English Football Nicknames
A list of nicknames for English league football clubs, some are well known, other nick names are rarely used anymore and have become obsolete. Updated for the 2008-2009 season.
The tradition of football clubs having a nickname often extends back to when the club was first created. Reasons for clubs being called particular names are varied, some develop from a well known local industry. (Where often the early supporters were employed.) Or the name might be related to a local landmark, or the nickname may be based on the colour of the strip. Sometimes it's just not known why a football club has a certain nick name.
Premiership Football Clubs
| Football Team |
Football Club Nickname |
Reason for nickname |
| Arsenal | Gunners, Gooners | The club started out as woolwich arsenal, and guns are stored in an arsenal so... the gunners. |
| Aston Villa | Villains | club named after Villa Cross church in Aston, villains developed from that |
| Blackburn Rovers | Rovers, The Riversiders | Rovers - common team name like rangers or wanderers implies teams are willing to travel great distances for glory. Riversiders - named after a stand in the ground. |
| Bolton Wanderers | Trotters | Another way of describing travelling - from the official name wanderers |
| Chelsea | Blues, or Pensioners | Named after the well known chelsea pensioners - war veterans living in a nearby hospital. |
| Everton | Toffees, or The Toffeemen, or Blues | local sweet shop gave away toffees and mints, or slang term for Irishmen. |
| Fulham | Cottagers | Their ground is Craven Cottage |
| Hull City | Tigers | Black and orange striped kit |
| Liverpool | Reds | kit colour |
| Manchester City | Citizens, City, or Sky Blues | Citizens developed from City, sky blues from kit |
| Manchester United | Red Devils | The club chose the name because they liked it and incorporated a devil into the club badge. |
| Middlesbrough | Boro | Abbreviation |
| Newcastle United | Magpies, The Barcodes, The Toon | based on colour of kit - black and white. Toon - Geordie pronounciation of town. |
| Portsmouth | Pompey | A nickname for the city of navel extraction |
| Stoke City | Potters | Local pottery industry |
| Sunderland | Black Cats, The Lads, The Mackems, Rokerites (obsolete) | Black cats voted for by fans. Mackems because shipbuilders used to mak(e)‘em ‘n’ tak(e)‘em. Roker park old ground, so rokerites became obsolete. |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Spurs, Cockerels and Lilywhites (obsolete) | A shortening of hotspur, club originally played at Northumberland Park - Northumberland in Shakespeare gave rise to Harry Hotspur, so some literate public schoolboy element appended Hotspur. The story that the club was called Hotspur after an Earl who lived locally is apparently false. |
| West Bromwich Albion | Baggies, The Throstles (out of use) | Throstle means thrush in the black country and these birds were often seen in the hawthorn bushes around the ground. There are several theories about the nickname the baggies.
From supporters wearing baggy clothing, to the players wearing very baggy shorts. |
| West Ham United | Hammers, The Irons | Team started life as Thames Ironworks. |
| Wigan Athletic | Latics | Corruption of athletic |
Championship football club nicknames
| Football Team |
Football Nick name |
Reason for nickname |
| Barnsley | Tykes, The Reds, The Colliers | Red kit colour |
| Birmingham City | Blues | colour of kit |
| Blackpool | Tangerines, The Seasiders | Kit colour, famous beach resort. |
| Bristol City | Robins | A Robin featureed on club badge |
| Burnley | Clarets | kit colour |
| Cardiff City | Bluebirds | kit colour |
| Charlton Athletic | Addicks, the Valiants | A corruption of the word athletic, or named after a local fish shop or because local fish man would shout “Haddocks”. Valiants after the name of the ground. |
| Coventry City | Sky Blues | Colour of kit |
| Crystal Palace | The Eagles or Glaziers (obsolete) | Glaziers because crystal palace was made of glass, and the eagles because management liked the name. |
| Derby County | Rams | Ram on club badge |
| Doncaster Rovers | Rovers, Donny, Vikings | Abbreviations, viking appears on club badge |
| Ipswich Town | Blues or Tractor Boys | Kit colour, association with farming community |
| Norwich City | Canaries | Norwich formerly famous for canary breeding, kit colour from this |
| Nottingham Forest | Reds, Forest | kit colour, famous forest |
| Plymouth Argyle | Pilgrims, The Greens | The pilgrim fathers last port of call before they left for the new world |
| Preston North End | Lilywhites, North End or PNE. Early days known as The Invincibles | kit colour |
| Queens Park Rangers | The 'R's or The Hoops | Abbreviation, hoops - kit |
| Reading | The Royals or Biscuitmen (obsolete) | The "Huntley & Palmers" company had a biscuit factory in Reading. The Royals comes from the royal county of Berkshire where Reading is situated. |
| Sheffield United | Blades | Steel industry, famous for knives |
| Sheffield Wednesday | Owls | Former ground at Owlerton |
| Southampton | Saints | Team originally called St Mary's YMA |
| Swansea City | Swans | Abbreviation |
| Watford | Hornets, Golden Boys | Yellow and black football kit |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | Wolves | An abbreviation of Wolverhampton |
League One club nick names
| Team |
Football Nickname |
Explanation of nickname |
| Brighton | Seagulls | A coastal football club, so named after a sea bird |
| Bristol Rovers | Pirates, The Gas | Pirates - City's seafaring history. Gas - nearby gasometers |
| Carlisle United | The Cumbrians | County of Cumbria |
| Cheltenham Town | Robins | based on red and white kit |
| Colchester United | The 'U's | Abbreviation of United |
| Crewe Alexandra | Railwaymen, The Alex | Town renowned for building trains. Alex - an abbreviation. |
| Hartlepool United | Pools, The Pool | Abbreviation |
| Hereford United | The Bulls | Well known breed of cattle |
| Huddersfield Town | Terriers | Yorkshire Terrier on club crest |
| Leeds United | United or The Whites or Peacocks (obsolete) | Abbreviation, kit colour, peacock - local pub, ground name |
| Leicester City | Foxes | Large local fox hunting industry |
| Leyton Orient | The'O's | Abbreviation |
| Millwall | Lions | Lion on club crest |
| Milton Keynes | MK Dons | incorporates past club history as Wimbledon dons |
| Northampton Town | Cobblers | Local shoe manufacturing industry |
| Oldham Athletic | Latics | A corruption of the word athletic |
| Peterborough United | The Posh | a former manager wanted "posh players for a posh team" |
| Scunthorpe | The Iron | local iron foundries |
| Southend United | Shrimpers | local shrimping industry |
| Stockport County | The Hatters, County | Famous hat making industry |
| Swindon Town | Robins | club crest used to feature a robin |
| Tranmere Rovers | Rovers | Abbreviation |
| Walsall | Saddlers | local saddle manufacturing industry |
| Yeovil Town | Glovers | Town renowned for glovemaking |
League Two football nicknames
| Team |
Football Nickname |
Explanation |
| Accrington Stanley | The Reds | Kit colour |
| Aldershot Town | Shots | abbreviation |
| Barnet | The Bees | kit colour |
| Bournemouth | Cherries | kit colour |
| Bradford City | Bantams | kit colour suggests plumage of bantam |
| Brentford | Bees | B for Brentford |
| Bury | Shakers | clubs chairman once said "We will shake them. In fact, we are the Shakers." |
| Chester City | The Seals | Old ground named Sealand Road |
| Chesterfield | Spirites | Famous twisted spire on church in town |
| Dagenham & Redbridge | The Daggers | derived from Dagenham |
| Darlington | Quakers | A large local population of Quakers |
| Exeter City | The Grecians | Unknown reasons, parishioners of a local church also known as Grecians |
| Gillingham | Gills | Abbreviation |
| Grimsby Town | Mariners | Association with fishing industry |
| Lincoln City | The Red Imps | from the legend of the Lincoln imp |
| Luton Town | Hatters | The town had a famous straw boater hat industry |
| Macclesfield Town | Silkmen | Once had a large local silk industry |
| Morecambe | The Shrimps | local shrimping industry |
| Notts County | Magpies | black and white kit |
| Port Vale | Valiants | derived from "Vale" |
| Rochdale | Dale | abbreviation |
| Rotherham United | Millers | derived from the name of the ground - Millmoor |
| Shrewsbury Town | Shrews | abbreviation |
| Wycombe Wanderers | Chairboys | local furniture factories |
Conference - National Football Clubs
| Team |
Football Nickname |
Explanation |
| Altrincham | The Robins | kit colour |
| Barrow | The Bluebirds | kit colour |
| Burton Albion | The Brewers | Town renowned for the brewing industry |
| Cambridge United | The U's, The Yellows | abbreviation, kit colour |
| Crawley Town | The Red Devils | kit colour |
| Eastbourne Borough | The Sports | based on an old name of the club |
| Ebbsfleet United | The Fleet | abbreviation |
| Forest Green Rovers | Rovers | abbreviation |
| Grays Athletic | Grays | abbreviation |
| Histon | The Stutes | originating from the club's previous name Histon Institute, |
| Kettering Town | The Poppies | kit colour |
| Kidderminster Harriers | The Harriers | abbreviation |
| Lewes | The Rooks | Chess piece on club crest |
| Mansfield Town | Stags | derived from the own’s old coat of arms |
| Northwich Victoria | The Vics, The Greens, The Trickies | Abbreviation, kit colour green and white |
| Oxford United | The 'U's | abbreviation |
| Rushden and Diamonds | Diamonds | abbreviation |
| Salisbury City | The Whites | kit colour |
| Stevenage Borough | Boro | abbreviation |
| Torquay United | Gulls | seaside town |
| Weymouth | The Terras | They play in a terracotta coloured strip |
| Woking | The Cardinals, The Cards | named after their red and white strip |
| Wrexham | Red Dragons, Robins (obsolete) | kit colour |
| York City | City, or the Minstermen | York Minster is visible from the ground |
Thanks to several Pub Quiz Help users who pointed out a few less well known nicknames and/or provided explanations. Drop me an email if you know of any good explanations for why a team has a particular nickname. There are quite a few gaps, so any help would be appreciated!
