Watford F.C. facts for kids
 |
||||
| Full name | Watford Football Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) |
|
|||
| Founded | 1881 | |||
| Ground | Vicarage Road | |||
| Capacity | 22,200 | |||
| Owner | Gino Pozzo | |||
| Chairman | Scott Duxbury | |||
| Head coach | Tom Cleverley | |||
| League | Premier League | |||
| 2018–19 | Premier League, 11th of 20 | |||
|
||||
Watford Football Club is a professional football team from Watford, Hertfordshire, England. They play in the EFL Championship, which is the second-highest league in English football.
The team played at different fields when they first started. In 1922, they moved to their current home, Vicarage Road. Watford has a long-standing competition with their nearby rivals, Luton Town.
A famous manager named Graham Taylor helped Watford climb from the fourth division to the top league between 1977 and 1987. They finished second in the top league in 1982–83. They also played in the UEFA Cup in 1983–84 and reached the 1984 FA Cup final.
After a tough period, Taylor returned as manager. He led the team to get promoted twice in a row, reaching the Premier League for one season in 1999–2000. Watford also played in the top league in 2006–07 and again from 2015 to 2020. They reached the 2019 FA Cup final but lost 6–0. In 2021, Watford was promoted back to the Premier League. However, they were relegated again in 2022.
Contents
Watford's History: From Rovers to Hornets
How Watford Football Club Started
The club began in 1881 as Watford Rovers. Henry Grover formed the team, and he also played as a full back. Watford Rovers was made up of amateur players at first. They played their home games in different spots around Watford.
The team first played in the FA Cup in the 1886–87 season. In 1889, Watford won the County Cup for the first time. In 1891, the team became part of the "West Hertfordshire Club and Ground." This meant they moved to a new field on Cassio Road.
In 1893, Watford Rovers changed their name to "West Herts." They joined the Southern Football League in 1896. West Herts had a tough time in 1897–98, with fewer than 200 fans at games. They decided to become a professional team, which helped them improve.
Another local team, Watford St. Mary's, was also popular. They attracted 400 to 500 fans. On April 15, 1898, the two clubs decided to join together. The new club was officially named Watford Football Club.
After being moved down to the Southern League Second Division in 1903, Watford hired their first manager. He was John Goodall, a former England player. Goodall helped Watford get promoted and stay in the division until 1910.
Despite not having much money, Watford won the Southern League title in the 1914–15 season. This was under manager Harry Kent. Watford kept the title for five years because the league stopped during World War I. After finishing second in 1919–20, the club left the Southern League. They joined the new Football League Third Division.
From 1921–22, the third level of The Football League had two groups of 22 clubs. Teams fought for promotion to the Second Division. They also battled to stay in the league. The bottom two teams in each group had to ask to be re-elected to the league.
Watford finished outside the top six every season from 1922 to 1934. After Kent left in 1926, they finished 21st out of 22 teams in 1926–27. But other clubs voted for Watford to stay in the league. Later, under managers Neil McBain and Bill Findlay, the team did much better. They finished in the top six for five seasons in a row. This was from 1934–35 to 1938–39. They also won the Football League Third Division South Cup in 1937. The Football League stopped in 1939 because of World War II.
Watford After the War
Football started again in 1946. Watford was still in the Third Division South. In 1950–51, they finished 23rd. This meant the club had to ask to stay in the league again. But teams in the top two divisions voted for Watford to remain.
Neil McBain returned as manager in 1956. The team stayed in the division until 1958. The league was then changed to four national divisions for the 1958–59 season. Watford was placed in the Fourth Division.
Ron Burgess took over from McBain during that season. In the next season, Burgess led Watford to their first promotion in the Football League. This team included Cliff Holton, who scored a club record 42 league goals. Holton was sold the next year after scoring 34 more goals, which made fans angry.
Bill McGarry became the next manager. He bought new players like Charlie Livesey and Ron Saunders. In his only season, he led the club to its highest league position at the time: third in the Third Division. Eighteen-year-old goalkeeper Pat Jennings also played under McGarry. He even played for his country while still in the Third Division.
McGarry left for Ipswich in 1964. Player-manager Ken Furphy replaced him. Furphy rebuilt the team with players like Keith Eddy and Dennis Bond. They drew with Liverpool in the FA Cup. They almost won promotion in 1966–67. But Bond was sold to Tottenham Hotspur for £30,000, a record for Watford at the time.
Furphy's hard work paid off in 1969. With the signing of Barry Endean, Watford went on an unbeaten run. They won the Third Division title in April, at home against Plymouth Argyle. A year later, Watford reached the FA Cup semi-final for the first time. They beat top teams like Stoke City and Liverpool. But due to money problems, Furphy left for Blackburn Rovers. George Kirby took over. Watford had to sell players to survive. They fell back into the Third Division in 1972. The team continued to struggle. Despite a change in manager, Watford was moved down again in 1975.
| Watford's starting line-up for the 1984 FA Cup Final. Paul Atkinson came on as a substitute; Graham Taylor managed the team, with Dan Ridler his assistant. |
The Elton John Era at Watford
Musician Elton John, a lifelong Watford fan, became the club chairman in 1976. He wanted to take the team into the First Division. In April 1977, he fired manager Mike Keen. When Graham Taylor took over, the club was still in the Fourth Division.
Taylor led Watford to promotion in his first season. Watford won the Fourth Division title. They had the most wins, fewest defeats, most goals scored, and fewest goals conceded. Promotion to the Second Division followed in 1978–79. Ross Jenkins was the league's top scorer with 29 goals.
Watford finished 18th and 9th in the next two seasons. They secured promotion to the First Division for the first time in 1981–82. They finished second, just behind rivals Luton Town.
Watford started the 1982–83 season with four wins from their first five games. In just seven years, the club had gone from the lowest division to the top. Watford couldn't win the title, but they finished second behind Liverpool. This meant they qualified for the UEFA Cup. Luther Blissett was the top scorer in the First Division. He then signed for Italian team Milan for £1 million.
Watford reached the 1984 FA Cup Final but lost to Everton. After guiding Watford to a ninth-place finish in 1986–87, Taylor left to manage Aston Villa.
After Taylor left, Dave Bassett became manager. England winger John Barnes was sold to Liverpool. Bassett was fired in January 1988 after only 4 wins in 23 games. Watford was at the bottom of the First Division. Steve Harrison couldn't stop them from being relegated.
In 1988–89, Harrison's Watford failed to return to the First Division. They lost in the Second Division play-offs. The under-18 team won the FA Youth Cup. They beat Manchester City 2–1. Future England international David James was the goalkeeper for Watford.
Harrison left in 1990. For the next few years, Watford's best finish was seventh in Division One in 1994–95. However, in the next season, Glenn Roeder's third as manager, Watford struggled. Even with Graham Taylor returning as caretaker manager in February 1996, the club was relegated to Division Two.
After relegation, Taylor became director of football. Former Watford player Kenny Jackett became manager. After a mid-table finish in Division Two in 1996–97, Jackett became assistant manager. Taylor returned as manager and won the Second Division title in 1997–98. This was Watford's second league title under him.
A second promotion happened in 1998–99. They won the play-off final 2–0 against Bolton Wanderers. Watford's first Premiership season started with a win over Liverpool. But their form quickly dropped, and they were relegated after finishing last.
Graham Taylor retired at the end of the 2000–01 season. Gianluca Vialli replaced him. Player wages at the club went up by £4 million under Vialli. The club finished 14th in the division in 2001–02. Vialli was fired after a disagreement about the wage bill. Ray Lewington, who was Vialli's reserve team manager, took over.
Financial Challenges and Premier League Return
Watford faced money problems in 2002–03. This was after the TV company ITV Digital went out of business. The club was close to going bankrupt. But players and staff agreed to take a 12% pay cut. Also, reaching the FA Cup semi-final brought in much-needed money. Many players were released that summer due to money issues.
After a stable season in 2003–04, the next season started well. The club was in the top half of the Championship. However, poor results saw them drop towards the relegation zone. Despite reaching the League Cup semi-final, their league form did not get better. Lewington was fired in March 2005. His replacement, Aidy Boothroyd, helped the club avoid relegation.
Back in the Premier League
Watford finished third in the league in Boothroyd's first full season. They beat Leeds United 3–0 in the play-off final. This earned them promotion to the Premier League. But the team didn't win a Premier League game until November. Ashley Young was sold to Aston Villa for a club record £9.65 million in January 2007. Watford finished last after winning only five league games. However, they did reach the FA Cup semi-finals.
Boothroyd stayed as manager and spent a lot of money on players. This included a club record £3.25 million for Nathan Ellington. Watford led the Championship early in 2007–08. But they only finished sixth. Boothroyd's team lost 6–1 to Hull City in the play-off semi-finals. Boothroyd left the club three months into the 2008–09 season. Watford was 21st in the Championship table at that time.
Under Boothroyd's replacement, Brendan Rodgers, Watford finished 13th. Rodgers left to manage Reading at the end of the season. Malky Mackay, who had been a caretaker manager, took his place. Several key players left during Mackay's time, including Tommy Smith and Jay DeMerit. The club also came close to going bankrupt. Watford finished 16th in 2009–10 and 14th the next season. Mackay left for Cardiff City in June 2011. Sean Dyche replaced him. Dyche led Watford to their highest league position in four years, finishing 11th. But he was fired in July 2012.
The Pozzo Family Takes Over
In June 2012, the Pozzo family (Gino Pozzo and his father) bought the club. After Dyche was fired, they brought in former Italy international Gianfranco Zola as manager. In the 2012–13 season, Watford finished third in the Championship. They reached the play-off final but lost 1–0 to Crystal Palace. The next season, Giuseppe Sannino replaced Zola as manager. The team finished 13th. Sannino resigned at the start of the 2014–15 season. Óscar García replaced him but left soon after due to "health reasons."
Billy McKinlay took over but was replaced after just eight days. Slaviša Jokanović became the new manager. With Jokanović, Watford finished second in the Championship. They were promoted to the Premier League.
Watford did not renew Jokanović's contract. Quique Sánchez Flores became the new head coach for the 2015–16 season. Under Sánchez Flores, Watford finished 13th in the Premier League. They also reached the FA Cup semi-finals. They beat Arsenal but lost 2–1 to Crystal Palace. In May 2016, Sánchez Flores left the club. Italian coach Walter Mazzarri replaced him. Mazzarri resigned in May 2017 after Watford finished 17th. Marco Silva was appointed next. He was fired after about six months in January 2018. The club then hired Javi Gracia.
In April 2019, Watford made an amazing comeback. They were 2–0 down against Wolverhampton Wanderers. But they won to reach the FA Cup final for the second time. Gerard Deulofeu scored twice, and Troy Deeney scored a penalty in the 94th minute. They lost 6–0 to Manchester City in the final. In the league, Watford finished 11th with 50 points. Both were club records for the Premier League era.
After four games in the 2019–20 season, Gracia was fired due to poor results. Former manager Quique Sánchez Flores was appointed again. He only lasted until December 1, 2019, with just one win. A caretaker manager took over for one game. Then Nigel Pearson became manager. Watford ended Liverpool's 44-game unbeaten run in February 2020. But Pearson was fired two games before the season ended. The club was relegated, finishing 19th.
Watford finished second in the 2020–21 Championship season. They were immediately promoted back to the Premier League. But they finished 19th again the next season and were relegated. On June 4, 2024, the Pozzo family decided to sell 10% of the club to fans. This was to raise money for the club.
Watford's Club Identity
      |
| Watford's colours were blue and white from 1927 until 1959. |
Watford's team kit has changed a lot over the years. The club's early kits had different combinations of red, green, and yellow stripes. Then, for the 1909–10 season, they switched to black and white. These colors stayed until the 1920s, when the club started wearing all-blue shirts.
In 1959–60, the colors changed to gold shirts and black shorts. Because of this, the team's nickname became "The Hornets" after a fan vote. These colors were used until 1976. Then, Watford's kits started to include red, and the gold became yellow. This yellow and red color scheme is still used today.
 |
| The club changed to a gold and black colour scheme in 1959–60. |
Watford's first nickname was The Brewers. This was because the Benskins Brewery owned their stadium, Vicarage Road. This nickname wasn't very popular. When the club started wearing blue and white in the 1920s, they became known as The Blues.
When Watford changed their kit colors in 1959, fans chose The Hornets as the new nickname. The club later added a hornet to their badge. In 1974, the design changed to show Harry the Hornet, the club's mascot. The nickname The Hornets is still used.
In 1978, the hornet badge was replaced. The new badge showed a hart, which is a male red fallow deer. This represents the town's location in Hertfordshire. The club has now said it was actually a Moose on the crest, not a Hart. Until other clubs joined the Football League, Watford was Hertfordshire's only league team. Other nicknames for the club include Yellow Army and The 'Orns.
Until April 2019, Watford players traditionally walked onto the field to the Z-Cars theme tune. But in mid-April 2019, they changed their entrance song to Elton John's "I'm Still Standing". However, after fans asked for it, the club went back to the Z Cars theme in August 2019.
Watford's Home: Vicarage Road Stadium
Watford Rovers played at several places in the late 1800s. These included Cassiobury Park and Market Street in Watford. In 1890, the team moved to a spot on Cassio Road. They stayed there for 32 years. In 1922, they moved to Watford's current stadium, Vicarage Road.
The new stadium was first owned by Benskins Brewery. The club rented the ground until 2001, when they bought it. But the club's money problems got worse after buying it. In 2002, Watford sold the stadium for £6 million. The deal allowed Watford to buy it back later for £7 million. Watford did buy it back in 2004. This was thanks to a campaign called "Lets buy back the Vic," supported by fans.
Vicarage Road has four sides and can hold 21,577 people. The East Stand was partly built in 1922. It was closed to the public in 2008 for safety reasons. But it still had the changing rooms and press area. In November 2013, the East Stand was taken down. A new 3,500-seat stand was built in its place. This stand opened on Boxing Day 2014. It was named The Elton John Stand, after the club's long-time chairman.
The Graham Taylor Stand (formerly the Rous Stand) was built in 1986. It has two levels and runs along the side of the pitch. The upper part has the club's special guest areas. At each end of the pitch, The Vicarage Road Stand is for families and away fans. The Rookery Stand is only for home fans. Both of these stands were built in the 1990s. The money came from selling players. In summer 2015, The Elton John Stand was updated. It was made to hold an extra 700 seats. This number was later changed to about 1,000 extra seats. This was because of an expansion in the north-east corner.
Between 1997 and early 2013, Watford shared Vicarage Road with the rugby union team Saracens F.C.. The stadium has also hosted games for the England under-21s. It has also held international football matches between teams from other countries. Elton John has also held concerts at Vicarage Road. He first played there in 1974. He returned in 2005 and 2010 for fundraising concerts for the club. In the past, the stadium also hosted horse shows and greyhound racing.
The Watford Training Ground is located at the University College London Union (UCLU) Shenley Sports grounds. This is in St Albans, Hertfordshire.
Watford's Rivalry with Luton Town
Watford fans have a strong rivalry with fans of Luton Town. The two teams played each other often in the Southern League from 1900 to 1920. They continued to play in The Football League until 1937. That's when Luton was promoted from Division Three South. Luton stayed in a higher division than Watford until 1963.
During the 1960s and 1970s, Watford and Luton met sometimes. Even so, their rivalry grew stronger. This was especially true after a heated match in 1969. In that game, three players were sent off. Both teams were promoted to the First Division in the 1981–82 season. Luton won the championship, just ahead of Watford. They were also relegated together from Division 1 in 1995–96. Watford finished 23rd, and Luton was last.
Watford's promotion from Division 2 in 1997–98 meant the two teams didn't play again for a while. The only game between those seasons was a League Cup match in 2002–03. This game was sadly affected by violence at Vicarage Road.
On January 2, 2006, Watford won 2–1 at Kenilworth Road in the Championship. Then, on April 9, 2006, they drew 1–1. This point helped Watford secure a spot in the 2006 Championship play-offs. They eventually won promotion to the Premier League for the second time. They beat Leeds United 3–0 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
For fourteen seasons, Watford played in a higher division than Luton. This was from 2006–07 to 2019–20. Luton even dropped out of the Football League completely for six seasons. This was from 2009–10 to 2014–15.
The rivalry between the two clubs started again in the 2020–21 season. On September 26, 2020, Watford won the first league match 1–0 at Vicarage Road. On April 17, 2021, Luton won 1–0 at Kenilworth Road. So, they each won one game that season. With Watford's promotion to the Premier League for 2021–22, the rivalry paused. It started again for the 2022–23 season. This was after Watford was relegated from the Premier League. Luton was promoted to the 2023-24 Premier League, but they were relegated back to the Championship after one season.
In all competitions, Luton has won 55 games, Watford has won 38, and there have been 29 draws. Watford has finished higher in the league than Luton every season since 1997. This means for 28 of the last 29 seasons. However, Luton has spent many more years in a higher league throughout both teams' history.
Watford's Players
Current Squad Members
|
|
Watford's Managers Through the Years
Watford's team was chosen by a committee until 1903. That's when former England player John Goodall became the player-manager. He made an immediate impact. Watford was promoted to the Southern League First Division in 1903–04. Goodall stopped playing in 1907 and left the club in 1910.
His former captain, Harry Kent, replaced him. Kent was known for managing the club's money well. Under Kent, Watford often made a profit from player transfers. Kent led the club to the Southern League title in 1914–15. They almost won a second title in 1919–20 but missed out by a small margin. He resigned in 1926.
His next three managers – Fred Pagnam, Neil McBain, and Bill Findlay – all played for Watford before and during their time as managers. None of them could lead the team to promotion from the Third Division South. However, Findlay did lead Watford to win the Third Division South Cup in 1937.
Until Findlay left in 1947, Watford had only five managers in 44 years. All of them had played for the team. In contrast, six men managed the club between 1947 and 1956. Only two of them were former Watford players. After another three years under McBain (1956-1959), Watford's next three managers led improved teams.
Ron Burgess led Watford to promotion from the Fourth Division in 1959–60. Bill McGarry was only in charge for one full season (1963–64). But Watford finished third in the Third Division. This was the club's highest Football League finish at that time. His replacement, Ken Furphy, matched that in 1966–67. He led Watford to the Third Division title in 1969. He also took the club to its first FA Cup semi-final in 1970.
After Furphy left in 1971, Watford had a tough time. They were relegated under managers George Kirby and Mike Keen.
Graham Taylor took charge of Watford in 1977. He led the club to promotion to the Third Division in 1978. Then to the Second Division in 1979. And to the First Division for the first time in Watford's history in 1982. After finishing second in the First Division in 1983, Watford played in European competitions in 1983–84. They also reached the 1984 FA Cup final. Taylor left the club at the end of 1986–87.
Under the next six permanent managers, Watford dropped from 9th in the top league in 1987 to 13th in the third league in 1997. Taylor returned as manager for the start of the 1997–98 season. He led the club to two promotions in a row. But he couldn't stop them from being relegated from the Premier League in 1999–2000.
Since Taylor retired in 2001, Watford has had many managers. Of these, Aidy Boothroyd took Watford back to the Premier League in 2006. But Watford was relegated in 2007, and Boothroyd left in 2008.
After the Pozzo family bought Watford, Gianfranco Zola became head coach in July 2012. Zola led Watford to third place in the Championship in 2012–13. But he resigned on December 16, 2013. Beppe Sannino replaced him. Sannino guided the team to finish 13th.
Despite winning four of their first five league matches in 2014–15, Sannino's job was uncertain. There were rumors of problems in the dressing room. Sannino resigned on August 31, 2014. His last game was a 4–2 win at home.
Sannino's departure led to a strange period. Watford had three more head coaches in just over a month. On September 2, Óscar García was appointed. However, García resigned on September 29, 2014, due to health reasons. Billy McKinlay was appointed his replacement on the same day. A week later, McKinlay was also released. Slaviša Jokanović was appointed instead. The club wanted a coach with more experience.
On June 4, 2015, Quique Sánchez Flores was announced as the new head coach. He replaced Jokanović, who couldn't agree on a contract. Sánchez Flores led newly promoted Watford to a good mid-table position in the Premier League. They also reached the FA Cup semi-final. But on May 13, 2016, it was announced that Sánchez Flores would leave the club.
After Sánchez Flores left, Walter Mazzarri became Watford's head coach on July 1, 2016. Mazzarri's time as manager ended at the end of the season. On May 27, 2017, Marco Silva was appointed head coach. On January 21, 2018, Javi Gracia became head coach after Silva left. Gracia was praised for a successful 2018–19 Premier League season. Watford achieved their highest points total ever in the Premier League.
Since around 2019, the club has become known for firing managers very often. They don't give managers much time after a few bad results. After a poor start to the 2019–20 season, Javi Gracia was fired. Former manager Quique Sánchez Flores replaced him. Then Quique Sánchez Flores was fired again on December 1 after only one win. On December 6, 2019, Nigel Pearson took the manager's job. He was fired on July 19, 2020, with two games left.
In the 2020–21 season, there were two more coaches. First Vladimir Ivic, then Xisco Munoz. Munoz led Watford to promotion to the Premier League. Xisco continued to coach the team for the 2021–22 Premier League season until October 2021. Claudio Ranieri followed him from October 2021 to January 2022. Former England manager Roy Hodgson took over from February 2022 until the season's end. Watford finished 19th and was relegated.
Rob Edwards was announced as the new manager for the 2022–23 season. But he was released in September 2022 after only 11 games. Rob Edwards later found great success at rivals Luton Town. Slaven Bilić was announced as his replacement. Bilić was fired on March 7, 2023. Chris Wilder replaced him until the end of the season. This was the third time in four seasons the club had three head coaches. On May 10, 2023, French coach Valérien Ismaël was appointed head coach for the 2023-24 Championship season.
Watford's Achievements and Honours
League Titles and Promotions
- First Division (Top League)
- Second Place: 1982–83
- Second Division / First Division / Championship (Second League)
- Second Place: 1981–82, 2014–15, 2020–21
- Play-off Winners (Promoted): 1999, 2006
- Third Division / Second Division (Third League)
- Champions: 1968–69, 1997–98
- Second Place: 1978–79
- Fourth Division (Fourth League)
- Champions: 1977–78
- Southern Football League
- Champions: 1914–15
- Second Place: 1919–20
Cup Achievements
- FA Cup
- Runners-up (Finalists): 1983–84, 2018–19
Watford Club Records
Striker Luther Blissett holds the record for playing the most games for Watford. He played 503 matches in all competitions between 1976 and 1992. His 415 appearances in The Football League is also a club record. Blissett also holds the record for most goals scored for Watford, with 186 career goals. Of these, 148 were in the league.
The record for most league goals in one season belongs to Cliff Holton. He scored 42 goals in the 1959–60 season. The most goals scored by a player in a single professional game is six. Harry Barton achieved this against Wycombe Wanderers in September 1903.
Watford's biggest ever win in a competitive match was 11–0. This happened in 1900 against Maidenhead in the Southern League Second Division. The team's biggest Football League winning margin is 8–0. This first occurred in a Third Division South match against Newport County in 1924. It was repeated in a First Division match against Sunderland in 1982. Both of these big wins were at home. Watford has won an away league match by five goals six times. The most recent was a 6–1 win against Leeds United at Elland Road in 2012.
The most goals scored in a Football League game involving Watford is 11. This happened in Watford's 7–4 victories against Swindon Town, Torquay United, and Burnley. These games were in 1934, 1937, and 2003.
The club's highest home attendance was 34,099. This was for an FA Cup match against Manchester United on February 3, 1969. The record home league attendance is 27,968. This was against Queens Park Rangers in August of the same year. Watford's stadium capacity has since been reduced to 21,577 due to new seating rules.
Images for kids
-
Watford's starting lineup for the 1984 FA Cup final.
See also
In Spanish: Watford Football Club para niños
