is a Welsh former professional football player and manager.
He began his playing career as a teenager with his hometown club Cardiff City, becoming the youngest player to make an appearance for th ...
have also scored 100 or more goals for the club.
Jack Evans became the first Cardiff City player to win an international cap on 13 April 1912 when he represented
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
in a 3–2 defeat of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. The player who has won the most caps as a Cardiff player is
Aron Gunnarsson
Aron Einar Malmquist Gunnarsson (born 22 April 1989) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays for Al-Arabi and captains the Icelandic national team. He can play either as a defensive midfielder or a central midfielder.
He began his c ...
, who won 62 caps for
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
during his spell with the club. The highest transfer fee the club
has paid for a player is £15 million for
Emiliano Sala
Emiliano Raúl Sala Taffarel (; 31 October 1990 – 21 January 2019) was an Argentine professional footballer who played as a striker.
After playing youth football in Argentina and following a short spell in Portugal's regional leagues, Sala ...
from
Nantes
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
in January 2019. Two days after signing, Sala died in a
plane crash
An aviation accident is defined by the Convention on International Civil Aviation Annex 13 as an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft, which takes place from the time any person boards the aircraft with the ''intention of fl ...
in the English Channel.
Gary Medel
Gary Alexis Medel Soto (; born 3 August 1987) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays for Italian club Bologna and the Chile national team as a centre-back and a defensive midfielder. Medel has played club football with several teams in ...
became the most expensive player sold by the club when he joined
Inter Milan
Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...
for £10 million in August 2014.
Cardiff's largest victory was a 16–0 victory over
Knighton Town in the fifth round of the Welsh Cup in 1962. Their biggest league victory was a 9–2 victory over Thames on 6February 1932; their biggest FA Cup victory was an 8–0 victory over
Enfield
Enfield may refer to:
Places Australia
* Enfield, New South Wales
* Enfield, South Australia
** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb
** Enfield High School (South Australia)
...
on 28 November 1931.
Honours
Cardiff City's honours include the following:
League
First Division (Tier 1)
* Runners-up:
1923–24
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
/
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
(Tier 2)
* Champions:
2012–13
* Runners-up:
1920–21,
1951–52,
1959–60,
2017–18
Third Division South
The Third Division South of The Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to ...
/
Third Division (Tier 3)
* Champions:
1946–47 (South)
* Runners-up:
1975–76,
1982–83
Fourth Division /
Third Division (Tier 4)
* Champions:
1992–93
* Runners-up:
1987–88,
2000–01
Southern Football League
The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English fo ...
Second Division
* Champions: 1912–13
Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
* Winners:
1926–27
* Runners-up:
1924–25,
2007–08
FA Charity Shield
The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier Le ...
* Winners:
1927
Football League Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
* Runners-up:
2011–12
Welsh Cup
The FAW Welsh Cup ( cy, Cwpan Cymdeithas Pêl-droed Cymru), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the most ...
* Winners: 1911–12, 1919–20, 1921–22, 1922–23, 1926–27,
1927–28,
1929–30,
1955–56,
1958–59,
1963–64,
1964–65,
1966–67,
1967–68,
1968–69,
1969–70,
1970–71,
1972–73,
1973–74,
1975–76,
1987–88, 1991–92, 1992–93
* Runners-up:
1928–29,
1938–39,
1950–51,
1959–60, 1993–94,
1994–95
FAW Premier Cup
The FAW Premier Cup (until 1998 the FAW Invitation Cup) was a Welsh football cup competition, organised annually by the Football Association of Wales from 1997 to 2008. Since the FAW excluded clubs playing in English leagues (including six Welsh c ...
* Winners:
2001–02
* Runners-up:
1997–98,
1999–2000
Sources
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Cardiff City F.C. Official website*
A collection of items relating to Cardiff City Football Club's historic victory against Arsenal in the 1927 FA CupCardiff City statsat Football Club History Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cardiff City
Premier League clubs
English Football League clubs
Football clubs in Cardiff
Football clubs in Wales
Association football clubs established in 1899
FA Cup winners
Welsh Cup winners
Southern Football League clubs
1899 establishments in Wales
Welsh football clubs in English leagues
Cardiff & District League clubs
South Wales League clubs