Norwich City F.C.
Template:Short description Template:About Template:Redirect Template:Featured article Template:Use British English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox football club Norwich City Football Club is a professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was founded in 1902. Since 1935, Norwich have played their home games at Carrow Road and have a long-standing rivalry with East Anglian rivals Ipswich Town, with whom they contest the East Anglian derby.
Norwich have won the League Cup twice, in 1962 and 1985. The club's highest-ever league finish came in the 1992–93 season when they finished third in the Premier League. Norwich have featured in the UEFA Cup once, in the 1993–94 season, where they were defeated in the third round, but en route became the only English club to defeat German side Bayern Munich at the Olympiastadion in Munich.
The club is nicknamed The Canaries after the history of breeding the birds in the area, which is represented by the canary in team's badge and traditionally yellow-and-green home kits. The fans' song "On The Ball, City" is one of the oldest football chants in the world, written in the 1890s and still sung today.
History
Early years (1902–1934)
Norwich City F.C. was formed after a meeting at the Criterion Café in Norwich on 17 June 1902 and played their first competitive match, against Harwich & Parkeston, at Newmarket Road on 6 September 1902.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> They joined the Norfolk & Suffolk League for the 1902–03 season,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but following a FA commission, the club was ousted from the amateur game in 1905, as it was deemed a professional organisation. Later that year Norwich were elected to play in the Southern League. With increasing crowds, they were forced to leave Newmarket Road in 1908 and moved to The Nest, a disused chalk pit. The club's original nickname was the Citizens, but this was superseded by 1907 by the Canaries after the club's chairman (who was a keen breeder of canaries) dubbed his boys "The Canaries" and changed their strip to yellow and green. During the First World War, with football suspended and facing spiralling debts, City went into voluntary liquidation on 10 December 1917.<ref name=earlyhistory>Template:Cite web</ref>
The club was officially reformed on 15 February 1919 – a key figure in the event was Charles Frederick Watling, future lord mayor of Norwich and the father of future club chairman, Geoffrey Watling.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> When the Football League formed a third Division in May 1920, Norwich joined the Third Division for the following season.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Their first league fixture, against Plymouth Argyle, on 28 August 1920, ended in a 1–1 draw. The club went on to endure a mediocre decade, finishing no higher than eighth but no lower than 18th.<ref name=earlyhistory/> The following decade proved more successful for the club with a club-record victory, 10–2, over Coventry City.<ref name="SoccerbaseRecords">Template:Cite web</ref> Norwich were promoted as champions to the Second Division in the 1933–34 season under the management of Tom Parker.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Move to Carrow Road and an FA Cup semi-final (1934–1959)
With crowds continuing to rise, and with the Football Association raising concerns over the suitability of The Nest, the club considered renovation of the ground, but ultimately decided on a move to Carrow Road. The inaugural match, on 31 August 1935 against West Ham United, ended in a 4–3 victory for the home team and set a new record attendance of 29,779. The biggest highlight of the following four seasons was the visit of King George VI to Carrow Road on 29 October 1938.<ref name="earlyhistory" /> However the club was relegated to the Third Division at the end of the season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The league was suspended the following season due to the Second World War, and did not resume until the 1946–47 season.<ref name=earlyhistory/> City finished this and the following season in 21st place,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the poor results forcing the club to apply for re-election to the league.<ref name=midhistory>Template:Cite web</ref> The club narrowly missed out on promotion under the guidance of manager Norman Low in the early 1950s, but following the return of Tom Parker as manager, Norwich finished bottom of the football league in the 1956–57 season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Events off the field were to overshadow the team's performances as the club faced financial difficulties severe enough to render them non-viable.<ref name="Pinkhist">Template:Cite news</ref> With debts amounting to more than £20,000, the club was rescued by the formation of a new board, chaired by Geoffrey Watling and the creation of an appeal fund chaired by the Lord Mayor of Norwich, Arthur South, which raised more than £20,000.<ref name="Pinkhist"/> For these and other services to the club, both men (now deceased) were later honoured by having stands named after them at Carrow Road.Template:Efn
Archie Macaulay became manager when the club was reformed and he oversaw one of the club's greatest achievements, its run to the semi-final of the 1958–59 FA Cup.<ref name="Pinkhist"/> Competing as a Third Division side, Norwich defeated two First Division opponents along the way, notably a 3–0 win against the Manchester United "Busby Babes".<ref name=results5859>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Hist41"/> City lost the semi-final only after a replay against another First Division side, Luton Town.<ref name=midhistory/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The team of 1958–59 – including Terry Bly who scored seven goals in the run, and Ken Nethercott who played most of the second half of one match in goal despite a dislocated shoulder – is today well represented in the club Hall of Fame.<ref name="Pinkhist"/><ref name="Hist41">Template:Cite web</ref> The "59 Cup Run" as it is now known locally,<ref name="Centenary">Template:Cite news</ref> "remains as one of the truly great periods in Norwich City's history".<ref name="Hist41"/> Norwich were the third-ever Third Division team to reach the FA Cup semi-final.<ref name="Hist41"/>
League Cup glory and a place in the First Division (1959–1980)
In the 1959–60 season, Norwich were promoted to the Second Division after finishing second to Southampton, and achieved a fourth-place finish in the 1960–61 season.<ref name = midhistory/> In 1962 Ron Ashman guided Norwich to their first trophy, defeating Rochdale 4–0 on aggregate in a two-legged final to win the League Cup.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Sixth place in the league was the closest the club came to promotion to the First Division again during the 1960s, but after winning the division in the 1971–72 season under manager Ron Saunders, Norwich City reached the highest level of English football for the first time.<ref name=midlatehistory>Template:Cite web</ref> They made their first appearance at Wembley Stadium in 1973,<ref name=ncfchist>Template:Cite web</ref> losing the League Cup final 1–0 to Tottenham Hotspur.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Relegation to the Second Division in 1973–74 season came after Saunders had departed and been succeeded by John Bond, but the board of directors kept faith in Bond and were quickly rewarded.<ref name = midlatehistory/> A highly successful first season saw promotion back to the First Division,<ref name=fchd/> and another visit to Wembley, again in the League Cup final, this time losing 1–0 to Aston Villa.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Promotion, silverware and more cup runs (1980–1992)
Bond departed to Manchester City in autumn 1980,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the club were relegated six months later,<ref name=fchd/> but bounced back the following season after finishing third under Bond's successor Ken Brown.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In August 1981, Norwich City striker Justin Fashanu became the first black footballer to command a £1 million transfer fee when he moved to Nottingham Forest.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The 1984–85 season was of mixed fortunes for the club; under Brown's guidance, they reached the final of the Football League Cup at Wembley Stadium, having defeated Ipswich Town in the semi-final.<ref name=leaguecup>Template:Cite web</ref> In the final, they beat Sunderland 1–0,<ref name=leaguecup/> but in the league, both Norwich and Sunderland were relegated to the second tier of English football, Norwich going down by only one point.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This made Norwich the first English club to win a major trophy and suffer relegation in the same season; something which was not matched until Birmingham City also suffered relegation the season they won the League Cup 26 years later.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Norwich were also denied their first foray into Europe with the ban on English clubs after the Heysel Stadium disaster.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=recenthistory>Template:Cite web</ref> City bounced back to the top flight by winning the Second Division championship in the 1985–86 season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This was the start a club-record nine consecutive seasons in the top division of English football.<ref name=fchd>Template:Cite web</ref> High league placing in the First Division in 1988–89 would have been enough for UEFA Cup qualification, but the ban on English clubs remained.<ref name=recenthistory/> They also had good cup runs during this period, reaching the FA Cup semi-finals in 1989 and again in 1992.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Early success in the Premier League era (1992–1995)
During 1992–93, the inaugural season of the Premier League, Norwich City quickly emerged as surprise title contenders,<ref name=8695history>Template:Cite web</ref> before faltering in the final weeks to finish third behind the champions, Manchester United, and runners-up Aston Villa.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The following season Norwich participated in the UEFA Cup for the first (and only) time,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> losing in the third round to Inter Milan, but defeating Bayern Munich. Winning 2–1, Norwich were the first British team to beat Bayern Munich in the Olympiastadion.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=allianz>Template:Cite news</ref>
Mike Walker quit as Norwich City manager in January 1994,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> to take charge of Everton and was replaced by first team coach John Deehan who led the club to 12th place in the 1993–94 season in the Premier League.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Norwich began the 1994–95 season well, despite the pre-season departure of top scorer Chris Sutton to Blackburn Rovers for a British record fee of £5 million,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and by Christmas they were seventh in the league.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Norwich then won only one of their final 20 league games,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and slumped to 20th place and relegation, ending a nine-season run in the top flight.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The First Division years (1995–2003)
Template:Football squad on pitch
Shortly before relegation, Deehan resigned as manager and his assistant Gary Megson took over until the end of the season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Martin O'Neill, who had taken Wycombe Wanderers from the Conference to the Second Division with successive promotions, was appointed as Norwich City manager in summer 1995.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He lasted just six months in the job before resigning after a dispute with chairman Robert Chase over money to strengthen the squad.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Soon after, Chase stepped down after protests from supporters, who complained that he kept selling the club's best players and was to blame for their relegation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Chase's majority stakeholding was bought by Geoffrey Watling.<ref name=Watling/>
English television cook Delia Smith and husband Michael Wynn-Jones took over the majority of Norwich City's shares from Watling in 1996,<ref name=Watling>Template:Cite web</ref> and Mike Walker was re-appointed as the club's manager.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was unable to repeat the success achieved during his first spell and was dismissed two seasons later with Norwich mid-table in Division One.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Nigel Worthington took over as Norwich City manager in December 2000 following an unsuccessful two years for the club under Bruce Rioch and then Bryan Hamilton. He had been on the coaching staff under Hamilton who resigned with the club 20th in the First Division and in real danger of relegation to the third tier of English football for the first time since the 1960s.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Worthington avoided the threat of relegation and, the following season, led City to a play-off final at the Millennium Stadium, which Norwich lost against Birmingham City on penalties.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Return to the Premier League (2003–2009)
The 2003–04 season saw the club win the First Division title, finishing eight points clear of second-placed West Bromwich Albion and returned to the top flight for the first time since 1995.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> For much of the 2004–05 season, the club struggled and a last day 6–0 defeat away to Fulham condemned them to relegation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The club finished in ninth place in the Championship in the 2005–06 season<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and, as results in the 2006–07 season went against City, Worthington was dismissed in October 2006, directly after a 4–1 defeat by Burnley.<ref name=worthy>Template:Cite web</ref>
In October 2006, Norwich announced that former City player Peter Grant had left West Ham United to become the new manager.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Grant's side struggled for most of the season and made a poor start to the 2007–08 season, with only two wins by mid October; following a 1–0 defeat at fellow-strugglers Queens Park Rangers, Grant left the club by mutual consent on in October 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later the same month, former Newcastle United manager Glenn Roeder was confirmed as Grant's replacement.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Roeder kept Norwich in the Championship with a 3–0 win over Queens Park Rangers, Norwich's penultimate game of the season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Yo-yo years (2009–present)
In January 2009, Roeder was relieved of his duties as manager<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and, shortly after, former Norwich goalkeeper Bryan Gunn was appointed until the end of the season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, he was unable to prevent the club from being relegated in May 2009, after a 4–2 defeat away to already relegated Charlton Athletic.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Following their relegation, their first game of the season resulted in a 7–1 home defeat against East Anglian rivals Colchester United. This was the club's heaviest ever home defeat and Gunn was dismissed six days later.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 18 August 2009, Paul Lambert was announced as the new manager, leaving his post at Colchester, and nine months later led Norwich to promotion back to the Championship as League One Champions, after a single season in League One.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The following season saw Norwich promoted to the Premier League, finishing second in the table and completing the first back-to-back promotions from the third tier to second and to the first since Manchester City in 2000.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The club finished in 12th place in their first season back in the Premier League.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, Lambert resigned within a month of the season's close to take up the vacant managerial spot at league rivals Aston Villa and was replaced by Chris Hughton.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Hughton led Norwich to an 11th-place finish, including a ten-game unbeaten run in the league,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but they were relegated back to the Championship after the 2013–14 season. Hughton was dismissed to be replaced by former Norwich player Neil Adams.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
After a mediocre first half of the 2014–15 season, Adams resigned in January 2015 and Hamilton Academical manager Alex Neil was appointed as Norwich manager four days later.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The appointment reinvigorated Norwich's season, and victory in the 2015 Championship play-off final secured an immediate return to the top division of English football.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> This was only temporary relief, as at the end of the next season they were relegated again to play the 2016–17 season in the Championship.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The following season started successfully, with the club sitting top of the Championship in mid-October. However, a poor run of form and results followed and in March 2017, Neil was dismissed by the club.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> First-team coach Alan Irvine was placed in caretaker charge for the remainder of the season, ultimately finishing in eighth.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
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In May 2017, the club appointed German coach Daniel Farke as head coach, becoming the first head coach of the club in its 114-year history that was not from the British Isles.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In Farke's first season, Norwich finished in 14th place. The following season was far more successful; helped by top scorer Teemu Pukki, the club was promoted back to the Premier League after a three-year absence as Championship winners.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, Norwich were once again relegated back to the Championship after just a single season back in the top flight, becoming the first team in Premier League history to be relegated five times from the division.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The yo-yo effect continued unabated: in May 2021, Norwich were crowned winners of the Championship, securing promotion back to the top flight at the first time of asking,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> but they failed to win a match in their first nine games back in the Premier League in the 2021–22 season,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and Farke was dismissed by the club in November.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 14 November 2021, the club appointed former Walsall, Brentford and Aston Villa manager Dean Smith as their new head coach.<ref name="Dean Smith">Template:Cite news</ref> Norwich completed a record sixth relegation from the Premier League,<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref> and, after an indifferent first half of the following season, Smith was dismissed in December 2022.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 6 January 2023, the club appointed former Huddersfield Town, Schalke and Young Boys manager David Wagner as their new head coach.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After a thirteenth-place finish under Wagner in the 2022-23 season, the club improved to a sixth-placed finish in 2023-24 and qualified for the Championship playoffs. However, on 17 May 2024, Wagner was sacked by the club after fifteen months in charge following a 4–0 loss on aggregate against Leeds United in the playoff semi-finals.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 30 May 2024, the club appointed Johannes Hoff Thorup as their new head coach, who joined from Danish Superliga club FC Nordsjælland on a three-year contract ahead of the 2024–25 season.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However on 22 April 2025, the club sacked Thorup after only fourteen wins in forty seven games, with former Arsenal and England midfielder Jack Wilshere, who was previously appointed as a first team coach by the club in October 2024, taking charge for the remainder of the season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Wilshere also left the club on 24 May 2025 after being informed that he would not be appointed as the permanent head coach.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In June 2025, the club appointed Liam Manning as their new head coach on a four-year contract, after agreeing a compensation package with his former club Bristol City. Born in Norwich, Manning became the first person born in the city to manage the club, as well as the second Norfolk-born person to do so after Dave Stringer.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, Manning was sacked by the club in November 2025 after fifteen games in charge with the club twenty-third in the Championship table and with no home wins in all competitions. <ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In August 2025, Marcelino Núñez became the first player since Andy Marshall in the 2001–02 season to transfer from the club to East Anglian rivals Ipswich Town in a deal worth £10m that caused widespread outrage amongst the clubs fanbase.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In November 2025, the club appointed former Club Brugge, Monaco and Rangers manager Philippe Clement as their new head coach on a four-year contract.<ref>Template:Cite news </ref>
Colours and badge
Norwich City's nickname, "The Canaries", has long influenced the team's colours and badge. Originally, the club was nicknamed the "Citizens" ("Cits" for short), and played in light blue and white halved shirts,<ref name=earlyhistory/> although the halves were inconsistent: the blue was on the left on some shirts, and on the right for others.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The earliest known recorded link between the club and canaries comes in an interview recorded in the Eastern Daily Press with the newly appointed manager, John Bowman in April 1905. The paper quotes him saying "Well I knew of the City's existenceTemplate:Nbsp... I haveTemplate:Nbsp... heard of the canaries."<ref name = p24/> "This as far as we can tell is the first time that the popular pastime of the day ieTemplate:Nbsp... rearing ... canaries was linked with Norwich City FC... the club still played in blue and white, and would continue to do so for another two seasons" wrote one history of the club.<ref name=p24/>
By February 1907, the nickname Canaries had come more into vogue; thoughts that an FA Cup tie against West Bromwich Albion (nicknamed "Throstles" after a bird) was "a bird -singing contest" were dismissed by the polymath C. B. Fry as "humbug" but the national press increasingly referred to the team as Canaries.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The following season, to match the nickname, City played for the first time in Canary livery; "yellow shirts with green collars and cuffs. One paper produced the quote 'The Cits are dead but the Canaries are very much alive'."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> While the home colours of yellow and green remain to this day, the away colours have varied since introduction. For example, the away kit for the 2012–13 season was black shirts and shorts.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
A simple canary badge was first adopted in 1922.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The current club badge consists of a canary resting on a football with a stylised version of the City of Norwich arms in the top left corner.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> For the club's centenary celebrations in 2002, a special badge was designed, featuring two canaries looking left and right, plus a ribbon noting the centenary.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In November 2021, the club unveiled a new club badge that officially replaced the previous badge on all club branding from June 2022 and that would appear on club shirts from the 2022–23 season. It is a modernised version of its predecessor that removed black keylines around the badge, a redesigned version of the city's coat of arms that more closely resembles a lion and Norwich Castle, and a redesigned canary on a ball that's more centralised in the badge than its predecessor.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Stadium
Norwich City played at Newmarket Road from 1902 to 1908, with a record attendance of 10,366 against Sheffield Wednesday in a second round FA Cup match in 1908.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Following a dispute over the conditions of renting the Newmarket Road ground, in 1908 the club moved to a new home in a converted disused chalk pit in Rosary Road which became known as "The Nest".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By the 1930s, the ground was too small for the growing crowds, and in 1935 the club moved to its current home in Carrow Road.<ref name=carrow>Template:Cite news</ref> The original stadium, "the largest construction job in the city since the building of Norwich Castle... was "miraculously" built in just 82 days... it was referred to [by club officials] as 'The eighth wonder of the world'"<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> An aerial photograph from August 1935 shows three sides of open terracing and a covered stand, with a Colman's Mustard advertisement painted on its roof, visible only from the air.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Another photograph, taken on a match day that same season, shows that a parking area was provided at the ground.<ref>Template:Cite AV media</ref>
Floodlights were erected at the ground in 1956, but their cost of £9,000 nearly sent the club into bankruptcy. The success in the 1959 FA Cup secured the financial status of the club and allowed a cover to be built over the South Stand. This was itself replaced in 2003 when a new 7,000 seat South stand was built in its place and subsequently renamed the Jarrold Stand.<ref name=carrow/>
1963 saw the record attendance for Carrow Road, with a crowd of 43,984 for a 6th round FA Cup match against Leicester City. After the Ibrox disaster in 1971, safety licences were required by clubs and this drastically reduced the ground's capacity to around 20,000. A two-tier terrace was built at the River End, and seats began to replace the terraces. By 1979 the stadium had a capacity of 28,392 with seats for 12,675. A fire in 1984 partially destroyed one of the stands, which eventually led to its complete demolition and replacement by 1987 of a new City Stand, which chairman Robert Chase described as "Coming to a football match within the City Stand is very much like going to the theatre – the only difference being that our stage is covered with grass".<ref name=carrow/> After the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 and the subsequent outcome of the Taylor Report in 1990, the stadium was converted to all-seater. It has a capacity of 27,150.<ref name="cap201920"/>
Supporters
Song
Template:Main The fans' song, On the Ball, City, is the oldest football song in the world still in use today; the song is older than the club itself, having probably been penned for Norwich Teachers or Caley's FC in the 1890s and adapted for Norwich City.<ref name=p24/> Although the first use of the tune and song is disputed, it had been adopted by 1902 and it remains in use today in part if not the whole.<ref name=p24>Template:Cite book</ref> The chorus is:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Cquote
People
While much of the support that the club enjoys is local, there are a number of expatriate fan clubs, notably in London and stretching from Scandinavia to countries further afield such as the United Arab Emirates, North Macedonia, Bermuda, Hong Kong, Thailand, Australia, and the United States.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The London supporters' club is known as the Capital Canaries, and was founded in 1975. They gather at The Old Red Lion in The Angel, Islington to watch live games.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The club also maintains a healthy celebrity support with celebrity cook Delia Smith and comedian Stephen Fry both having moved from being fans of the club to running it.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Actor Hugh Jackman is also a fan of the club, having been taken to Carrow Road as a child by his English mother, though he turned down an opportunity to become an investor in the club in 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Other well-known supporters include television presenter Simon Thomas, who is vice-president of the Norwich City Supporters Trust,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Norfolk-born musician, model and media personality Myleene Klass, fiction author Philip Pullman, and former Labour politician Ed Balls.<ref name="Iwannaliveforever">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Journalist and broadcaster David Frost also declared his love for The Canaries during his lifetime.<ref name="Iwannaliveforever"/>
In March 2018, supporters helped the club raise £5 million through a mini-bond investment scheme.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The purpose of the mini-bond, called the Canaries Bond<ref name="Bailey">Template:Cite news</ref> was to raise money to fund new academy facilities at Colney Training Ground for the Norwich City F.C. Under-23s and Academy.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Local rivalry
Template:See also The club's main local rival is Ipswich Town. When Norwich and Ipswich meet it is known as the East Anglian derby, or, informally, as the "Old Farm Derby" – a comic reference to the Old Firm derby played between Scottish clubs Celtic and Rangers.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Locally, much is made of the informal title "Pride of Anglia". Fans variously claim the title for either winning the East Anglian derby, finishing highest in the league, having the better current league position or having the more successful club history.
Current ownership
Norwich City F.C. is a public limited company that, in 2003, comprised approximately 8,000 individual shareholdings.<ref name=ownership>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:As of, the group Norfolk Holdings, led by American businessman and Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio are the majority shareholders, having taken over from the former majority shareholders, English cook and television presenter Delia Smith and her husband, Welsh writer Michael Wynn-Jones, who had held the title since 1998.<ref name=Watling/><ref name="ClubSale">Template:Cite news</ref>
At the 2006–07 Norwich City FC Annual General Meeting (on 18 January 2007), Smith and Wynn-Jones announced that they would be open to offers to buy their majority stake-holding in the club. They made clear that any prospective buyer would have to invest heavily in the squad, with regards to team improving.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In September 2022, a general meeting of shareholders took place to discuss and voted for Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio to be appointed as a director at the club.<ref name="Attanasio">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Itson">Template:Cite web</ref> Attanasio was expected to buy the 15.9% stake in the club as was owned by Michael Foulger.<ref name="Itson"/> It was later announced by the club he had purchased shares from a variety of holders, which included Foulger's shares, as part of his investment group, “Norfolk Holdings”.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In April 2024, Attanasio's stake in the club was increased to 40.4% following EFL ratification, making him joint majority shareholder alongside Smith and Wynn-Jones.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 12 August 2024, the club announced that a deal had been reached for Attanasio to increase his stake to 85% and take majority control of the club, subject to takeover panel and shareholder approval. As part of the deal, Smith and Wynn-Jones would also stand down from their respective roles as club directors and become honorary life presidents as well as reduce their stake in the club to 10%.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The deal was approved by the clubs other shareholders at a general meeting on 23 October 2024 with Smith & Wynn-Jones stepping down from the board of directors with immediate effect, bringing their twenty-eight years of involvement with the club to an end.<ref name="ClubSale"/>
Records and statistics
Ashman holds the record for Norwich league appearances, having played 592 first-team matches between 1947 and 1964.<ref name="SoccerbaseRecords"/> Ralph Hunt holds the record for the most goals scored in a season, 31 in the 1955–56 season in the Third Division South, with Johnny Gavin the top scorer over a career – 122 between 1948 and 1955<ref name="SoccerbaseRecords"/>
The club's widest victory margin in the league was their 10–2 win against Coventry City in the Third Division South in 1930.<ref name="SoccerbaseRecords"/> Their heaviest defeat in the league was 10–2 against Swindon Town in 1908 in the Southern League.<ref name="SoccerbaseRecords"/>
Norwich's record home attendance is 43,984 for a sixth-round FA Cup match against Leicester City on 30 March 1963.<ref name="SoccerbaseRecords"/> In the wake of the Ibrox stadium disaster in 1971, government regulations resulted in the capacity being drastically reduced to around 20,000.<ref name=carrow/> After the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 and the subsequent Taylor Report in 1990, the stadium was converted to all-seater.<ref name=stadium>Template:Cite web</ref> As of July 2020, the capacity is 27,359.<ref name="cap201920"/> Norwich's highest transfer fee received is £33 million from Aston Villa for Emiliano Buendía in June 2021, while the most spent by the club on a player was for the signing of Christos Tzolis for £8.8 million from PAOK FC in August 2021.<ref name="SoccerbaseRecords"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Norwich's highest league finish was third in the Premier League in 1992–93.<ref name=stadium/> The 2021–22 season was Norwich's 27th in the top flight of English football. The club has won the League Cup twice (most recently in 1985) and reached the FA Cup semi-final three times, most recently in 1992.<ref name=stadium/> Norwich have taken part in European competition once, reaching the third round of the UEFA Cup in 1993–94 and are the only English side to beat Bayern Munich in the Olympiastadion.<ref name=8695history/>
Players
First-team squad
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Out on loan
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Development squad
This team is made up of under-21 and academy players and is limited to three outfield players and one goalkeeper over the age of 21 per game.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In March 2018, the public mini-bond investment scheme mentioned above raised £5 million.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Bailey"/> With this investment, the club installed new pitches at its Category 1 Academy, as well as a new irrigation system, cameras for analysis and floodlights, a new main building, with a gym, classrooms, physios room, changing rooms and offices. A stand was also installed next to the main Academy pitch.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Notable players
- Past (and present) players who are the subjects of Wikipedia articles can be found here
During the club's centenary season, a "Hall of Fame" was created, honouring 100 former players chosen by fan vote. Further players have since been inducted into the Norwich City Hall of Fame.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Greatest Ever Norwich City XI (1902–2008)
In 2008, supporters cast votes to determine the greatest ever Norwich City team.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- Kevin Keelan (1963–1980)
- Ian Culverhouse (1985–1994)
- Steve Bruce (1984–1987)
- Duncan Forbes (1968–1981)
- Mark Bowen (1987–1996)
- Darren Huckerby (2003–2008)
- Ian Crook (1986–1997)
- Martin Peters (1975–1980)
- Darren Eadie (1993–1999)
- Chris Sutton (1991–1994)
- Iwan Roberts (1997–2004)
Players of the Season
Every year, fans vote for whom they believe to have been the player of the season.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Club staff
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Backroom staff
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Head Coach | Template:Flagicon Philippe Clement |
| Assistant Head Coach | Template:Flagicon Stephan Van Der Heyden |
| First Team Coach | Template:Flagicon Ryan Garry |
| Set Piece Coach | Template:Flagicon Nick Stanley |
| Head of Goalkeeping | Template:Flagicon Tony Roberts |
| Head of Football Development | Template:Flagicon Dean Rastrick |
Board of directors
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Majority Shareholder | Template:Flagicon Mark Attanasio |
| Honorary Life Presidents | Template:Flagicon Delia Smith |
| Template:Flagicon Michael Wynn-Jones | |
| Directors | Template:Flagicon Richard Ressler |
| Template:Flagicon Thomas Smith | |
| Executive Director | Template:Flagicon Zoe Webber |
| Sporting Director | Template:Flagicon Ben Knapper |
| Technical Director | Template:Flagicon Neil Adams |
| Head of Operations & Projects | Template:Flagicon Greg Pillinger |
| Finance Director | Template:Flagicon Anthony Richens |
| Commercial Director | Template:Flagicon Sam Jeffrey |
| Legal and Governance Director | Template:Flagicon James Hill |
| Source:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
Managers
- Template:Updated. Not including caretaker managers. Only professional, competitive matches are counted.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
| Name | Nationality | From | To | G | W | D | L | %W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Bowman | Template:ENG | 1 August 1905 | 31 July 1907 | |||||
| James McEwen | Template:ENG | 1 August 1907 | 31 May 1908 | |||||
| Arthur Turner | Template:ENG | 1 August 1909 | 31 May 1910 | |||||
| Bert Stansfield | Template:ENG | 1 August 1910 | 31 May 1915 | |||||
| Frank Buckley | Template:ENG | 1 August 1919 | 1 July 1920 | |||||
| Charles O'Hagan | Template:IRE | 1 July 1920 | 1 January 1921 | |||||
| Bert Gosnell | Template:ENG | 1 January 1921 | 28 February 1926 | |||||
| Bert Stansfield | Template:ENG | 1 March 1926 | 1 November 1926 | |||||
| Cecil Potter | Template:ENG | 1 November 1926 | 1 January 1929 | |||||
| James Kerr | Template:ENG | 1 April 1929 | 28 February 1933 | |||||
| Tom Parker | Template:ENG | 1 March 1933 1 May 1955 |
1 February 1937 31 March 1957 | |||||
| Bob Young | Template:ENG | 1 February 1937 1 September 1939 |
31 December 1938 31 May 1946 | |||||
| Jimmy Jewell | Template:ENG | 1 January 1939 | 1 September 1939 | |||||
| Duggie Lochhead | Template:SCO | 1 December 1945 | 1 March 1950 | |||||
| Cyril Spiers | Template:ENG | 1 June 1946 | 1 December 1947 | |||||
| Norman Low | Template:SCO | 1 May 1950 | 30 April 1955 | |||||
| Archie Macaulay | Template:SCO | 1 April 1957 | 1 October 1961 | |||||
| Willie Reid | Template:SCO | 1 December 1961 | 1 May 1962 | |||||
| George Swindin | Template:ENG | 1 May 1962 | 30 November 1962 | |||||
| Ron Ashman | Template:ENG | 1 December 1962 | 31 May 1966 | |||||
| Lol Morgan | Template:ENG | 1 June 1966 | 1 May 1969 | |||||
| Ron Saunders | Template:ENG | 1 July 1969 | 16 November 1973 | |||||
| John Bond | Template:ENG | 27 November 1973 | 31 October 1980 | |||||
| Ken Brown | Template:ENG | 1 November 1980 | 9 November 1987 | |||||
| Dave Stringer | Template:ENG | 9 November 1987 | 1 May 1992 | |||||
| Mike Walker | Template:WAL | 1 June 1992 21 June 1996 |
6 January 1994 30 April 1998 | |||||
| John Deehan | Template:ENG | 12 January 1994 | 31 July 1995 | |||||
| Martin O'Neill | Template:NIR | August 1995 | December 1995 | |||||
| Gary Megson | Template:ENG | December 1995 | 21 June 1996 | |||||
| Bruce Rioch | Template:SCO | 12 June 1998 | 13 March 2000 | |||||
| Bryan Hamilton | Template:NIR | 5 April 2000 | 4 December 2000 | |||||
| Nigel Worthington | Template:NIR | 4 December 2000 | 2 October 2006 | |||||
| Peter Grant | Template:SCO | 13 October 2006 | 9 October 2007 | |||||
| Glenn Roeder | Template:ENG | 30 October 2007 | 14 January 2009 | |||||
| Bryan Gunn | Template:SCO | 16 January 2009 | 13 August 2009 | |||||
| Paul Lambert | Template:SCO | 18 August 2009 | 2 June 2012 | |||||
| Chris Hughton | Template:IRE | 6 June 2012 | 6 April 2014 | |||||
| Neil Adams | Template:ENG | 6 April 2014 | 5 January 2015 | |||||
| Alex Neil | Template:SCO | 9 January 2015 | 10 March 2017 | |||||
| Daniel Farke | Template:GER | 25 May 2017 | 6 November 2021 | |||||
| Dean Smith | Template:ENG | 15 November 2021 | 27 December 2022 | |||||
| David Wagner | Template:USA | 6 January 2023 | 17 May 2024 | |||||
| Johannes Hoff Thorup | Template:DEN | 30 May 2024 | 22 April 2025 | |||||
| Liam Manning | Template:ENG | 3 June 2025 | 8 November 2025 | |||||
| Philippe Clement | Template:BEL | 18 November 2025 | Present | |||||
Honours
Norwich City have won a number of honours:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
League
- Second Division / First Division / Championship (level 2)Template:Efn
- Third Division South / League One (level 3)
Cup
European football
Friendship Trophy
Each time they meet, Norwich and Sunderland contest the Friendship Trophy, a game dating back to the camaraderie forged between fans of the two clubs at the time of the 1985 League Cup final that they contested.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Sunderland are the current champions as of 21 December 2024 having won 2-1 at the Stadium of Light.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In popular culture
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In 1972 the Children's Film Foundation released a movie called The Boy Who Turned Yellow about a boy living in London who supports Norwich City. In the film, he and everyone and everything else on his tube train are turned yellow. That night he is visited by a yellow alien called Nick, short for electronic, who teaches him all about electricity. The link to the football club is used to explain why the boy already has so many yellow things in his bedroom.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In the 2001 film Mike Bassett: England Manager,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the eponymous hero, played by Ricky Tomlinson, rises to prominence as a result of success as manager of Norwich City, having won the 'Mr Clutch Cup'. The celebratory scenes of the open-top bus ride around the city were actually shot in St Albans, Hertfordshire, rather than Norwich.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Norwich City Women
Norwich City Women is the women's football club affiliated to Norwich City.<ref name="ladies">Template:Cite web</ref> Since 2022, the general manager is Flo Allen,<ref name="programme">Template:Cite web</ref> and they currently compete in Division One South East,<ref name="programme"/> in the fourth tier of English women's football.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Norwich City Women play their home games at The Nest, a Template:Convert site at Horsford.<ref name="programme"/><ref name="Nes">Template:Cite web</ref>
Notes
References
Further reading
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External links
Template:Norwich City F.C. Template:Norwich City F.C. seasons Template:Premier League Template:EFL Championship Template:EFL League One Template:Authority control
- Pages with broken file links
- Norwich City F.C.
- Articles with hAudio microformats
- Association football clubs established in 1902
- Football clubs in England
- EFL Cup winners
- Southern Football League clubs
- Premier League clubs
- 1902 establishments in England
- Norfolk & Suffolk League
- English Football League clubs
- United League (football)
- Football clubs in Norwich