Fulham
Historic riverside district in West London, home to two Premier League football clubs.
Fulham is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, with which it shares the area known as West Brompton. Over the Thames, Fulham faces Wandsworth, Putney, the London Wetland Centre in Barnes in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.
- Rivalry Type
- West London Derby
- Stadiums
- Stamford Bridge vs. Craven Cottage
- Distance Between Grounds
- Approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) by road
- First Competitive Meeting
- Early 20th Century (Football League era)
- Dominant Era
- Chelsea (late 1990s - present)
Lore & Background
First recorded by name in 691, it was an extensive Anglo-Saxon estate, the Manor of Fulham, and then a parish. Its domain stretched from modern-day Chiswick in the west to Chelsea in the southeast; and from Harlesden in the northwest to Kensal Green in the northeast bordered by the littoral of Counter's Creek and the Manor of Kensington. It originally included today's Hammersmith. Between 1900 and 1965, it was demarcated as the Metropolitan Borough of Fulham, before its merger with the Metropolitan Borough of Hammersmith to create the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham (known as the London Borough of Hammersmith from 1965 to 1979).
In Their Own Story
The mist hung low over the Thames as the away end at Craven Cottage began to hum. Inside, the air was thick with damp wool and tension rather than just frying onions. On the pitch, a Chelsea striker surged forward, only to be met by a Fulham defender born on the same street as the fans chanting outside. The sliding tackle sent mud flying, sparking an eruption from the locals—not for the foul, but for the sheer defiance of holding their ground against the Blues. In that moment, league tables dissolved; only the pride of West London remained.
Reader's Guide
Two Premier League football clubs, Fulham and Chelsea, play in Fulham. Two other notable sporting clubs are the Hurlingham Club, known for polo, and the Queen's tennis club, known for its annual pre-Wimbledon tennis tournament. In the 1800s, Lillie Bridge Grounds hosted the first meetings of the Amateur Athletic Association of England, the second FA Cup Final, and the first amateur boxing matches. The Lillie Bridge area was the home ground of the Middlesex County Cricket Club, before it moved to Marylebone.
Did You Know?
- The word Fulham originates from Old English, with Fulla being a personal name, and hamm being land hemmed in by water or marsh, or a river-meadow.
- Fulham is spelt Fuleham in the 1066 Domesday Book.
- The manor of Fulham was granted to Bishop Erkenwald about the year 691 for himself and his successors as Bishop of London.
- Hammersmith was part of the ancient parish of Fulham up until 1834.
More in Great Rivalries & Derbies
Elsewhere in the Chelsea FC universe
Spotted an error? Know more?
This is a living reference — every entry is fact-audited, and reader corrections feed straight into our audit queue. Suggest an edit · See this site's audit record