Did you know that just five – a quarter – of clubs contesting the 2024/25 Premier League still used their original club names? Here’s the final season table with the original names of those clubs and a bit of background on each. For more on the roots of the game in England and worldwide, please read my book, Origin Stories: The Pioneers Who Took Football to the World.
1. Everton FC and Athletic Grounds Ltd.
Liverpool FC (1892) span out of Everton (founded 1878) after a dispute with Anfield’s owner, John Houlding. Everton decamped to nearby Goodison Park, while Houlding wanted to retain the name ‘Everton’, but was not permitted to so. He adopted the name of the city for his new club. The new side played in blue initially.
2. Dial Square
The Arsenal started out in Dial Square, Woolwich, in 1886. Later names included Royal Arsenal and Woolwich Arsenal, before the move north to Highbury in 1913 saw any geographical reference dropped.
For more, read this post on the roots of The Arsenal in South London/Kent.
3. St. Mark’s (West Gorton)
Manchester City, like many other clubs, came out of a church side, adopting their current name in 1894.
Many churches launched football clubs to occupy young men, improve their health and deter them from alcohol and fighting. Cricket was the summer sport and football filled a gap over the winter months.
4. Chelsea FC
In 1905, the owners of the Stamford Bridge athletics stadium in West London offered to lease their ground to Fulham FC, but Fulham chose to stay at Craven Cottage, so the owners formed their own side, Chelsea Football Club. Check out my quick video on the roots of Chelsea FC:
5. Stanley Cricket Club / Newcastle West End
Newcastle United was formed out of a merger of two clubs in 1892 – Stanley, latterly Newcastle East End, and Newcastle West End.
6. Aston Villa
Another church side, Villa were formed in 1874 out of a Wesleyan chapel cricket team. Villa’s chairman William McGregor was a key figure in driving the foundation of the Football League in 1888.
7. Nottingham Forest
One of the few Premier League clubs to retain its original name, Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and chose red in honour of the hero of Italian unification, Giuseppe Garibaldi. Forest contributed plenty to the game, including the whistle, shin pads, the inverted pyramid 2-3-5 formation, and the shirts for the club we now know at Arsenal.
Listen to this podcast with Matt Oldroyd from the Forza Garibaldi fan club for more on Nottingham Forest’s history.
8. Brighton & Hove United
Albion were only ‘United’ briefly upon their foundation in 1901. The club’s nickname used to be ‘The Dolphins’ before ‘Seagulls’ took over in the 1970s to rival Crystal Palace’s ‘Eagles’. More on that in this podcast on Brighton & Hove Albion with Michael Hamlen.
9. Boscombe FC
AFC Bournemouth started out as ‘Boscombe FC’ in 1899 and only adopted their current name in 1971.
10. Brentford FC
Another club with its original name, Brentford FC was formed in a pub in 1889, entering the West London Alliance three years later.
11. St. Andrew’s Church Sunday School FC
Fulham FC was another church-founded club, adopting the name of the West London suburb it was in soon after formation.
12. Crystal Palace FC
There’s been a ‘Crystal Palace Football Club’ since 1861 as the workers’ team of the eponymous South London showgrounds. However, the club disappears from the record for decades before the professional Crystal Palace FC was set up in 1905.
More on Crystal Palace FC in my video…
13. St. Domingo’s FC
Yet another church/cricket combination, St. Domingo’s adopted the name of the Everton district of Liverpool and adopted a famous landmark, the Everton lockup, as its emblem. And played its first matches – winning its first title – at Anfield. For more, check out this post on the roots of Everton.
14. Thames Ironworks
West Ham United is another works side, formed in 1895. The Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company build ships on the Thames – including warships for the Royal Navy – until 1912. The football club became West Ham Utd in 1900. More on the historical significance of football in the West Ham area in this video:
15. Newton Heath Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway FC
Although it’s common to call Manchester United simply ‘United’, it was far from the first ‘United’ (Sheffield Utd is the oldest – 1889). What is now a global brand started out as a railway works side. More on the roots of Manchester United in this podcast.
16. St. Luke’s FC
Wolverhampton Wanderers are another church side, founded in 1877, but switched to their current name two years later. ‘Wanderers’ was a popular name at the time for sides with no fixed ground.
17. Hotspur FC
Another football club to come out of a cricketing side, Hotspur took their name from Harry ‘Hotspur’ Percy, a knight whose emblem was a cockerel. The ‘Tottenham’ prefix was required because there was already another side on the London circuit called ‘Hotspur’ from Battersea, south of the river.
More on the history of Tottenham Hotspur here.
18. Leicester Fosse FC
The original Leicester Fosse was founded by some school alumni, relaunching as Leicester City in 1919 after the First World War.
19. Ipswich AFC
Founded way back in 1878, the ‘Town’ part of the name was added ten years later after a merger with Ipswich Rugby Club.
20. St. Mary’s FC
Another church side, Southampton have remained connected to their root by retaining the nickname ‘Saints’ and naming their stadium St. Mary’s.
For more on the roots of football, check out my first book, Origin Stories: The Pioneers Who Took Football to the World.