Fulham FCFulham FC, founded in 1879 as a church team at St Andrew's, is London's oldest professional football club. For much of its history, the club remained in the shadow of bigger London rivals, yet this position allowed Fulham to develop a unique character and extraordinary supporter loyalty. The club gradually climbed through the divisions before reaching the top flight for the first time in 1949.
The heart of Fulham remains Craven Cottage, one of England's oldest stadiums, situated picturesquely beside the River Thames. The club has played there continuously since 1896, and the Johnny Haynes Stand, designed in 1905 by renowned architect Archibald Leitch, along with the distinctive Cottage Pavilion, give the ground an atmosphere unlike modern arenas. The stand, originally known as the Stevenage Road Stand, was renamed in honour of Johnny Haynes – a club legend and England captain who symbolised loyalty to the club throughout the 1950s and 1960s.
The club's colours – white shirts and black shorts – were adopted by Fulham in 1903 and have remained its defining colours ever since. Although The Cottagers have never won a league title, they enjoyed an unforgettable European adventure in the 2009/10 season. Under Roy Hodgson, the team reached the Europa League final, eliminating defending champions Shakhtar Donetsk, Italian giants Juventus, German champions Wolfsburg and Hamburg along the way. The memorable match against Juventus at Craven Cottage, when Fulham overturned a 3-1 first-leg deficit to win 4-1 with two goals from Zoltán Gera and further strikes from Bobby Zamora and Clint Dempsey, entered European football folklore. Fulham is a club whose greatness stems from its history, location and character rather than from the number of trophies it has won.