In 1882, a group of boys from the Hotspur (yes, the Shakespeare character) cricket club formed 'Hotspur FC'. The club was re-named to the much snazzier 'Tottenham Hotspur Football and Athletic Club' in 1884. In 1898 the club becomes a limited company and a match against Woolwich (yes - South London) Arsenal attracts a record crowd of 14,000 spectators. Change of colours to white shirts and blue shorts. A short year after that historic (I'm sure you'll agree) moment the club moved to the site presently known as White Hart Lane. Thankfully this name was adopted and not the alternative of 'Gilpin Park', which to me sounds a little Welsh for some reason, and that can only ever be a bad thing. The proudest moment of the club's history came in 1961 when Tottenham Hotspur became the first club to compete the domestic 'Double' in the 20th century, winning the League and FA Cup. This legendary team was led by the one man who personifies more than any other person what it is to be Tottenham Hotspur, the manager Bill Nicholson. Not content with this historic achievement we then decided to be the first British club to win a major European trophy by lifting the European Cup Winner's Cup in 1963. More recently we have been in the thick of setting trends by being a founder member and one of the 'Big Five' clubs that helped form the FA Premier League. Nickname - Spurs, Lillywhites Rivals - Arsenal, and to a lesser extent Chelsea Legendary Spurs - Bill Nicholson, Dave Mackay, Danny Blanchflower, Jimmy Greaves, Pat Jennings, Glen Hoddle, Ossie Ardilles. Current Squad GK - Paul Robinson(1), Radek Cerny, Marton Fulop, Ben Alnwick Defender - Gareth Bale, Younes Kaboul, Paul Stalteri, Lee Young-pyo(16), Michael Dawson, Ledley King, Anthony Gardner, Pascal Chimbonda, Benoit Assou-Ekotto Midfielder - Tom Huddlestone, Teemu Tainio, Wayne Routledge, Aaron Lennon, Jermaine Jenas, Steed Malbranque, Danny Murphy, Kevin Prince Boateng Striker - Dimitar Berbatov, Robbie Keane, Darren Bent, Jermain Defoe Major Honours Football League Champions 1950-51, 1960-61. (2 times winners) F.A. Cup Winners 1900-01, 1920-21, 1960-61, 1961-62, 1966-67, 1980-81, 1981-82, 1990-91. (8 times winners) Football League Cup Winners 1970-71, 1972-73, 1998-99, 2007-08 (4 times winners) European Cup-Winners' Cup Winners 1962-63. (1 time winners) UEFA Cup Winners 1971-72, 1983-84. (2 times winners) 16 major trophies. Other Honours F.A.Charity Shield Winners 1920-21, 1951-52, 1961-62, 1962-63, 1967-68 (joint), 1981-82 (joint), 1991-92 (joint). Football League Division Two Champions 1919-20, 1949-50 Southern League Champions 1899-1900. Western League Champions 1903-04. London League Premier Division Champions 1902-03. Football League South 'C' Division Champions 1939-40. Football League South Champions 1943-44, 1944-45. Southern District Charity Cup Winners 1901-02, 1904-05 (joint), 1906-07. London Challenge Cup Winners 1910-11, 1928-29. Dewar Shield Winners 1901-02, 1933-34, 1934-35. Anglo-Italian League Cup-Winners Cup Winners 1971-72. Norwich Charity Cup Winners 1919-20 Norwich Hospital Charity Cup Winners 1946-47, 1949-50 (joint). Ipswich Hospital Charity Cup Winners 1951-52 (joint). Costa Del Sol Tournament Winners 1965,1966. Nolia Cup (Sweden) Winners 1977. Japan Cup Winners 1979. Sun International Challenge Trophy (Swaziland) Winners 1983. Peace Cup (Korea) Winners 2005. Youth Honours F.A.Youth Cup Winners 1969-70, 1973-74, 1989-90 South East Counties Senior League/Division One Champions 1969-70, 1970-71, 1972-73, 1978-79, 1980-81, 1985-86, 1986-87, 1987-88, 1988-89, 1989-90, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1994-95 South East Counties Senior League/League Cup Winners 1984-85, 1985-86, 1987-88, 1990-91 (joint), 1991-92, 1992-93, 1995-96, 1996-97 Southern Junior Floodlit Cup Winners 1964-65 (joint), 1969-70, 1989-90, 1991-92 London F.A. Youth Challenge Cup Winners 1946-47, 1948-49, 1955-56, 1956-57, 1967-68, 1969-70, 1970-71, 1972-73, 1974-75, 1976-77 International Youth Tournaments; 1959 Rotterdam, 1960 Berrenrath, 1965 The Hague, 1966 Bremen, 1971 Rotterdam, 1972 Rotterdam, 1974 Rotterdam, 1975 Geneva, 1976 Brussels, 1987 Dusseldorf, 1991 Bellinzona, 1994 Ostrach, 1999 Berne, 2005 Angers. JUNIOR TEAM FA Academy League Group A Champions 2001-02 South East Counties Junior League Champions 1964-65, 1965-66, 1967-68, 1968-69, 1969-70, 1974-75 South East Counties Junior League Cup Winners 1965-66, 1968-69, 1971-72, 1974-75, 1975-76, 1977-78, 1980-81 London F.A. Winchester Cup Winners 1950-51, 1951-52, 1954-55, 1955-56, 1959-60, 1960-61, 1962-63, 1964-65. John Ullman Cup Winners 1987-88,1989-90 International Youth Tournaments; 1990 Northern Ireland Milk Cup, 1991 Wettingen, 1992 Wettingen, 1996 Northern Ireland Milk Cup. Tottenham are England's 5th most sucsessful club in terms of major trophies won!, as this link proves http://www.krysstal.com/trophies.html ^^^^^^ Tottenhams League record in the top flight. Times finished 1st. (2 times) 2nd. (4 times) 3rd. (9 times) 4th. (3 times) 5th. (1 times) 6th. (5 times) 24 times finished in the top 6. Tottenham Hotspur in Europe http://www.topspurs.com/thfc-euro-history.htm Played: 103, Won: 60, Drawn: 19, Lost: 24 Trophies in Europe: 3 (2 Uefa Cups and 1 Cup winners cup) Since the start of the Premier League in 1992 we rapidly went from being one of the 'Big Five' clubs in England and slipped into mid table mediocraty where we have remained ever since bar one season (1994), when we reached the heady heights of 7th! This despite being a relatively wealthy club. We are listed as 15th on the Deloitte Rich List of world football clubs. In more recent years a new chairman, Daniel Levy, has come into the club and has introduced a more continental structure to the club, appointing not only a manager but also a director of football. The new manager, Martin Jol, with the backing of the board has implemented a tranfer policy of buying young, English talent with a view to the future. He has tempered this with the addition of several established internationals and after last season's almost complete rebuilding of the squad this season looks to be an exciting one with much promised and anything other than our highest ever Premier League finish will be seen as a dissapointment. White Hart Lane
Wasn't there a thread back that said the name Hotspur came from a guy from Northumberland? Other than that, I now know things about spurs I didn't before.
The character Harry Hotspur is in Henry IV Part I. That character was based on Sir Henry Percy of the Northumberland family. They owned shadloads of land, including Tottenham. The Lions, for example, in our crest are from the Northumberland family crest.
Try this too: http://www.spurshistory.com/ Also, if you so wish (and i did) you can click the links and save the pictures to read later. I have a folder on my computer with them all in.
Tottenham Hotspur were also the first team in England and the UK to implement a european style of management. As it has shown, by us having a Sporting Director (Damien Comolli), coupled with a Head Coach (Martin Jol), our squad has improved vastly, and the supporters mood has gone from a negative one, to being a positive one. You can expect every Premier League club to have implemented a european style or as I like to call it, a Spurs style of management within the next 10 years. Again, Tottenham Hotspur are the precident setters of England.
Tottenham, like many of today's clubs, were formed by cricketers wanting some winter sport. Most of the founder members, back in 1882, were old boys of St John's Presbyterian School and Tottenham Grammar School, and adopted 'Hotspur' from Harry Hotspur, a character immortalized in William Shakespeare's Henry IV part one, and Spurs were born. Spurs and the famous cockerel that stands proudly aloft the East Stand have been linked since the early part of the 20th century. The club felt then that the cockerel, more politically correct as a fighting bird at the time, epitomized the Tottenham spirit, and the badge evolved.
Tottenham Hotspur is one of the most financially sound football clubs in Britain (and even the world). This has been so for quite a while, which is all the more impressive considering the lack of trophies in the past 15 years, and our low gate revenue (compared to the other clubs out there). Nevertheless, Spurs regularly ranks in the top 5 clubs in England and top 20 in the world in terms of net wealth. Tottenham Hotspur were the first English club (and the first club in the world, actually) to offer their stock to the general public - in their famous 1983 IPO. Just as a measure of comparison as to how far ahead we were, most British clubs that are currently publicly traded did not do so until the mid/late 1990s - making Spurs a full 10 years ahead of the pack. The rest of Europe didn't catch up until about 5-8 years ago (Lazio and Ajax were the first non-British clubs to float their stock and this was in 1998). Basically, Spurs has been THE pioneer football club in finance, just like we've been the pioneer in so many other areas.
Tottenham Legends: Sir Bill Nick (1938-55 & 1958-74 As Manager) Clive Allen (1984-88) Les Allen (1959-65) Steve Archibald ( 1980-84) Ossie Ardiles (1978-88) Peter Baker (1953-65) Phil Beal (1960-75) Danny Blanchflower (1954-63) Ron Burgess (1939-54) John Cameron (1898-07) Martin Chivers (1968-76) Tommy Clay (1914-29) Ray Clemence (1981-88) Ralph Coates (1971-78) Michael Dawson (2005-14)* Jimmy Dimmock (1919-31) Terry Dyson (1954-65) Paul Gascoigne (1988-91) Alan Gilzean (1964-74) David Ginola (1997-2000) Jimmy Greaves (1961-70) Arthur Grimsdell (1912-29) Ron Henry (1954-1965) Glenn Hoddle (1975-87) Chris Hughton (1978-90) Pat Jennings (1964-77 & 1985-86) Cliff Jones (1958-68) Jurgen Klinsmann (1994-95 & 1997-98) Cyril Knowles (1964-75) Gary Lineker (1989-92) Gary Mabbutt (1982-98) Dave Mackay (1959-68) Billy Minter (1908-19) Tom Morris (1899-1913) Alan Mullery (1964-72) Maurice Norman (1955-66) Taffy O'Callaghan (1927-35) Steve Perryman (1969-86) Bobby Smith (1955-64) Ricky Villa (1978-83) Chris Waddle (1985-89) Fanny Walden (1913-24) John White (1959-64) Vivian Woodward (1901-09) And as soon as Teddy leaves West Shambles he will be a legend too. *I wonder if anyone will ever notice this.
Bill Nichilson's honours as a Manager: (1960-61) Double Winner's - As mentioned first in the 20th Century. And too most the greatest ever team in England. Including those Arse* double teams. (1961-62) FA Cup Winners (1962-1963) Anther first for a British team when his Spurs won a major European competition, the European Cup Winners Cup. (1966-67) FA Cup (1970-71) Football League Cup (1971-72) First English club to play in 3 major euro finals when he won the UEFA Cup. (1972-1973) Football League Cup Winners, first in England to win two League cups. ...why was Bill not Knighted? He truely was Tottenham.
Tottenham Hotspur FC are a PLC (Public Limited Company). This means that the entity owning the majority shares can dictate the actions of the club if that entity wants to. In our case, the majority shareholding entity is a company called ENIC, which is owned by Mr. Joseph Lewis* Mr. Lewis' nephew, Daniel Levy, a Economics Cambridge Graduate, is the club's chairman. Under his stewardship, Tottenham Hotspur have enjoyed their highest Premier League finish, and are blossoming financially. *Mr. Joseph Lewis (or Joe Lewis to friends) was born London, is a British-Jewish billionaire who lives in Lyford Cay, Bahamas. Lewis currently is the main investor in Tavistock Group, which owns more than 100 companies, such as Tottenham Hotspur F.C.. He maintains a low public profile. Joe Lewis is a major investor in ENIC Sports PLC, run by Daniel Levy, the Chairman of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. Lewis is the 486th richest person of Forbes The World's Richest People list 2006. Lewis was listed as the 15th richest British person in Sunday Times Rich List 2005. He is a massive Spurs fan and some say that he is behind our recent (since 2004) spending spree's.
a lot of things have happened at Tottenham Hotspur FC since this thread was stickied and abandoned some nine years back. of note are three (League) Cup finals (2008, 09, & 15), the first of which was victorious against Chelsea 2-1 in extra time; and a consistent presence in Europe, including a single Champions League campaign (2010-11), in which Spurs proceeded all the way through to the quarterfinals in impressive fashion - the Spurs way - dispatching European giants Inter and AC Milan along the way before being eliminated by Spanish behemoths Real Madrid. but the biggest single factor in distinguishing between THFC at the time of this thread's previous post and the present must be identified as the club's standing Chairman, Daniel Levy. though he has been at the club since 2001 (when he replaced Alan Sugar as chairman), it was in the season just concluded when this thread was last updated where we really began to feel what would become the consistencies of his stewardship. shrewdly maximizing Spurs' revenue streams, Levy would put the underachievement of the Sugar era behind us as we began to regularly finish within the parameters of would could be expected of a club of Tottenham Hotspur's size. pursuant to said maximizing of moneys in, Levy quickly identified the inadequacies of White Hart Lane's abilities to generate matchday revenues, and began the all-consuming project of establishing the club in a more suitable home. despite considerable complications and delays well beyond what would be reasonably expected from such a massive undertaking, construction has begun on a 61k-capacity stadium located partially on the footprint of White Hart Lane, due to open for business in the summer of 2018. the Chairman is not, however, without his critics. a portion of his attempts to upgrade on White Hart Lane included a threat to take Spurs from their historical home in North London to Stratford, in East London, in the hopes of occupying the London 2112 Olympic Stadium site, where West Ham United are now due to move in the summer of 2016. This proposal sharply divided the fan base and (to some) threatened the very heritage of the club. Whether it was a genuine possibility or just a ploy for leverage against the local (that is, north London) political authorities is a moot point, as his Olympic proposal was rejected and the Northumberland Development Project was finally greenlighted in the summer just past. But the episode continues to cast a small shadow over the club's declared (and otherwise apparent) commitment to the community it represents. Levy's critics will also point to an apparent lack of patience with the first team's managers, having quickly seen off three of them (Jacques Santini, Juande Ramos, and Andre Villas-Boas) whose structuring of footballing operations were carefully engineered by Levy, himself. The shabby dismissal of fan favorite Martin Jol (news of the sacking was leaked while Jol managed the first team in a UEFA Cup match) and the wilful parting of ways with the club's most successful boss since Keith Burkinshaw, Harry Redknapp, provides more fuel for those inclined to disagree with his structurings on the football side of his job. Some, too, lament his willingness to sell his best players and his difficulties in transfer negotiations, though defenders will reasonably praise him for those very attributes. but critics or not, it cannot be denied that over the last ten years, Spurs have flourished on the pitch - at least relative to the ten years prior. nine European campaigns and a slew of world class players (e.g., Ledley King, Dimitar Berbatov, Luca Modric, Gareth Bale, Rafael Van der Vaart, Hugo Lloris) pay homage to Daniel Levy's leadership since this thread last saw action. as the Stadium project progresses and the football moves along in fits and starts, both his admirers and detractors have scope for continuing with their views. But Spurs look now rather different from in the summer of 2006 - and will appear even moreso a few years from now. Watch this space.