Full name | Southampton Football Club |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | The Saints |
Founded | 21 November 1885 | as St. Mary's Y.M.A.
Ground |
The Dell (1898–2001) St Mary's Stadium (since 2001) |
Capacity | 32,505 |
Owner | Katharina Liebherr |
Chairman | Ralph Krueger |
Manager | Mauricio Pellegrino |
League | Premier League |
2016–17 | Premier League, 8th of 20 |
Website | Club home page |
Southampton Football Club /saʊθˈæmptən, -hæmptən/ is a professional association football club based in Southampton, Hampshire, England, which plays in the Premier League, the top tier of English football.
Their home ground since 2001 has been St Mary's Stadium, before which they were based at The Dell. The club has been nicknamed "The Saints" since its inception in 1885 due to its history as a church football team, founded as St. Mary's Church of England Young Men's Association, and play in red and white shirts. Southampton has a long-standing rivalry with Portsmouth due to its close proximity and both cities' respective maritime history. Matches between the two sides are known as the South Coast derby.
The club has won the FA Cup once, in 1976, and their highest-ever league finish was second in the First Division in 1983–84. Southampton were relegated from the Premier League on 15 May 2005, ending 27 successive seasons of top-division football for the club. They returned after a seven-year absence, and have played there ever since.