Chelsea FC History – How Chelsea was founded in 1905

Chelsea’s origins lay in the vision of Henry Augustus Mears and his brother J.T Mears to create a super-stadium to host prestigious sporting events.

Stamford Bridge officially opened in 1877 and was used by London Athletic club, from 1896 onwards the Mears had been looking to acquire the venue to pursue their vision but had to wait until the death of the original owner to secure it and start building their super-stadium.

Called Stamford Bridge in an amalgamation of the name of a stream near the Fulham Road and the bridge running over it, the stadium was oval in shape with a large East stand.

The stadium was to be designed by Archibald Leitch who was to become famous for designing some of the iconic British football stadiums including Ibrox, Anfield, Twickenham and Highbury.

Designed to hold nearly 100,000 fans, Stamford Bridge was the second largest

The stadium was originally offered to Fulham Football Club to rent but they refused, and on the 10^th of March 1905, was born during a meeting at the Rising Sun Public House (currently the Butchers Hook).

The club initially applied to join the Southern League but objections from other London clubs led to this application being rejected.

The club went out and bought its first players and the club applied to join the Football League on the basis of financial stability a super-stadium under construction and a strong team that the club together.

At the time of applying, the only club in London in the Football League was Woolwich Arsenal although they were soon joined by Chelsea Football Club who in May 1905 were elected to the Second Division of the Football League.