These pages include some of Wolverhampton Wanderers history. Additional information and videos of some of the Cup Finals are in the Members’ Pages. If you’d like to join London Wolves, details are here. Watch this video on the decline and rise of the Wolves in the 1980s/90s link
Wolves History 1877 - Club formed as St Luke's FC. 1879 - Amalgamated with The Wanderers Football and Cricket Club to form Wolverhampton Wanderers FC. 1883 - Entered the FA Cup for the first time. 1888 - Became a founder member of the Football League FA Cup runners up to Preston North End by 3-0 (The Oval). 1889 - Moved from Dudley Road ground to Molineux. 1893 - Won the FA Cup defeating Everton 1-0 (Fallowfield, Manchester). 1896 - FA Cup final. Lost 2-1 to Sheffield Wednesday (Crystal Palace). 1906 - Relegated from the First Division. 1908 - Beat hot favourites Newcastle United 3-1 in the FA Cup Final at (Crystal Palace). (see Cup Finals) 1921 - FA Cup Final lost 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur (Stamford Bridge). 1923 - Relegated from the Second Division. 1924 - Champions - Third Division (north). 1932 - Champions - Second Division. Return to the First Division after 26 years 1938 - First Division runners-up 1939 - First Division runners-up 1939 - FA Cup Final Lost 4-1 defeat to Portsmouth (Wembley) 1942 - Winners Wartime League Cup (North). Beat Sunderland 6-3 on aggregate over two legs. 1949 - Winners FA Cup Final v Leicester City (3-1) (Wembley). 1954 - League Champions 1954 - Beat Honved 3-2 (see Honved pages) 1958 - League Champions The second, third and fourth teams also won their leagues. Winners FA Youth Cup versus Chelsea (aggregate 7-6! - 6-1 in the second leg of the Final after trailing 5-1 from first leg!) 1959 - League Champions. 1960 - Winners FA Cup v Blackburn Rovers (3-0) (Wembley) League runners-up to Burnley by 1 point. 1965 - Relegated to the Second Division. 1967 - Runners up Division 2 and promoted back to the First Division 1971 - Winners Texaco Cup v Hearts 3-2 on aggregate 1972 - Runners Up EUFA Cup v Tottenham Hotspur 2-3 on aggregate 1973 - Semi-finalists FA Cup and League Cup. 1974 - Winners League Cup v Manchester City (2-1) (Wembley) 1976 - Relegated to the Second Division. 1977 - Champions Second Division 1979 - British transfer records: Sold Steve Daley to Man City for £1.437m, bought Andy Gray (Sky pundit) from Villa for £1.469m. 1980 - Winners League Cup v Nottingham Forest (1-0, Gray) (Wembley). 1982 - Relegated to the Second Division and declared bankrupt. 1983 - Runners-up Second Division (to QPR). 1984 - Relegated to the Second Division. 1985 - Relegated to the Third Division. 1986 - Relegated to the Fourth Division. Declared bankrupt again. 1987 - Club saved. Missed promotion losing to Aldershot in the play-offs. 1988 - Champions Fourth Division Winners - Sherpa Van Trophy. Steve Bull hits 50 goals. 1989 - Champions Third Division. Steve Bull hits 50 goals. 1990 - Sir Jack Hayward buys the club. 1993 - The rebuilding of the 'new' Molineux is completed. 1994 - Molineux Stadium opened by HM The Queen. 1995 - Lost to Bolton Wanderers in the play-off semi-final (the year playoffs were introduced when we finished third). 1997 - Lost to Crystal Palace in the play-off semi-final. 1998 - Manager Mark McGhee replaced by his assistant Colin Lee. 1999 - Transfer record- Robbie Keane became the most expensive teenager in Britain when sold to Coventry for £6m 2000 - Colin Lee sacked. 2001 - Dave Jones appointed. 2002 - Lost to Norwich in play-off semi-final after being in top two throughout season. Baggies and Blues promoted. 2003 - First Division play off winners v Sheffield Utd (3-0) (Millennium Stadium, Cardiff). Sir Jack relinquishes chairmanship of the Wolves to his son Rick 2004 - Bottom of Premiership thanks to last match defeat by Spurs with Robbie Keane scoring. Relegated Dave Jones dismissed Glenn Hoddle appointed manager
2005 - Club record 20 draws in a season “achieved” with 1-1 draw at Leicester City (Tuesday 5th April) - Club record unbeaten sequence broken by Millwall (with whom it started)
2005 - December Wolves become the first ever Club to score 7,000 goals. However there is some confusion over whether Seol scored it against Palace or Vio scored it against Leeds. Eventually the honour was given to Ki-Hyeon Seol.
7000 points: It would now appear that Wolves have already become the first team in England to score 7,000 League goals although it is not yet entirely certain who hit the landmark strike! The honour looks like going to Seol for his effort at Selhurst Park against Crystal Palace on 10th December. But, dependent on a result in the first season of League football in the 1888/9 season being verified, then it could be that it is Vio Ganea that takes the acclaim following his match winning goal against Leeds last weekend. It had been reported on WOW and in the local media that, before the Leeds fixture, Wolves needed two goals to be the first club in England to reach the 7,000 mark. League tables were checked and cross referenced before the article was published but it now turns out that there are two discrepancies in many of the records. When Wolves met Everton at Dudley Road in January, 1889, the score was apparently recorded in Football League records as being 4-0 when, in fact, Wolves scored five. Then in November, 1893, a 5-2 home victory over Stoke City was recorded as a 4-2 win. Record books published in recent years of both Everton and Stoke record the scores as 4-0 and 4-2 respectively but our records show five home goals in each case.
Over the years, it appears, League tables have been copied and the errors reproduced. A look into the Express and Star's archives has confirmed the Stoke game as being 5-2 but, unfortunately, the newspaper didn't report on football in that inaugural season of 1888/89. But further investigations into the Everton match are taking place and as soon as there is a definitive answer, we will let you know the outcome on this website.
However, one thing looks to be clear, Wolves are the first to hit the 7,000 mark.
THE DECLINE AND RISE OF THE WOLVES - A SHORT SKY DOCUMENTARY
