Brentford

The club was founded in 1889 as an amateur team and they entered the London League in 1896. They earned promotion into the Southern League two years later and won the Second Division in 1900-01. 

They originally played at Clifden Road and bounced around different grounds for the first 15 years. In 1904 they settled into Griffin Park, a stone’s throw from the River Thames in the borough of Hounslow.

Located in a residential area, Griffin Park was well known as having a pub on each corner and the land was once the orchard for Fuller’s Brewery. 

Brentford moved out of Griffin Park and into Gtech Community Stadium in 2020. The new stadium also hosts the Premiership Rugby team London Irish and was used during the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 tournament. 

They have been nicknamed the Bees since the 1890s and their red and white striped kits have been around since 1925.

When they first entered the Football League in 1920 they were white with navy shorts but that changed five years later. 

Brentford at the Third Division

Under manager Harry Curtis, Brentford played in the Third Division until 1932-33 when they won the title and earned promotion.

Jack Holliday scored 38 goals that season, a still-standing Brentford season goals record. Two years later they won the Second Division title and made their first ever appearance in the top flight. 

Brentford had their best season as far as the standings go in 1935-36 when they finished fifth in the First Division.

They finished sixth in each of the next two seasons and also reached the sixth round of the FA Cup twice. They led the First Division into February of 1938 before falling to sixth place. 

After World War II, the Bees slumped through the 1946-47 season and got relegated. Curtis retired during the 1948-49 season and the team finished in sixth place as Jackie Gibbons took over as player manager. 

Gibbons kept the team in the top half of the Second Division before he resigned leading into the 1952-53 season.

They lasted just one more season before being relegated to the Third Division on the final day of the 1954 season. They sold off some popular players to pay off debts while playing in the bottom tier. 

Jim Towers and George Francis both had 20-plus goal seasons to keep Brentford in the top half and they were nicknamed the Terrible Twins. Malky MacDonald took over as manager and Towers won the 1959 Golden Boot with 37 goals. 

Brentford in the 60s

The 1960s started with disaster as mounting debts and boardroom changes led to seven players being changed out.

They were relegated to the Fourth Division after finishing in the bottom two in 1961-62. They immediately won the division and went back up but they ended up back in the Fourth Division after the 1965-66 season. 

In 1967 it was reported that the team was going to dissolve with hated rivals Queens Park Rangers taking over Griffin Park as their home stadium.

Fan protests and raised donations led to a new ownership group buying the team out of debt and saving the club. 

The team bounced back to the Third Division in 1972 but didn’t return to the second tier until the 1990s. Dean Holdsworth scored 38 goals in the 1991-92 season under Phil Holder as Brentford won the Third Division championship to go up for the first time since 1953-54. 

Holdsworth left as Brentford played in the newly named First Division and the team immediately went back down.

They made the playoffs multiple times over the next few years but didn’t go back up; in fact, they were relegated to the fourth tier in 1997-98. 

They went back up the next year and stayed until 2007 when they were relegated back to the fourth division, now known as League Two.