Fulham Football Club is an English professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
club based in
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
,
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, which compete in the . They have played home games at
Craven Cottage
Craven Cottage is a football ground in Fulham, West London, England, which has been the home of Fulham F.C. since 1896.According to the club'official website The ground's capacity is 22,384; the record attendance is 49,335, for a game against M ...
since 1896, other than a two-year period spent at
Loftus Road
Loftus Road is a football stadium in White City, London, England, which is home to Queens Park Rangers.
In 1981, it became the first stadium in British professional football to have an artificial pitch of Omniturf installed. This remained in ...
whilst Craven Cottage underwent redevelopments that were completed in 2004. They contest
West London derby
The West London derby is the name given to a association football, football List of sports rivalries in the United Kingdom, derby played between any two of Brentford F.C., Brentford, Chelsea F.C., Chelsea, Fulham F.C., Fulham and Queens Park Rang ...
rivalries with
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
,
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 ...
and
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
. The club adopted a white shirt and black shorts as its kit in 1903, which has been used ever since.
Founded in 1879, they are London's oldest professional football club. They joined the
Southern League in 1898 and won two First Division titles (1905–06 and 1906–07), as well as two Second Division titles and a
Western League title. Elected 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 ...
of 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 ...
in 1907, Fulham would win 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 on ...
in 1931–32, four years after being relegated. They won the Second Division title in 1948–49, though were relegated after three seasons. Promoted back to the
First Division again in 1958–59, the form of star player
Johnny Haynes
John Norman Haynes (17 October 1934 – 18 October 2005) was an English association footballer who played as an inside forward. He made 56 appearances for his country including 22 as captain. He was selected for three World Cup finals squads ...
helped Fulham to remain the top-flight until consecutive relegations occurred by 1969. They were promoted in 1970–71 and went on to reach the 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
1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
.
Fulham drifted between the second and fourth tiers until being taken over by
Mohamed Al-Fayed
Mohamed Al-Fayed (; arz, محمد الفايد ; born 27 January 1929) is an Egyptian-born businessman whose residence and chief business interests have been in the United Kingdom since the late 1960s. His business interests include ownership of ...
in 1997. They went on to win two divisional titles in three seasons to reach the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
by 2001. They won the
UEFA Intertoto Cup
The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...
in
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
and were beaten in the
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
final of the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
. However, thirteen consecutive seasons in the top-flight culminated in relegation in 2014. Since that time, the club have moved between the first and second tiers under new owner
Shahid Khan
Shahid Rafiq Khan ( ur, ; born July 18, 1950)["Sha ...](_blank)
. Fulham have changed divisions in five successive seasons, being relegated after winning the
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
and
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
play-off finals, and they now compete in the Premier League again after winning the 2021–22
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 ...
title.
History
1879–1907: Formation and Southern League years
Fulham were formed in 1879 as Fulham St Andrew's Church Sunday School F.C., founded by worshippers (mostly adept at cricket) at the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
on Star Road,
West Kensington
West Kensington, formerly North End, is an area in the ancient parish of Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, England, 3.4 miles (5.5 km) west of Charing Cross. It covers most of the London postal area of W14, includin ...
(St Andrew's, Fulham Fields). Fulham's mother church still stands today with a plaque commemorating the team's foundation. They won the West London Amateur Cup in 1887 and, having shortened the name from Fulham St Andrews to its present form in December 1888, they then won the
West London League
The West London League was an association football competition featuring teams located in and around West London. It was formed in 1892, and featured only amateur teams.
History
The league was formed in 1892, with its original members being Fulha ...
in 1893 at the first attempt. One of the club's first ever kits was half red, half white shirts with white shorts worn in the
1886–87 season. Fulham started playing at their current ground at
Craven Cottage
Craven Cottage is a football ground in Fulham, West London, England, which has been the home of Fulham F.C. since 1896.According to the club'official website The ground's capacity is 22,384; the record attendance is 49,335, for a game against M ...
in 1896, their first game against now defunct rivals
Minerva
Minerva (; ett, Menrva) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. Minerva is not a patron of violence such as Mars, but of strategic war. From the second century BC onward, the Roma ...
. Fulham are one of the oldest established clubs in southern England currently playing professional football, though there are many non-league sides like Kent side
Cray Wanderers
Cray Wanderers Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Sidcup, London. Based on later reports, the club has a claim to have been established some time in 1860 in the twin villages of St Mary Cray and St Paul's Cr ...
who are several decades older.
The club gained professional status on 12 December 1898, the same year that they were admitted into the
Southern League's Second Division. They were the third club from London to turn professional, following
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 ...
, then named Royal Arsenal 1891, and
Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
in 1893. They adopted a red and white kit during the
1896–97 season. In
1902–03
Nineteen or 19 may refer to:
* 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20
* one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019
Films
* ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film
* ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film
Music ...
, the club won promotion from this division, entering the
Southern League First Division
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 Englis ...
. The club's first recorded all-white club kit came in 1903, and ever since then the club has been playing in all-white shirts and black shorts, with socks going through various evolutions of black and/or white, but are now normally white-only. The club won the
Southern League twice, in 1905–06 and 1906–07.
1907–1949: Football League
Fulham joined
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 ...
after the second of their Southern League triumphs. The club's first league game, playing in 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 ...
's
1907–08 season, saw them lose 1–0 at home to
Hull City
Hull City Association Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Kingston upon Hull, Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving ...
in September 1907. The first win came a few days later at
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 1884 ...
's
Baseball Ground
The Baseball Ground (sometimes referred to as the BBG) was a stadium in Derby, England. It was first used for baseball as the home of Derby Baseball Club from 1890 until 1898 and then for football as the home of Derby County from 1895 until 19 ...
by a score line of 1–0. Fulham finished the season three points short of promotion in fourth place. The club progressed all the way to the semi-final of that season's
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 ...
, a run that included an 8–3 away win at
Luton Town
Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...
. In the semi-final, however, they were heavily beaten, 6–0, by
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 ...
. This is still a record loss for an FA Cup semi-final game. Two years later, the club won the London Challenge Cup in the
1909–10 season. Fulham's first season in Division Two turned out to be the highest that the club would finish for 21 years, until in
1927–28 when the club were relegated to the
3rd Division South, created in 1920.
Hussein Hegazi
Hussein Hegazi ( ar, حسين حجازي, Ḥusayn Ḥijāziyy; 14 September 1889 – 8 October 1961) was an Egyptian international footballer who became the first African player to play in England after playing with Dulwich Hamlet and Fulham in ...
, an Egyptian forward, was one of the first non-British players to appear in The Football League, though he only played one game for Fulham in 1911, marked with a goal, afterwards playing for non-league
Dulwich Hamlet
Dulwich Hamlet Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in East Dulwich in south-east London, England. They are currently members of and play at Champion Hill.
History
The club was formed in 1893, by Lorraine 'Pa' Wilson. T ...
.
During this period, businessman and politician
Henry Norris was the club chairman and curiously he had an indirect role in the foundation of Fulham's local rivals
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
. When he rejected an offer from businessman
Gus Mears
Henry Augustus "Gus" Mears (1873 – 4 February 1912)Brian Belton, ''Birth of the Blues'', Pennant Books, 2008, . was an English businessman, most notable for founding Chelsea Football Club.
He was born in 1873, the son of Joseph and Charl ...
to move Fulham to land where the present-day Chelsea stadium
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 ...
is situated, Mears decided to create his own team to occupy the ground. In 1910, Norris started to combine his role at Fulham with the chairmanship of Arsenal. Fulham became the first British team to sell
hot dog
A hot dog (uncommonly spelled hotdog) is a food consisting of a grilled or steamed sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced Hot dog bun, bun. The term hot dog can refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener (Vienna sausag ...
s at their ground in 1926. Fulham had several high-profile international players during the 1920s, including
Len Oliver and
Albert Barrett
Albert Frank Barrett (11 November 1903 – 8 December 1989) was an English footballer who played as a half-back.
Early and personal life
Barrett was born in West Ham, the third of four children, with two older brothers and one younger siste ...
.
![FulhamFC League Performance](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/FulhamFC_League_Performance.svg)
After finishing fifth, seventh and ninth (out of 22 teams) in their first three seasons in the Third Division South, Fulham won the division in the
1931–32 season. In doing so they beat
Torquay United
Torquay United Football Club is a professional football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the , the fifth tier of English football. They have played their home matches at Plainmoor since 1921 and are nicknamed ...
10–2, won 24 out of 42 games and scored 111 goals, thus being promoted back to the Second Division. The
next season they missed out on a second consecutive promotion, finishing third behind
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
and
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 ...
. A mixed bag of league performances followed, although the club also reached another FA Cup semi-final during the
1935–36 season. Fulham were also to draw with Austria in 1936 before
Anschluss
The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938.
The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...
. On 8 October 1938, Craven Cottage saw its all-time highest attendance at a match against
Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
, with a crowd of 49,335 watching the game.
League and cup football were severely disrupted by the outbreak of World War II in 1939, with the Football League split into regional divisions temporarily, with a national
Football League War Cup
The Football League War Cup was an association football tournament held between 1939 and 1945. It aimed to fill the gap left in English football by the suspension of the FA Cup during the Second World War. Though it was often referred to in conte ...
and a
London War Cup
The London War Cup was an English football competition held during the Second World War. It was established to be a wartime replacement for the FA Cup, which had been suspended for the duration of the conflict. Although called the London War Cu ...
up for grabs. Craven Cottage was used like many grounds for fitness and training of the army youth reserves. Post-war, a full league programme was only restored for
1946–47. In
the third season of what is now considered the modern era of football, Fulham finished top of the Second Division, with a win–loss–draw record of 24–9–9 (identical to that which won them the Third Division South 17 years previously).
John Fox Watson
John Fox Watson (31 December 1917 – 15 April 1976) was a Scottish association football, football player, believed to be the only Scottish player in Real Madrid C.F., Real Madrid's history. He was one of the first players from the British Isles t ...
made a pioneering transfer to
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 ...
in 1948, becoming one of the first players from the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
to sign for a high-profile side abroad.
1949–1970: First Division Cottagers
Promotion to the
top tier of English football saw the club perform poorly, finishing 17th in their first year and 18th in their second. In only their third season of First Division football, Fulham finished rock bottom of the 22-team league in the
1951–52 season, winning only eight of 42 games. On 20 May 1951, Fulham played one of their first ever games in North America in an exhibition match against
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 ...
at
Delorimier Stadium
Delorimier Stadium (; also known as ''Montreal Stadium'', ''Hector Racine Stadium'' and ''Delorimier Downs'') was a 20,000-seat sports stadium in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was located at 2101 Ontario Street East, at the corner of De Lorimier Ave ...
in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
in front of 29,000 spectators.
![Fulham FC 1958](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Fulham_FC_1958.jpg)
Possibly the single most influential character in Fulham's history is
Johnny Haynes
John Norman Haynes (17 October 1934 – 18 October 2005) was an English association footballer who played as an inside forward. He made 56 appearances for his country including 22 as captain. He was selected for three World Cup finals squads ...
. "Mr. Fulham" or "The Maestro," as Haynes later came to be known, signed for The Cottagers as a schoolboy in 1950, making his first team debut on Boxing Day against
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
at Craven Cottage in the 1951/52 relegation season. Haynes played for another 18 years, notching 657 appearances (along with many other club records too), his last appearance for Fulham coming on 17 January 1970. He is often considered as the greatest player in Fulham history, and never played for another team in Britain. He gained 56
caps
Caps are flat headgear.
Caps or CAPS may also refer to:
Science and technology Computing
* CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters
* Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...
for England (22 as captain), with many being earned while playing for Fulham in the Second Division. Haynes was injured in a car accident in
Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
in 1962, but by his own admissions never regained the fitness or form to play for England again, missing out on England's victory in the
FIFA World Cup 1966
The 1966 FIFA World Cup was the eighth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in England from 11 July to 30 July 1966. The England national football team defeated West Germany 4-2 in the ...
for which he would have stood a chance of being selected. The Stevenage Road Stand was renamed in his honour after his death in a car crash in 2005.
Fulham reached the
1957-58 FA Cup semi-finals, the best cup run of Haynes' career and nearest he came to a major trophy win playing in England. They were eliminated in a replay by the remnants of
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
's
Busby Babes
The "Busby Babes" were the group of footballers, recruited and trained by Manchester United F.C. chief scout Joe Armstrong and assistant manager Jimmy Murphy, who progressed from the club's youth team into the first team under the management of ...
team that had been decimated in the
Munich air disaster the month before. United were the first top division team Fulham played in that cup run. Fulham won promotion back to the First Division in the
following season by finishing second to
Sheffield 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 ...
. Also joining Fulham in 1958 was
Graham Leggat
Graham Leggat (20 June 1934 – 29 August 2015) was a Scottish international footballer.
Playing career
Born in Aberdeen, Leggat started his career at his home town club as a right winger. He was part of the Aberdeen team that won the Scottish ...
, who went on to score 134 goals in 277 appearances, (making him the club's fifth all-time top scorer). In the
1959–60 season, they achieved tenth position in the First Division, which until finishing ninth in the
2003–04 season was their highest-ever league position. This accompanied another appearance in the last four of the FA Cup in 1962.
By this time, the club were regularly playing in front of 30,000 plus crowds at Craven Cottage, despite struggling in the league.
The club earned a reputation for constantly battling against relegation most seasons, with numerous narrow escapes; none more so than in
1965–66. On the morning of 26 February 1966, Fulham were bottom with just 15 points from 29 matches. The last 13 games saw Fulham win nine and draw two to reach safety. Eventually, however, the club suffered relegation in the
1967–68 season, having won just ten out of their 42 games. Even that, however, was not as catastrophic as the calamity of next season. Winning only seven in 42, the club were again relegated to the
Third Division
In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below.
Association football
*Belgian Thir ...
. (Note that this is not the same as the Third Division South, as the regional Third Divisions had been removed with the 1959 creation of the
Fourth Division
Fourth or the fourth may refer to:
* the ordinal form of the number 4
* ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971
* Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision
* Fourth (music), a musical interval
* ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...
).
1970–1994: Mixed fortunes outside the top flight
The aforementioned Third Division hiatus lasted only two seasons before the club was promoted back to the Second Division as runners-up in
1970–71. This spell also saw Fulham invited to the
Anglo-Italian Cup
The Anglo-Italian Cup ( it, Coppa Anglo-Italiana, also known as the Anglo-Italian Inter-League Clubs Competition and from 1976 to 1986 as the Alitalia Challenge Cup, Talbot Challenge Cup or Gigi Peronace Memorial) is a defunct European football c ...
, which saw the club draw four out of four games in 1972–73 season. This preceded a period of high-profile signings for the club under
Alec Stock
Alec William Alfred Stock (30 March 1917 – 16 April 2001) was an English footballer and manager. He briefly managed AS Roma, between long spells at Leyton Orient and Queens Park Rangers. At QPR, he won successive promotions, leading the club t ...
in the mid-1970s, including
Alan Mullery
Alan Patrick Mullery (born 23 November 1941) is an English former footballer and manager. After enjoying a successful career with Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur, and the England national team in the 1960s and 1970s, he became a manager working with ...
and
Bobby Moore
Robert Frederick Chelsea Moore (12 April 1941 – 24 February 1993) was an English professional footballer. He most notably played for West Ham United, captaining the club for more than ten years, and was the captain of the England natio ...
. Fulham reached their only FA Cup final to date in 1975, having won their first semi-final in five attempts. The club lost 0–2 to
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 ...
in the final at Wembley Stadium. This gained the club qualification to another European tournament, the
Anglo-Scottish Cup
The Anglo-Scottish Cup was a tournament arranged for teams in the English and Scottish football leagues during the summer for several years during the 1970s. It was created in 1975 as a new incarnation of the Texaco Cup, with a similar format t ...
, where they reached the final, losing to
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 ...
.
George Best
George Best (22 May 1946 – 25 November 2005) was a Northern Irish professional footballer who played as a winger, spending most of his club career at Manchester United. A highly skilful dribbler, Best is regarded as one of the greatest pla ...
played 47 times for the club in the
1976–77 season.
Rodney Marsh
Rodney William Marsh (born 11 October 1944) is an English former footballer and football coach; he later worked as a broadcaster. A forward, he won nine caps for England between 1971 and 1973, scoring one international goal.
Brought up in the ...
, who having grown up with Fulham in the 1960s went on to play First Division football and play for England, rejoined the club in the same season, playing only 16 games. This capped one of the most successful eras in Fulham history.
The club were relegated again after winning only 11 in 42 matches in the
1979–80 season, which eventually resulted in
Bobby Campbell's sacking in October 1980, to be replaced by
Malcolm Macdonald
Malcolm Ian Macdonald (born 7 January 1950) is an English former professional footballer, manager and media figure. Nicknamed 'Supermac', Macdonald was a quick, powerfully built prolific goalscorer. He played for Fulham, Luton Town, Newcastle U ...
. With a strong squad during his 1980–1984 period in charge (with players such as
Ray Houghton
Raymond James Houghton (born 9 January 1962) is a former professional footballer and current sports analyst and commentator with RTÉ Sport.
As a player, he was a midfielder, notably playing for Liverpool where he won two First Division titles ...
,
Tony Gale
Anthony Peter Gale (born 19 November 1959) is an English football coach, former professional footballer and television pundit for Sky Sports. He is also the chairman of non-league club Walton Casuals.
As a player, he made 636 appearances as a ...
,
Paul Parker,
Gerry Peyton
Gerald Joseph Peyton (born 20 May 1956) is a football coach and former footballer who is currently the interim coach of Indian Super League club Odisha FC. A goalkeeper, Peyton had lengthy spells with Fulham and AFC Bournemouth. Following his re ...
and
Ray Lewington
Raymond Lewington (born 7 September 1956) is an English retired footballer. He was most recently assistant manager of Watford.
Born in London, he started his playing career in the city at Chelsea. He went on to play for Vancouver Whitecaps, Wim ...
), they won promotion again in
1981–82 back to the Second Division, although the promotion was overshadowed by the suicide of former defender
Dave Clement
David Thomas Clement (2 February 1948 – 31 March 1982) was an English professional footballer. Clement played as a right fullback who developed his career with Queens Park Rangers through the club's youth set-up. Clement signed professional ...
a few weeks before promotion was sealed.
In 1980, Fulham founded the rugby league club that is now
London Broncos
The London Broncos are a professional rugby league club in London, England.
The club competes in the RFL Championship. It was a member of Super League from its inaugural season in 1996 until the end of the 2014 season, when they were relegat ...
designed to be an extra stream of income for the football club, but which made financial losses every year while linked to Fulham F.C. Then called "Fulham Rugby League," they played at Craven Cottage until moving away from the parent club in 1984.
In 1978, Fulham had signed Gordon "Ivor" Davies who, during two spells at Fulham, became the club's leading goalscorer of all time with a total of 178 goals in all competitions; the record still stands. Fulham narrowly missed out on back-to-back promotions to the
First Division, losing 1–0 to Derby County away on the last day of the
1982–83 season – although the match was abandoned after 88 minutes due to a
pitch invasion
A pitch invasion (known in North America as field storming or rushing the field) occurs when a person or a crowd of people spectating a sporting event run onto the competition area, usually to celebrate or protest an incident, or sometimes as ...
and inexplicably never replayed or finished. The side which had shown so much promise was quickly sold off as the club were in debt, so it was little surprise when the club were relegated again to the Third Division in 1986. The club nearly went out of business in 1987 via an ill-advised merger attempt with
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 ...
. It was only the intervention of ex-player
Jimmy Hill
James William Thomas Hill, OBE (22 July 1928 – 19 December 2015) was an English footballer and later a television personality. His career included almost every role in the sport, including player, trade union leader, coach, manager, director ...
that allowed the club to stay in business by formation of a new company, Fulham FC (1987) Ltd. In 1987, the club took part in what was then the longest penalty deciders ever recorded – it needed 28 spot kicks to sort out a winner between them and
Aldershot
Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alders ...
following a
Freight Rover Trophy match.
In 1992, the foundation of the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
, and the resignation of 22 clubs from The Football League, restored Fulham to that league's Second Division. However, the club were relegated to the new Third Division after a poor
1993–94 season, following which
Ian Branfoot
Ian Grant Branfoot (born Gateshead, 26 January 1947) is an English former footballer and manager.
He played as a defender, and after starting at Gateshead joined Sheffield Wednesday, making his Football League debut in 1965. After 42 senior ...
was appointed as team manager.
1994–1997: Fulham's lowest ebb
After an eighth-place finish in Branfoot's
first season in charge, the club hit its lowest-ever final league position in the
1995–96 season, finishing 17th out of 24.
Branfoot was sacked as manager, but remained at the club in other capacities for a short while. In February 1996,
Micky Adams
Michael Richard Adams (born 8 November 1961) is an English former professional association football, footballer and football manager. As a player, he was a Full-back (football), full back, and made a total of 438 league appearances in a ninete ...
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 ...
. Adams oversaw an upturn in form that lifted the side out of relegation danger. The next season, he engineered a second-place league finish, missing out on first place because several years previously the league had dropped the old "goal difference" system in favour of a "goals scored" tally, meaning Fulham finished behind
Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1932, ...
. The club's chairman Jimmy Hill had argued in 1992 that goals scored should decide places of teams tied on points, and the Football League clubs had voted the system in.
1997–2001: Al Fayed takeover
Egyptian businessman
Mohamed Al-Fayed
Mohamed Al-Fayed (; arz, محمد الفايد ; born 27 January 1929) is an Egyptian-born businessman whose residence and chief business interests have been in the United Kingdom since the late 1960s. His business interests include ownership of ...
bought the club for £6.25 million in the summer of 1997.
The club was purchased via Bill Muddyman's Muddyman Group.
Al-Fayed had Micky Adams replaced in the aftermath of a mid-table start to the season. He installed a two-tier management "dream team" of
Ray Wilkins
Ray may refer to:
Fish
* Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea
* Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin
Science and mathematics
* Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point
* Ray (gra ...
as First Team Manager and
Kevin Keegan
Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and ...
as chief operating officer, pledging that the club would reach the Premier League within five years. After an argument over team selection, Wilkins left the club in May 1998 to hand over the full managerial duties to Keegan. Keegan then helped steer the club to promotion the next season, winning 101 points out of a possible 138, after spending £1.1 million to sign
Paul Peschisolido
Paolo Pasquale Peschisolido (born 25 May 1971), commonly known as Paul Peschisolido, is a Canadian soccer manager and former player. Peschisolido was manager of English League Two club Burton Albion from May 2009 until March 2012.
A forward, Pes ...
from
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
. Peschisolido was top scorer and captained by
Chris Coleman – then the most expensive footballer outside the top two divisions of the English league.
In 1999, Keegan left Fulham to become manager of England, and
Paul Bracewell
Paul William Bracewell (born 19 July 1962) is an English former professional football player and manager.
Bracewell played as a midfielder. He was a member of the Everton side that won the League title in 1985 and 1987 as well as the Europe ...
was put in charge.
Bracewell was sacked in March 2000, as Fulham's promising early season form dwindled away to a mid-table finish. Frenchman
Jean Tigana
Amadou Jean Tigana (born 23 June 1955) is a French former footballer and coach. He has played in midfield and managed professional football extensively throughout France, including 52 appearances and one goal for the France national football team ...
was put in charge and, having signed a number of young stars (including French striker
Louis Saha
Louis Laurent Saha (born 8 August 1978) is a French former professional footballer who played as a striker. Saha was capped 20 times for the France national team and scored four goals. A former scholar at the Clairefontaine football academy, h ...
), he guided Fulham to their third promotion in five seasons in the
2000–01 season, giving Fulham top-flight status for the first time since 1968. Fulham once again amassed 101 points out of a possible 138 in their scintillating title run, which was crowned with an open-top bus parade down Fulham Palace Road. They are the only team to have twice reached 100 points in a season. During the season, Chris Coleman was involved in a car crash that put him out of action for well over a year and eventually ended his playing career after he failed to make a sufficient recovery. Fulham's run through the divisions saw a large turnover of players, with the only player to play for the club in all four leagues being
Sean Davis.
2001–2007: Early Premier League years
![Jim Langley minute silence](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Jim_Langley_minute_silence.jpg)
Fulham returned to the top division of English football, and competed in the Premier League for the first time. The club finished the
2001–02 season in 13th place. Fulham were the only team to host top-flight football with some standing areas in the 21st century, but due to
restrictions on standing, this was not allowed to continue; clubs promoted from the second division had only three years to make their ground all-seater. Fulham were forced to
groundshare
A groundshare, also known as a shared stadium or shared arena, is the principle of sharing a stadium between two local sports teams. This is usually done for the purpose of reducing the costs of either construction of two separate facilities and r ...
with QPR at
Loftus Road
Loftus Road is a football stadium in White City, London, England, which is home to Queens Park Rangers.
In 1981, it became the first stadium in British professional football to have an artificial pitch of Omniturf installed. This remained in ...
during the 2002–03 and 2003–04 seasons while Craven Cottage was rebuilt as an all-seated stadium. There were fears that Fulham would not return to the Cottage, after it was revealed that Al-Fayed had sold the first right to build on the ground to a property development firm.
In
2002–03, Fulham spent most of the season in the lower half of the table. Chairman Al-Fayed told manager Jean Tigana that his contract would not be renewed at the end of the season. However, with five games left to play and relegation still possible, Tigana was sacked, and Chris Coleman was temporarily put in charge. Fulham won 10 points from a possible 15 and managed to avoid relegation. Coleman was appointed manager on a permanent basis in the summer of 2003; despite predictions that the inexperience of Coleman would result in Fulham's relegation, he kept the club well clear of relegation, guiding them to a club record ninth-place finish
in his debut season. This might have been greater had the club not come under significant financial pressure to sell Louis Saha to
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, for whom they received a club record £13 million.
Fulham lost a legal case against former manager Tigana in 2004 after Al-Fayed wrongly alleged that Tigana had overpaid more than £7 million for new players and had negotiated transfers in secret.
Coleman notched up another satisfactory performance in the
2004–05 season and guided Fulham to a secure 13th-place finish. The following season Fulham improved by one place, finishing 12th – the high point of the season was a 1–0 win over local rivals and reigning champions Chelsea in the
West London derby
The West London derby is the name given to a association football, football List of sports rivalries in the United Kingdom, derby played between any two of Brentford F.C., Brentford, Chelsea F.C., Chelsea, Fulham F.C., Fulham and Queens Park Rang ...
– Chelsea had only lost two games in two and a half years. The
2006–07 season proved to be Coleman's last, as on 10 April 2007, Fulham terminated his contract with immediate effect. His replacement was
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
manager
Lawrie Sanchez
Lawrence Philip Sanchez (born 22 October 1959) is a Northern Irish football manager and former international footballer.
The defining moment of his playing career came in the 1988 FA Cup Final, when he scored the winning goal for Wimbledon ag ...
. Fulham only gained four points from five games with Sanchez as caretaker manager. They ensured top-flight survival that season by defeating a weakened
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 ...
side 1–0 in the penultimate match of the season, and Sanchez was appointed manager.
2007–2010: Hodgson's transformation
![RoyHodgson](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/RoyHodgson.JPG)
Sanchez received strong financial backing from the board and made a number of signings during the summer break, but, after just two league wins in the first five months of the season and with Fulham in the relegation zone, he was dismissed on 21 December 2007 after a defeat to Newcastle United.
Roy Hodgson
Roy Hodgson (born 9 August 1947) is a former English football manager and player.
He managed 22 different teams in eight countries, beginning in Sweden with Halmstads BK in the 1976 season. He later guided the Switzerland national team to th ...
was named as the new manager of Fulham on 28 December 2007 and took up his contractual duties on 30 December, just two days before the January transfer window opened.
Hodgson's tenure did not start well and it took a month to secure his first win, 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 ...
, courtesy of a
Jimmy Bullard
James Richard Bullard (born 23 October 1978) is an English former professional footballer, coach and television personality. He is the co-host of the Saturday morning Sky Sports show ''Soccer AM''.
As a player he was a midfielder and played you ...
free-kick. Fulham continued to struggle and a 3–1 home defeat in April at the hands of fellow strugglers
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
left Hodgson on the verge of tears in the post-match press conference and many pundits writing off Fulham's survival chances. Despite the negative press, Hodgson continued to believe survival was attainable. The turning point of the season came in the third-to-last match, against
Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
. Fulham trailed 2–0 at half-time and had the Premier League scores at that time become results, they would have been relegated. However, the introduction of
Diomansy Kamara
Diomansy Mehdi Moustapha Kamara (born 8 November 1980) is a former professional footballer who played as a striker. He played internationally for Senegal, whom he represented at three Africa Cup of Nations.
Club career Early career
Born in Par ...
heralded the start of a fantastic comeback—Kamara struck twice as Fulham registered an amazing 3–2 victory. Fulham then won a crucial match against fellow strugglers
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 ...
at Craven Cottage, leaving survival in the club's own hands. Barring a goal-rush from fellow strugglers
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
, a win against a
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 ...
side looking ahead to their fourth FA Cup final would guarantee survival.
With 15 minutes to play at Portsmouth, Fulham were drawing, and with Birmingham City and Reading leading comfortably against
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
and Derby County respectively, they looked likely to be relegated. However, Fulham earned a free-kick with 76 minutes played; Jimmy Bullard's delivery found
Danny Murphy, who headed home the decisive goal, sparking manic celebrations from the travelling fans. Hodgson had ensured survival against all odds, breaking several club records in the process and cementing his place in Fulham folklore. Fulham narrowly missed out on a
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
place via
Fairplay
FairPlay is a digital rights management (DRM) technology developed by Apple Inc. It is built into the MPEG-4 Part 14, MP4 multimedia file format as an encrypted Advanced Audio Coding, AAC audio layer, and was used until April 2009 by the company ...
by a dubious 0.8 of a point behind Manchester City, who lost 8–1 at Middlesbrough.
In the
2008–09 season, Fulham finished seventh, their highest-ever league placing, earning qualification for the inaugural
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
, the second time that the club had entered a UEFA competition.
2009–10 was arguably the most successful season in the club's history. They were eliminated from the FA Cup in the quarter-finals for the second year running, and finished 12th in the Premier League, despite fielding weakened teams in the last few matches. In the inaugural
Europa League season, however, Fulham reached the final, meeting Spanish club
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
, who had dropped down from the
Champions League, at the
Volksparkstadion
Volksparkstadion () is a football stadium in Hamburg, Germany, and is the home of Hamburger SV.
History
HSV actually have nothing to do with the origins of the stadium, even though they own the current arena. Before the club moved to the cur ...
in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
. In their first European cup final, the Cottagers were beaten 2–1 after extra time, having drawn 1–1 after full-time. The achievement of taking Fulham so unexpectedly far, beating famous teams like
Hamburger SV
Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its football section. Though the current HSV was founded in June 1919 from a merger of three ...
,
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
, holders
Shakhtar Donetsk
Football Club Shakhtar Donetsk ( uk, Футбольний клуб «Шахтар» Донецьк , short nickname "miners") is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Donetsk. In 2014, due to the War in Donbass, the club was f ...
and
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
in the competition, led to Roy Hodgson being voted the
LMA Manager of the Year
The League Managers Association Awards is an annual award ceremony in English football, awarded by the League Managers Association. The most prestigious award is the LMA Manager of the Year award. It is presented to a manager from any division for ...
by the widest margin in the history of the award. The home match in the round of 16 was arguably Fulham's greatest result in the history of the club. Despite losing 3–1 in the first leg at Italian giants Juventus and falling behind minutes into the second leg at Craven Cottage, Fulham scored four goals with no reply from Juventus.
At the end of the season, Hodgson left Fulham to manage Liverpool.
2010–2013: Established in the Premier League
On 29 July 2010,
Mark Hughes
Leslie Mark Hughes (born 1 November 1963) is a Welsh football coach and former player who is the manager of Bradford City.
During his playing career he usually operated as a forward or midfielder. He had two spells at Manchester United, and a ...
was named the successor to Hodgson, signing a two-year contract with the club. Hughes had previously managed Manchester City, the
Welsh national team
)
, Association = Football Association of Wales (FAW)
, Confederation = UEFA (Europe)
, Coach = Rob Page
, Captain = Gareth Bale
, Most caps = Gareth Bale (111)
, Top scorer = Gareth Bal ...
and Blackburn. Hughes' first match in charge was against
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
at the
Reebok Stadium
The University of Bolton Stadium is the home ground of Bolton Wanderers F.C. in Horwich, Greater Manchester, England.
Opening in 1997, it was named the Reebok Stadium, after club sponsors Reebok. In 2014, Bolton Wanderers signed a naming righ ...
. The highlight of the season was a 4–0 win in the FA Cup over London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, all goals coming in the first half. Hughes resigned as manager of Fulham on 2 June 2011, having spent fewer than 11 months at the club. The Whites had an encouraging finish in eighth position and qualified for the
Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
via Fairplay.
On 7 June 2011,
Martin Jol
Maarten Cornelis "Martin" Jol (born 16 January 1956) is a Dutch football manager and former midfielder. He played over 400 games during his career which included spells in the Netherlands, Germany, and England, as well as earning three caps wit ...
signed a two-year contract with Fulham, becoming successor to Hughes. Jol's first match was a 3–0 Europa League win against
NSÍ Runavík
NSÍ Runavík is a Faroese football club, playing in Runavík on the island of Eysturoy. It was founded 24 March 1957. In 2003 NSÍ participated for the first time on a European stage.
In 2007, the club won the Faroe Islands Premier League for t ...
of the
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...
on 30 June. Fulham then navigated their way with some ease to the group stage in the Europa League through late summer. However, the Cottagers were knocked out with the last seconds of the group stage matches,
Odense BK
Odense Boldklub (; also known as Odense BK or the more commonly used OB) is a Danish professional football club based in the city Odense. The club has won three Danish championships and five Danish Cup trophies. OB play in the Danish Superliga ...
equalising to make a draw, leaving Fulham in third place, with Polish side
Wisła Kraków
Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. It currently competes in the I liga, the second level of Polish football league system. It ...
instead progressing to the next round.
Fulham's Premier League form in the
2011–12 season was mixed, with the continuing away-record hangover of previous seasons dragging on. In October 2011, Fulham had an emphatic 6–0 home win over neighbours QPR, with
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a Dem ...
scoring a hat-trick for Fulham in the match. The January 2012 transfer window saw
Bobby Zamora
Robert Lester Zamora (born 16 January 1981) is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward. Zamora began his career at Football League club Bristol Rovers, but was soon signed by Brighton & Hove Albion, where he found first ...
move over the Hammersmith flyover to Loftus Road, with Russian striker
Pavel Pogrebnyak
Pavel Viktorovich Pogrebnyak (russian: Па́вел Ви́кторович Погребня́к ; born 8 November 1983) is a Russian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Born in Moscow, Pogrebnyak began his career at Spart ...
coming in place from
VfB Stuttgart
Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's football team is currently part of Germany's first division, the Bundesliga. VfB Stu ...
.
![Clint](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Clint.JPG)
The New Year saw two further hat-tricks scored by
Clint Dempsey
Clinton Drew Dempsey (; born March 9, 1983) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a forward and midfielder. During his career, he played in the Premier League for Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur and in Major League Soccer ...
. On 11 February 2012, Progrebnyak scored on his debut in the 2–1 win over Stoke City. In March 2012, a 5–0 win against
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
saw a hat-trick from Pogrebnyak. The Cottagers broke their historic drought on
Merseyside
Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan county, metropolitan and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of List of ceremonial counties of England, 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Merse ...
with a 1–0 win over Liverpool at
Anfield
Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...
on May Day and another win against Sunderland in the last home game meant Fulham were only one point short of equalling their largest points haul in the Premier League, with just one game remaining. However, they failed to achieve this after losing their last game away at Tottenham.
In the
2012–13 season, Fulham ended a seven-match winless run by beating
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...
3–0 away at the
Liberty Stadium
The Swansea.com Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Swansea.com; formerly Liberty Stadium) is an all-seated sports stadium and conferencing venue located in the Landore area of Swansea, Wales. The stadium opened in 2005 and was named the Liberty Stadium. It ...
on the final game of the season on 19 May 2013. Fulham finished the season in 12th place.
2013–present: Shahid Khan's ownership
Shahid Khan
Shahid Rafiq Khan ( ur, ; born July 18, 1950)["Sha ...](_blank)
took over as chairman in July 2013, but after a poor start to the
2013–14 season, having only amassed 10 points from 13 games,
Martin Jol was sacked as manager on 1 December 2013, with
René Meulensteen
Reinhard Jozef Petrus Meulensteen (born 25 March 1964) is a Dutch former footballer and coach who is currently assistant coach of the Australia national soccer team. He spent the early parts of his career working in the Netherlands before taking ...
taking charge as head coach.
Meulensteen was replaced by
Felix Magath
Wolfgang Felix Magath (; born 26 July 1953) is a German football manager and former player.
The most notable spell of his playing career was with Hamburger SV, with whom he won three Bundesliga titles, the 1977 European Cup Winners' Cup Final a ...
after just 17 games in charge following no upturn in form, but fortunes did not improve, and Fulham were eventually relegated to the Championship after a 4–1 defeat away to Stoke on 3 May. Post-season, the media criticised chairman Shahid Khan's decision to sack Meulensteen and appoint the third manager of the season in Magath.
Fulham broke 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 ...
transfer record that summer in a restructuring of the squad by Magath, but after a disastrous start to the
new season, amassing just one point in seven games, Magath was sacked in September 2014, with
Kit Symons
Christopher Jerry "Kit" Symons (born 8 March 1971) is a professional association football manager and former Welsh international footballer. As a professional player, he had lengthy spells at Portsmouth, Manchester City and Fulham as well as earn ...
appointed as caretaker manager. Fulham eventually finished the season in 17th place. The team suffered an inconsistent start to the following season and after a 5–2 loss at home to Birmingham City, and lying in 12th place, Kit Symons was sacked as manager in November 2015. It paved the way for Serbian
Slaviša Jokanović
Slaviša Jokanović ( sr-Cyrl, Славиша Јокановић, ; born 16 August 1968) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He is the manager of Russian club Dynamo Moscow.
A physical player considered strong in the ai ...
to be appointed on 27 December 2015. Fulham's fortunes did not improve greatly following Jokanović's appointment, but the team finished the 2015–16 Championship season in 20th place, avoiding relegation by 11 points.
In 2017, club owner Shahid Khan's son
Tony Khan
Antony Rafiq Khan (born October 10, 1982) is an American businessman, promoter, and sports executive. He is known for his involvement in American football, professional wrestling and soccer. He is best known as the founder and co-owner of All E ...
was named as Vice Chairman and Director of Football Operations, and he also holds the roles of General Manager and Sporting Director.
The 2016–17 season saw huge improvements in both results and performances. Despite an inconsistent start, the team saw a significant improvement from October onwards which saw them secure a 6th-place finish. They entered the
play-offs
The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
, but lost to Reading 2–1 on aggregate in the semi-final. Despite a slow start to the following season, the club went on a club-record 23 game unbeaten run in the league which led to a 3rd-place finish, narrowly missing out automatic promotion. The team went on to win the
EFL Championship play-off Final 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 ...
to return to the Premier League on 26 May 2018.
Following a poor start to life back in the Premier League, Jokanović was sacked on 14 November 2018 and replaced with former Leicester manager
Claudio Ranieri
Claudio Ranieri Grande Ufficiale OMRI (; born 20 October 1951) is an Italian football manager and former player. He will be the new head coach of club Cagliari from 1 January 2023.
Ranieri began his managerial career in the lower leagues in It ...
. Results ultimately did not improve under Ranieri and he left the club in February 2019. He was replaced by
Scott Parker
Scott Matthew Parker (born 13 October 1980) is an English professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is currently the head coach of Club Brugge in Belgium.
Parker began his career at Charlton Athletic, and ...
as caretaker manager who could not save the club from relegation on 3 April 2019. Parker was appointed as manager on a permanent basis on 10 May 2019.
In a season that was interrupted by the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, Parker led the club straight back to the Premier League on 4 August 2020, defeating London rivals Brentford 2–1 in the
playoff final after a 4th-place finish. However, the club would once again be relegated after just a single season back in the top flight after a 2–0 defeat to Burnley on 10 May 2021. In the aftermath of relegation, Parker left the club by mutual consent and was replaced by former Everton manager
Marco Silva
Marco Alexandre Saraiva da Silva (; born 12 July 1977) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a right-back, currently manager of club Fulham.
He played for a variety of Portuguese clubs, finishing his career with a six-year spell at ...
.
After relegation, Fulham under Silva earned promotion back to the top tier with four games to go winning 3 - 0 against
Preston North End F.C.
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
They won the
2021–22 EFL Championship
The 2021–22 EFL Championship (referred to as the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the 18th season of the Football League Championship under its current title and the 30th season under its current league division format.
Team ch ...
with a 7–0 victory over
Luton Town F.C.
Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1 ...
Grounds
Between the years 1879 and when Fulham had a ground to call their own in 1896, they played at a number of stadiums, only some of which were recorded and this should not be regarded as a full or complete list. Only rivals and former landlords Queens Park Rangers have played at more home stadiums. Some of the early grounds listed below are likely to have been parks and parkland, which have now been developed. Even when the club purchased Craven Cottage and the surrounding land in 1894, they had to wait two years before they could play a game there.
* 1879–83: 'The Mud Pond', Star Road,
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
* 1883–86: Lillie Road, Fulham
* 1886–88: Ranelagh House, Fulham
* 1888–89:
Barn Elms Playing Fields,
Barnes
Barnes may refer to:
People
* Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name)
Places
United Kingdom
*Barnes, London, England
**Barnes railway station
** Barnes Bridge railway station
** Barnes Railway Bri ...
(this was the site of The
Ranelagh Club
The Ranelagh Club was a polo club located at Barn Elms in south west London, England. It was founded in 1878 as a split-off from the Hurlingham Club and by 1894 was the largest polo club in the world. The club had approximately 3000 members in 1 ...
)
* 1889–91:
Parsons Green
Parsons Green is a mainly residential district in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The Green itself, which is roughly triangular, is bounded on two of its three sides by the New King's Road section of the King's Road, A308 road ...
, Fulham and Roskell's Fields (next to
Parsons Green Underground station)
* 1891–95:
Half Moon,
Putney
Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
History
Putney is an ancient paris ...
* 1895–96: Captain James Field, near Halford Road,
West Brompton
West Brompton is an area of south-west London, that straddles the boundary between the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham and Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The centuries-old boundary was traced by Counter's Creek, now lost be ...
* 1896–2002:
Craven Cottage
Craven Cottage is a football ground in Fulham, West London, England, which has been the home of Fulham F.C. since 1896.According to the club'official website The ground's capacity is 22,384; the record attendance is 49,335, for a game against M ...
, Fulham
* 2002–04:
Loftus Road
Loftus Road is a football stadium in White City, London, England, which is home to Queens Park Rangers.
In 1981, it became the first stadium in British professional football to have an artificial pitch of Omniturf installed. This remained in ...
,
Shepherd's Bush
Shepherd's Bush is a district of West London, England, within the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham west of Charing Cross, and identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan.
Although primarily residential in character, i ...
(groundshare with Queens Park Rangers during Craven Cottage's renovation)
* 2004–: Craven Cottage, Fulham
Club identity
Kit
Fulham's sponsorship by
Betfair
Betfair is a British Gambling, gambling company which operates the world's largest online betting exchange. Its product offering also includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. Founded in 2000, the business is split ...
in 2002–03 was the first gambling sponsorship in English football, and came before the
Gambling Act 2005
The Gambling Act 2005 (2005 c 19) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It mainly applies to England and Wales, and to Scotland, and is designed to control all forms of gambling. It transfers authority for licensing gambling from t ...
permitted the industry to advertise on television and radio; within fifteen years half of Premier League teams were sponsored by such companies.
On 27 July 2021, it was announced that World Mobile would become the official principal partner for the next three years.
In July 2022, it was announced that the gambling company W88 would sponsor the team in a kit deal for the 2022–23 season. The deal will see the betting firm's logo placed on the front of both the men's and women's kit. The confirmation of the deal came during a decrease in gambling sponsors for Premier League teams.
Mascot
The Fulham
mascot
A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...
is Billy the Badger, who was the winning design sent in by Kyle Jackson after an online competition by the club. Billy the Badger wears the number 79 Fulham shirt, in reference to the club's year of founding, 1879. Controversy first surrounded Billy when he tried to cheer up Chelsea manager
Avram Grant
Avraham "Avram" Grant ( he, אברהם "אברם" גרנט; born Avraham Granat; ) is an Israeli professional football manager. He has spent the majority of his career coaching and managing in Israel, winning a number of national league and cup ...
during a home match in front of the television cameras. Secondly, Billy was seen on television being sent off during the home game against Aston Villa on 3 February 2008 for break-dancing in the corner of the pitch after the referee had commenced the game. Billy blamed his badger hearing and eyesight for the incident, and apologised to referee
Chris Foy. On 11 March 2009, Billy walked across the goal during a match although it was not spotted by the referee. The former mascot for Fulham was Sir Craven of Cottage, the Knight. The cheerleaders were known as the Cravenettes.
Rivalries and supporters
Fulham fans consider their main rivals to be
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
. Despite this fixture not being played that often in the years preceding Fulham's ascent to the top division, this is a clear local derby as Chelsea's ground,
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 ...
, is within Fulham and only 1.8 miles from Craven Cottage.
Fulham consider their secondary rivals to be
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 ...
. Fulham beat QPR twice in the 2011–12 Premier League season. They won 6–0 at Craven Cottage, and also 1–0 away from home at
Loftus Road
Loftus Road is a football stadium in White City, London, England, which is home to Queens Park Rangers.
In 1981, it became the first stadium in British professional football to have an artificial pitch of Omniturf installed. This remained in ...
.
[''Match Report – Fulham v QPR – 2 October 2011'']
Sky Sports The two clubs have played each other several times since in the Championship.
Fulham's third closest rivalry is with
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
, who they defeated 2–1 on 4 August 2020 in the Championship playoff final. Fulham also have rivalries with several other London clubs to a lesser extent, such as
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
* ...
.
Outside of London,
Gillingham are still considered rivals to some Fulham supporters despite the two clubs not having played in the same division since the 2000–01 season. Fulham and Gillingham were involved in several ill-tempered matches in the lower leagues, including the death of a Fulham supporter.
Fulham's fan base has fluctuated over the years, with high crowds coinciding with the club's success in the Premier League. Fulham supporters have played a vital role in the club's long term stay at Craven Cottage. When the club moved temporarily to
Loftus Road
Loftus Road is a football stadium in White City, London, England, which is home to Queens Park Rangers.
In 1981, it became the first stadium in British professional football to have an artificial pitch of Omniturf installed. This remained in ...
, a committee known as Back to the Cottage was formed, committed to ensuring the club continued to play at their traditional home. Fulham fans have traditionally come from the Fulham and Hammersmith areas, and also from other areas in South-West London, such as Putney, Richmond, Sutton and Worcester Park.
In July 2012, the club website asked supporters using Facebook and Twitter to pick their best FFC Premier League XI from 2001 to the present. The supporters picked their favourite goalkeeper, full-backs, centre-backs, wingers, centre midfielders and forwards in a classic 4–4–2 formation. In August 2022, the club asked fans for an updated all time Premier League XI as part of the Premier League's 30th anniversary celebrations.
Records and statistics
Fulham in Europe
Fulham are a member of the
European Club Association
The European Club Association (ECA) is a body representing the interests of professional association football clubs in UEFA. It is the sole such body recognised by the confederation, and has member clubs in each UEFA member association. It was fo ...
, having qualified four times for European Competition, firstly the
UEFA Intertoto Cup
The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...
after their inaugural season in the Premier League, then the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
as a result of winning that, and then the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
twice. Fulham are unbeaten at home in European competition, in 23 games, with a record of 17 wins and six draws. In 2010, Fulham reached the UEFA Europa League final, which they lost 2–1 to Atletico Madrid.
Players
Current squad
Out on loan
Academy
Women’s team
Club management
Coaching positions
Managerial history
Fulham have had 37 managers in 114 years. Prior to the appointment of the first manager at the club (Bradshaw in 1904), the duties normally assigned to a modern-day manager would have been shared between club secretary, captain, and other officials.
* *
Frank Osborne was employed continuously by the club from 1948 to 1963, but only spent the above periods as designated manager.
* ** Ian Branfoot continued to be employed by the club after his dismissal as manager.
*
† Kevin Keegan was employed by the club as chief operating officer (during which time he essentially acted as an
assistant manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
) during the time of his predecessor (Ray Wilkins) being the actual manager.
*
§ René Meulensteen was appointed as head coach under previous manager
Martin Jol
Maarten Cornelis "Martin" Jol (born 16 January 1956) is a Dutch football manager and former midfielder. He played over 400 games during his career which included spells in the Netherlands, Germany, and England, as well as earning three caps wit ...
(during which time he essentially acted as an assistant manager), but never took on the title of "manager" after Jol's departure, despite assuming the duties usually assigned to one. He remained as head coach for four days after Magath's appointment before being released.
*
± Some managers have only had the official description of "head coach" rather than "manager": René Meulensteen, Slaviša Jokanović, Scott Parker, and Marco Silva, as well as interim head coach Peter Grant.
Managerial records:
*Only one man has managed the club through two different spells, Frank Osborne, in 1948–49 and then 1953–56.
*The longest spell as Fulham manager was by Phil Kelso, 15 years (1909–1924)
*Several managers have failed to last more than a year at the club: Bobby Robson, Ray Wilkins, Paul Bracewell, Lawrie Sanchez, Mark Hughes, René Meulensteen, Felix Magath, and Claudio Ranieri. Further to this, Frank Osborne only had a year after his initial arrival at the club during which he was principally in charge of the team (before Dodgin, senior) arrived, although he later took sole charge of the club for an extended period.
Temporary managers at the club have included:
*
Johnny Haynes
John Norman Haynes (17 October 1934 – 18 October 2005) was an English association footballer who played as an inside forward. He made 56 appearances for his country including 22 as captain. He was selected for three World Cup finals squads ...
: Took over after
Sir Bobby Robson
Sir Robert William Robson (18 February 1933 – 31 July 2009) was an English footballer and football manager. His career included periods playing for and later managing the England national team and being a UEFA Cup-winning manager at Ipswich ...
was fired in 1968 for only a handful of matches. ''The Maestro'' was offered the role permanently but had no inclination to become a manager.
*
Karl-Heinz Riedle
Karl-Heinz Riedle (; born 16 September 1965) is a German former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Despite not being particularly tall, he was nicknamed "Air" throughout his career, due to his notable heading accuracy, jumping an ...
: when Paul Bracewell was fired halfway through the
1999–2000 season, there was a temporary period of Fulham being managed by their
striker Karl-Heinz Riedle, assisted his old boss at
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 ...
,
Roy Evans
Roy Quentin Echlin Evans (born 4 October 1948) is an English former footballer who played as a defender for Liverpool. He eventually rose through the coaching ranks to become the team manager. While predominantly plyi ...
. Riedle injured a lung in the season's penultimate game.
*
Chris Coleman: after Tigana resigned four months before planned in 2003, Chris Coleman was appointed as caretaker manager, much to the delight of the fans. Having initially denied he wanted the post, Coleman accepted the role of full-time manager that summer.
*
Lawrie Sanchez
Lawrence Philip Sanchez (born 22 October 1959) is a Northern Irish football manager and former international footballer.
The defining moment of his playing career came in the 1988 FA Cup Final, when he scored the winning goal for Wimbledon ag ...
: when Coleman was sacked, Sanchez came in to take control of the club for the remaining five games of the season. (See above)
*
Ray Lewington
Raymond Lewington (born 7 September 1956) is an English retired footballer. He was most recently assistant manager of Watford.
Born in London, he started his playing career in the city at Chelsea. He went on to play for Vancouver Whitecaps, Wim ...
: took temporary charge of Fulham for three games following Lawrie Sanchez's dismissal in December 2007. Lewington also took temporary charge of the club in July 2010 after Roy Hodgson had left the club until the appointment of Mark Hughes.
*
Kit Symons
Christopher Jerry "Kit" Symons (born 8 March 1971) is a professional association football manager and former Welsh international footballer. As a professional player, he had lengthy spells at Portsmouth, Manchester City and Fulham as well as earn ...
: temporarily took charge of Fulham after Felix Magath's dismissal in September 2014 before being appointed on 29 October.
*
Peter Grant: took charge of Fulham for three games after
Kit Symons
Christopher Jerry "Kit" Symons (born 8 March 1971) is a professional association football manager and former Welsh international footballer. As a professional player, he had lengthy spells at Portsmouth, Manchester City and Fulham as well as earn ...
' dismissal.
*
Stuart Gray: succeeded Grant as temporary manager (holding down the job title of "senior coach") after poor results in Grant's three games in charge whilst the board looked for a permanent successor to Kit Symons.
*
Scott Parker
Scott Matthew Parker (born 13 October 1980) is an English professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is currently the head coach of Club Brugge in Belgium.
Parker began his career at Charlton Athletic, and ...
: took over as caretaker after
Claudio Ranieri
Claudio Ranieri Grande Ufficiale OMRI (; born 20 October 1951) is an Italian football manager and former player. He will be the new head coach of club Cagliari from 1 January 2023.
Ranieri began his managerial career in the lower leagues in It ...
left the club on 28 February 2019 until he was permanently appointed on 10 May 2019.
Ownership
![Shahid Khan 2015](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Shahid_Khan_2015.jpg)
Fulham Football Club is owned by
Shahid Khan
Shahid Rafiq Khan ( ur, ; born July 18, 1950)["Sha ...](_blank)
. Khan completed his purchase of the club from
Mohamed Al-Fayed
Mohamed Al-Fayed (; arz, محمد الفايد ; born 27 January 1929) is an Egyptian-born businessman whose residence and chief business interests have been in the United Kingdom since the late 1960s. His business interests include ownership of ...
on 12 July 2013 for a reported £150–200 million.
During his ownership of Fulham, Al-Fayed had provided the club with £187 million in interest-free loans.
In March 2011, Fulham posted annual losses of £16.9 million, with Al-Fayed stating that he would "continue to make funds available to achieve our goals both on and off the pitch" and that "the continued success of Fulham and its eventual financial self-sustainability is my priority."
As of January 2013, Fulham were effectively debt-free as Al-Fayed converted the loans into equity in the club.
Honours and achievements
Note:
References
External links
*
Supporters' TrustFulhamweb – latest fulham news – Unofficial website
*
Fulham News – Sky Sports
{{UEFA Intertoto Cup winners
1879 establishments in England
Association football clubs established in 1879
History of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
Sport in Hammersmith and Fulham
Football clubs in London
Football clubs in England
Southern Football League clubs
Premier League clubs
EFL Championship clubs
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...