page_title: 1905–06 Chelsea F.C. season
section_title: Formation and pre-season buildup
hierarchical_section_title: 1905–06 Chelsea F.C. season / Formation and pre-season buildup
caption_attribution_description: English: The very first Chelsea FC team pictured at the start of their inaugural season in English Division 2 in September 1905 From The Lordprice Collection
context_page_description: The 1905–06 season was Chelsea Football Club's first competitive season and first year in existence. Newly elected to the Football League, Chelsea competed in the Second Division. Under the guidance of young player-manager Jacky Robertson, Chelsea finished third in the division earning 53 points, missing out on promotion after a late run of bad form. The Pensioners also suffered from bad luck in the FA Cup, a scheduling conflict forcing them to play a mostly amateur reserve side against non-league Crystal Palace, losing 7-1 in the Third Qualifying Round.
context_section_description: Chelsea Football Club were founded on 10 March 1905 although the club's early existence was hindered with problems. Since there was already a team named Fulham F.C. in the Metropolitan Borough of Fulham, a name for the club had to be decided. After London F.C., Kensington F.C. and Stamford Bridge F.C. were rejected, the name of the adjacent borough, the Metropolitan Borough of Chelsea, was settled on.
  Blue shirts were adopted for the team by the club's founder and first chairman, Gus Mears, along with white shorts and dark blue socks. Further problems arose when the team were denied entry to the Southern League following objections from Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur, so admission to the Football League was applied for. Their candidacy was endorsed at the Football League annual general meeting on 29 May 1905. Scottish international John Robertson was hired as the club's first player-manager, a half-back who would go on to score Chelsea's first competitive goal in a 1-0 win against Blackpool. After this, the club recruited many established players from other teams, including 22 stone goalkeeper William "Fatty" Foulke previously of Sheffield United, and forward Jimmy Windridge who came from Small Heath.
  Chelsea were one of four new teams to join the Football League, the other three being Hull City, Leeds City and Clapton Orient.
caption: The first Chelsea team in September 1905.
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