Previously, we’ve looked at the history of some of our Premier League teams and where they began. We’ve delved into the history books again to look at the rest of our teams in the Premier League, throwing up more interesting facts about the top tier clubs in the Umbro archive. If we’ve missed any interesting nuggets about the formation of your team, then let us know!

Blackburn Rovers

Blackburn Rovers was formed on the 5 November 1875 by John Lewis and Arthur Constantine in a meeting at Blackburn’s Leger Hotel. The town itself already had other teams including Blackburn Olympic F.C. and Blackburn Park Road F.C. Originally the club had no ground and its only income came from the members on the club’s books. Blackburn Rovers would play their first match on 18 December 1875.

On 28 September 1878, Blackburn Rovers became one of the founding clubs in the Lancashire Football Association. A year later the team would play in the F.A. Cup for the first time, going on to beat the Tyne Association Football Club 5–1 on the 1 November 1879. Unfortunately, Rovers would leave the F.A. Cup after being beaten by Nottingham Forest.

The club would finally win the F.A. Cup in 1884 and go on to win the title for the next two seasons. With a hat trick of F.A. Cup wins between 1884 and 1886, the club was awarded a special silver shield and given the privilege of having the club crest displayed on its corner flags.

Manchester City

Manchester City F.C. was originally founded as St. Mark’s (West Gorton) in 1880 by Anna Connell and two churchwardens of St. Mark’s Church, in east Manchester. Before this St. Mark’s played cricket from 1875 but didn’t have a sport to play during the winter until the football team was formed. Anna Connell is regarded as being the only woman to be the driving force behind the creation of a major football club.

The club would be renamed Ardwick Association Football Club after a move to the east of Manchester city centre in 1887. Ardwick continued on to join the Football League as a founding members of the Second Division in 1892. The club was eventually hit by financial troubles in the 1893–94 season which would lead to it being reformed into Manchester City Football Club.

City would go on to win the Second Divsion in 1899 and earn promotion to the First Division, though it wouldn’t be until 23 April 1904 that the team would receive a major honour by beating Bolton Wanderers 1–0 at Crystal Palace to win the FA Cup.

Birmingham City FC

Originally Birmingham City FC was founded as Small Heath Alliance in 1875, and would turn professional in 1885. Three years later they became the first football club to become a limited company with a board of directors, under the name of Small Heath F.C. Ltd.

In 1892, Small Heath were invited to join the newly-formed Football League Second Division. the following season promotion to the First Division was secured after a second place finish and a victory over Darwen. The club adopted the name Birmingham Football Club in 1905 and moved into their new ground which became known as St Andrew’s and has been a home to the club for over a century. Nearly 40 years later, The club adopted their City moniker during the second world war in 1943.