Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.

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**Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club**, commonly known as simply **Wolves**, is an English professional association football club based in the city of Wolverhampton, West Midlands. They currently compete in the Premier League and play their home games at the Molineux Stadium which has a capacity of 32,050 spectators.

The club was founded in 1877 as *St. Luke's FC*. They were one of the first English clubs to turn professional. This led to the club being nominated to become one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888. After joining the league, they took part in the first ever round of Football League fixtures when they took on Aston Villa on 8 September 1888. They lifted their first FA Cup in 1893, beating Everton.

The 1950s were by far Wolves' most successful era. Managed by Stan Cullis and captained by Billy Wright, they won their first league title in 1953–54. Two more league titles were won in 1957–58 and 1958–59. After many friendlies against top European competition, the idea of the European Cup arose. The tournament was founded in 1955 and Wolves were one of the first British clubs to compete.

The 1960s and 1970s saw a mix of fortunes for Wolves. Another FA Cup win in 1961 and many second and third-place finishes in the league were followed by relegation to the Second Division in 1965. They returned in 1967. A fourth place finished in 1971 meant Wolves qualified for the newly founded UEFA Cup. The club then found themselves in financial trouble in the 1980s and subsequently declined.

After many years in the second tier, Wolves were finally promoted to the Premier League for the first time in 2003. Relegated back down in 2004, they returned to the Premier League in 2009. On 21 July 2016, Chinese investment group Fosun International Group purchased the club. The takeover meant a complete overhaul at the club which lead to the club winning the 2017–18 Championship title under the management of Portuguese coach Nuno Espírito Santo. 2019 saw them qualify for the UEFA Europa League for the first time.

## Rivalries

*Main article: Black Country derby*

Wolves' fiercest rivalry is with West Bromwich Albion, named the Black Country derby after the region of the West Midlands both sides hail from. Separated by just eleven miles, their first meeting came in an FA Cup tie back in 1886. A survey by the football pools found the derby to be the strongest in English football.

Wolves also maintain rivalries with other West Midlands clubs Aston Villa and Birmingham City, both from nearby Birmingham. The rivalries with the two clubs stem simply from location but date back to fixtures in the early 19th century.

The club's nearest rival is Walsall but as they have rarely competed at the same level, their rivalry is of less significance to Wolves.

Other rivals to a lesser extent include Stoke City, Shrewsbury Town, Port Vale and Coventry City.

## Honours

### League

**Football League First Division/Premier League (Tier 1)**

* Champions **(3)**: 1953–54, 1957–58, 1958–59

**EFL Championship/Football League Second Division (1892–1992)** (Tier 2)

* Champions **(4)**: 1931–32, 1976–77, 2008–09, 2017–18
* Play-off winners **(1)**: 2002–03

**EFL League One/Football League Third Division** (Tier 3)

* Champions **(3)**: 1923–24 (North), 1988–89, 2013–14

**EFL League Two/Football League Fourth Division** (Tier 4)

* Champions **(1)**: 1987–88

### Cup

**FA Cup**

* Winners **(4)**: 1892–93, 1907–08, 1948–49, 1959–60

**Football League Cup**

* Winners **(2)**: 1973–74, 1979–80

**FA Charity Shield**

* Winners **(4)**: 1949\*, 1954\*, 1959, 1960\* (\* shared)

**Football League Trophy**

* Winners **(1)**: 1987–88

**Football League War Cup**

* Winners **(1)**: 1942

**Texaco Cup**

* Winners **(1)**: 1970–71