Royal Artillery Portsmouth F.C.

Did You Know?

• Fratton Park was originally a potato field purchased in 1898 from the local Goldsmith farming family.
• The record attendance at Fratton Park is 51,385 for an FA Cup fifth round match against Derby County in 1948–49.
• Portsmouth's record transfer fee received is £20 million from Real Madrid for Lassana Diarra in December 2008.

History

The club's early years saw it compete in the Southern and Western leagues before being elected into the English Football League in 1920. Portsmouth won two promotions in 1924 and 1927 to reach the First Division, becoming the first club south of London to do so. After finishing as runners-up in the FA Cup in 1929 and 1934, the club won the trophy for the first time in 1939. Normal professional football was suspended in September 1939 due to World War II, meaning Portsmouth held the FA Cup for a record seven consecutive years until the 1946 final. After the war, Portsmouth won back-to-back First Division titles in 1948–49 and 1949–50. The club's 32-year stay in the top flight ended with relegation in 1959, followed by a drop to the Third Division in 1961. Portsmouth were relegated to the Fourth Division in 1978, then earned three promotions in 1980, 1983, and 1987. After a brief season in the First Division in 1987–88, the club remained in the second tier for 15 years until 2003. Portsmouth won the First Division title in 2002–03 and returned to the Premier League. The club won the FA Cup again in 2008. Relegation in 2010 began a difficult period with two financial administrations and three relegations by 2013. The club was purchased by the Pompey Supporters Trust in 2013, won the League Two title in 2016–17, and the League One title in 2023–24.

Club identity

Portsmouth F.C. did not have a club badge until the 1913–14 season. The first badge was based on the official coat of arms of the City of Portsmouth, which features an eight-pointed gold star and crescent moon on a blue shield. The club's first badge showed a white five-pointed star and a white crescent moon on a blue shield. The town council granted Portsmouth F.C. the use of the moon and star motifs, with some colour and design changes. After World War II, the club adopted an eight-pointed star to match the city's symbol. In the 1950s and 1960s, the badge was embroidered in white instead of gold because white thread was cheaper. Between 1980 and 1989, the club replaced the traditional badge with a design showing a football in front of an anchor and a sword, surrounded by rope. An alternative version included a circular traditional star and crescent badge in place of the football. From 1989 to 1993, the badge was a simpler eight-pointed star and crescent on a long narrow shield. Between 1993 and 1997, the club used an embroidered version of the city of Portsmouth coat of arms. In 1997, the badge became an eight-pointed gold star and golden crescent moon on a blue shield with a gold rim, coinciding with the club's centennial in the 1997–98 season.

Rivalries and supporters

Portsmouth's main rivals are Southampton, located 19.8 miles away. The South Coast Derby is infrequently played because the clubs are usually in different divisions, which adds to the intensity of the fixture. Before the mid-late 1960s, there was little rivalry due to the disparity in league status. Since 1977, the teams have been in the same division only in 1987–88, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2011–12, and 2025–26. As of June 2024, the clubs have met 72 times, with Portsmouth winning 21, Southampton 35, and 16 draws. The most recent league meeting was a 1–1 draw at Fratton Park in January 2026. Portsmouth supporters use the derogatory nickname Scummer for Southampton fans, and Scum for the club and city. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, Scummers was a naval term for pirates first recorded in 1585. Southampton fans use the nickname Skate for Portsmouth supporters, chosen from a list in a Southampton fanzine in 1988. The term Skate had long been used by Portsmouth civilians as an insult for sailors. Another rivalry, the Dockyard Derby, is with Plymouth Argyle, also called the Battle of the Ports. A minor rivalry with Sunderland developed from five meetings in the 2018–19 season. The best-known chant is The Pompey Chimes, one of the oldest football chants still in use.

Players

Portsmouth has a Hall of Fame established in March 2009 that honours former players and staff. The club retired the number 1 shirt for the 2001–02 season after goalkeeper Aaron Flahavan died in a car crash in August 2001. From the 2003–04 season, the number 13 shirt was reserved in his memory, as he wore that number for most of his time at the club. The number 13 was later used again ten years after his death. The number 12 is reserved for the fans, considered the twelfth player. The club mascot, Nelson, wears number 58. The list of Player of the Season winners includes multiple recipients: Ray Pointer (1968), John Milkins (1969), Nicky Jennings (1970), David Munks (1971), Richie Reynolds (1972), Paul Went (1974), Mick Mellows (1975), Paul Cahill (1976), Peter Mellor (1979), Joe Laidlaw (1980), Alan Knight (1982, 1995, 1996), Alan Biley (1983), Mark Hateley (1984), Neil Webb (1985), Noel Blake (1986, 1987), Barry Horne (1988), Micky Quinn (1989), Guy Whittingham (1990), Martin Kuhl (1991), Darren Anderton (1992), Paul Walsh (1993), Kit Symons (1994), Lee Bradbury (1997), Andy Awford (1998), Steve Claridge (1999, 2000), Scott Hiley (2001), Peter Crouch (2002), Linvoy Primus (2003), Arjan de Zeeuw (2004), Dejan Stefanović (2005), Gary O'Neil (2006), David James (2007, 2008), Glen Johnson (2009), Jamie O'Hara (2010), Hayden Mullins (2011), Ricardo Rocha (2012), Johannes Ertl (2013), Ricky Holmes (2014), Jed Wallace (2015), Michael Doyle (2016), Enda Stevens (2017), Matt Clarke (2018, 2019), Christian Burgess (2020), Craig MacGillivray (2021), Sean Raggett (2022), Colby Bishop (2023), Marlon Pack (2024), Josh Murphy (2025), and Terry Devlin (2026).