The Tricky Trees

Lore & Background

Nottingham Forest's most successful period came under the management of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor in the late 1970s and early 1980s, during which they achieved back-to-back European Cup triumphs in 1979 and 1980. In 1979, Forest beat Malmö 1–0 in Munich's Olympiastadion. In Clough's final decade at the club, Forest won the 1989 and 1990 League Cups. They were also losing finalists in the 1991 FA Cup final and 1992 League Cup final, before relegation from the Premier League in 1993. Upon their immediate return, Forest finished third in the Premier League in 1995, before suffering relegation again in 1997 and 1999. The team returned to the Premier League by winning the play-offs in 2022. Forest's main rivalry is with Derby County, with whom they contest the East Midlands derby. In 2007 the Brian Clough Trophy was founded, which has since then been given to the winner.

In Their Own Story

The rain had been falling since half-time, a fine Nottingham drizzle that turned the terraces slick and the breath of the crowd into a low, grey mist. In the East Stand, a man in his sixties—third generation, his dad had stood in the same spot in '79—pulled his scarf tighter and leaned into the man beside him. 'They're parking the bus again,' he muttered, half to himself, half to the rain. The man beside him, a young lad in a Forest shirt two sizes too big, grinned. 'Aye. But we'll still be singing at the end, won't we, grandad?' The old man nodded, didn't look up from the pitch where the ball sat dead in the midfield, and began the chorus. Around them, three thousand voices caught it, roughened it, made it their own. The rain kept falling. The Trees kept singing. That was the whole point, wasn't it? You don't need to win every night. You just need to still be there, still loud, still a little bit tricky, when the lights come up on a cold Tuesday in November.

Reader's Guide

Nottingham Forest have competed in the top two tiers of English football in all but five seasons since their admission to the Football League. The club has won one League title, two FA Cups, four League Cups, and one FA Charity Shield. Forest's first FA Cup win came in 1898, beating Derby County 3–1 in the final. Their second FA Cup triumph was in 1959, a 2–1 victory over Luton Town. The club has also won the UEFA Super Cup once.

Did You Know?

• Nottingham Forest is the only team in Europe to have won the European Cup or Champions League more often than the domestic championship.
• Forest's official colours are Garibaldi Red, named after the leader of the Italian 'Redshirts' fighters.
• In 1886, Forest donated a set of red shirts to Arsenal, who were already established; Arsenal still wear red.
• Forest's baseball club reportedly won a championship in 1899, though no widely recognized record confirms a British title.