Aston Villa Football Club History, Facts & Records

A Brief History of Aston Villa Football Club

Founded: 1874

Nicknames: The Villans, The Villa, Villa

Aston Villa were one of the founder members of the Football League in 1888 and of the Premier League in 1992.

Villa are one of only five English clubs to have won the European Cup, which they won in 1981/82

They have also won the Football League First Division seven times, the FA Cup seven times, the League Cup five times and the UEFA Super Cup once.

Villa Park

Stadium Capacity: 42,785

Stadium Info:

Villa Park is one of the oldest and most famous venues in world football and Aston Villa have played there since 1897.

Villa Park is one of a select few that has staged international fixtures over three different centuries, the first senior international taking place in 1899.

The club’s home has hosted an array of prestige events including international fixtures, World Cup and European Championship matches and FA Cup semi-finals before they were moved to Wembley.

Stadium Naming Rights

The naming rights of the Villa Park have never been sold, but there does seem to have been interest to do so over the last few years ~ (see press from Birmingham Live Nov 2018)

Highest Attendance: 76,588
Aston Villa v Derby County
FA Cup 6th Round 2 March 1946

Lowest Attendance: 2,900
Aston Villa v Bradford City
League Match 13 February 1915

Appointed: October 2018

Aston Villa Manager: Dean Smith

Dean Smith was appointed as the club’s manager, on 10 October 2018, having previously managed Brentford and Walsall

To date he has taken the club from 14th in the Championship to the Premier League via the play-offs in the 2018–19 season, and then to the 2020 EFL Cup final.

Aston Villa Chairmen: Nassef Sawiris

Appointed: July 2018

It was announced in July 2018 that Nassef Sawiris would replace Tony Xia as chairman of Aston Villa F.C. following the purchase of a 55% controlling stake by NSWE, a company jointly owned and controlled by Sawiris’ group NNS and American billionaire Wes Edens.

Aston Villa Captain: Jack Grealish

Appointed: March 2019

Jack Grealish has worn the Captain’s armband since March 2019, since then Villa enjoyed a period which saw them amass a club-record 10 league wins in a row.

This form granted Villa a place in the play-offs where victories over West Bromwich Albion and Derby County gained them promotion to the Premier League after an absence of three years.

Aston Villa Club Mascot: Hercules Lion

Aston Villa Football Kits 2019/20 Season

Kit Sponsor: W88

Kit Manufacturer: Kappa

Aston Villa forwent commercial kit sponsorship for the 2008/09 and 2009/10 seasons; instead advertising the charity Acorns Children’s Hospice, the first deal of its kind in Premier League history.

The partnership continued until 2010 when a commercial sponsor replaced Acorns, with the hospice becoming the club’s Official Charity Partner.

In 2014–15, the Acorns name returned to Aston Villa’s home and away shirts, but only for children’s shirts re-affirming the club’s support for the children’s charity.

In the 2019–20 season, Aston Villa’s kit sponsors are W88, an Asian betting and gambling company

Home Kit

Away Kit

3rd Kit

Aston Villa’s Premier League History

Aston Villa have not yet won the Premier League. Their best finish to date is Runners-Up in the very first season 1992/93

Premier League Table 2019/20

		Club	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Points
C		Liverpool	38	32	3	3	85	33	+52	99
2		Manchester City	38	26	3	9	102	35	+67	81
3		Manchester United	38	18	12	8	66	36	+30	66
4		Chelsea	38	20	6	12	69	54	+15	66
5		Leicester City	38	18	8	12	67	41	+26	62
6		Tottenham Hotspur	38	16	11	11	61	47	+14	59
7		Wolverhampton Wanderers	38	15	14	9	51	40	+11	59
8		Arsenal	38	14	14	10	56	48	+8	56
9		Sheffield United	38	14	12	12	39	39	0	54
10		Burnley	38	15	9	14	43	50	-7	54
11		Southampton	38	15	7	16	51	60	-9	52
12		Everton	38	13	10	15	44	56	-12	49
13		Newcastle United	38	11	11	16	38	58	-20	44
14		Crystal Palace	38	11	10	17	31	50	-19	43
15		Brighton & Hove Albion	38	9	14	15	39	54	-15	41
16		West Ham United	38	10	9	19	49	62	-13	39
17		Aston Villa	38	9	8	21	41	67	-26	35
18		Bournemouth	38	9	7	22	40	65	-25	34
19		Watford	38	8	10	20	36	64	-28	34
20		Norwich City	38	5	6	27	26	75	-49	21

Aston Villa’s Football League Wins

Aston Villa have won the First Division 7 times and were runners-up on 9 occasions

Aston Villa’s FA Cup Wins

Aston Villa have won the FA Cup 7 times, finishing as runners-up 4 times

Aston Villa’s Football League Cup Wins

Aston Villa have won the League Cup 5 times, finishing as runners-up 4 times

Aston Villa In European Competition

The Intertoto Cup (affectionately known as the Inter-Two-Bob Cup) was played over two legs Villa drew 1-1 with Basel away and the won the second leg 4-1 at Villa Park, winning 5-2 on aggregate

The European Super Cup was played over two legs, Villa lost 1-0 to Barcelona away but won the second leg 3-0 (after extra time) at Villa Park, winning 3-1 on aggregate

Aston Villa’s Record Appearances: Charlie Aitken

Club Appearances: 657

Charlie Aitken holds the all–time record for most appearances for Aston Villa, playing in 657 games for the club between 1959 and 1976.

Top 10 Aston Villa Player Appearances

• 657 Charlie Aitken (1959-1976)
• 531 Billy Walker (1919-1933)
• 506 Gordon Cowans (1976-1985 & 1988-1991)
• 474 Joe Bache (1900-1914)
• 466 Allan Evans (1977-1989)
• 452 Tommy Smart (1919-1933)
• 449 Nigel Spink (1979-1996)
• 423 Gareth Barry (1997-2009)
• 430 Johnny Dixon (1945-1961)
• 404 Dennis Mortimer (1975-1985)

Competitive matches only

Aston Villa’s Record Goal Scorer: Billy Walker

Total Goals: 244

• League Goals 214
• FA Cup Goals 30
• League Cup Goals 0
• European Goals 0

Billy Walker is the all-time top goalscorer for Aston Villa with 244 goals in all competitions

Aston Villa’s Top 10 Goal Scorers

• 244 Billy Walker (1919-1933)
• 242 Harry Hampton (1904-1920)
• 187 John Devey (1891-1902)
• 185 Joe Bache (1900-1914)
• 170 Eric Houghton (1927-1946)
• 167 Tom Waring (1928-1935)
• 144 Johnny Dixon (1945-1961)
• 120 Peter McParland (1952-1962)
• 112 Billy Garraty (1897-1908)
• 100 Dai Astley (1931-1936)
• 100 Len Capewell (1921-1930)

Aston Villa’s Club Record Signing: Wesley Moraes

Transfer Fee: £22m

Wesley Moraes joined Aston Villa for a club record fee of £22m from Club Brugge in June 2019

Aston Villa’s Top 5 Highest Transfers In

1. Wesley Moraes £22m from Club Brugge in June 2019
2. Tyrone Mings £20m (rising to £25m) from Bournemouth in July 2019
3. Darren Bent £18m (rising to £24m) from Sunderland in January 2011
4. Douglas Luiz £15m from Manchester City in July 2019
5. Stewart Downing £12m from Middlesborough in July 2009
6. Ross McCormack £12m from Fulham in August 2016
7. Scott Hogan £12m from Brentford in January 2017
8. Ezri konsa £12m from Brentford in July 2019

Aston Villa’s Top 5 Highest Transfers Out

1. Christian Benteke £41.85m to Liverpool in July 2015
2. Stewart Downing £20.52m to Liverpool in July 2011
3. James Milne £19.8m to Manchester City in August 2010
4. Dwight Yorke £17.33m to Manchester United in July 1998
5. Ashley Young £16.2m to Manchester United in July 2011

Aston Villa’s Official Club Tours & Museum

Soak up the atmosphere and walk in the footsteps of Villa’s finest players, both past and present, in an amazing experience which highlights the club’s proud history.

Take the manager’s position on the bench and give your verdict on the game in the post-match interview room.

Find Out more at Aston Villa Official Club Tours

Aston Villa Fan Club Membership

The Pride is the official Aston Villa fan membership, bringing all Villa supporters together to become #PartOfThePride.

There are a number of ways to become a member of The Pride – Season ticket holders, Claret adult members, Cub junior members and Lions Club members.

Each level of membership comes with its own range of benefits.

Find out more at Aston Villa’s Club Website

Aston Villa’s Club Information

Club Website: https://www.avfc.co.uk/

Address:
Aston Villa Football Club
Trinity Road
Birmingham
West Midlands
B6 6HE

Credits & Sources: