Nottingham Forest F.C.

Nottingham Forest Football Club, based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, is a professional club that currently plays in the Premier League. Founded in 1865, they have called the City Ground home since 1898. Forest boasts a remarkable European pedigree: they have won the European Cup (now the UEFA Champions League) twice, making them one of only six English clubs to lift the trophy. Remarkably, they are the only European side to have won the competition more often than their domestic league title (one). Their trophy cabinet also includes one UEFA Super Cup, one League title, two FA Cups, four League Cups, and one FA Charity Shield.

The club's golden era arrived under the management of Brian Clough and his assistant Peter Taylor in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Clough's side won back-to-back European Cups in 1979 and 1980, a feat that remains the pinnacle of the club's history. In Clough's final decade, Forest added League Cup triumphs in 1989 and 1990, and were runners-up in the 1991 FA Cup and 1992 League Cup. Relegation from the Premier League followed in 1993, but they bounced back immediately, finishing third in the 1995 Premier League. Further relegations in 1997 and 1999 preceded a long absence from the top flight, ended by a play-off victory in 2022.

Forest's main rivalry is with Derby County, contested in the East Midlands derby. Since 2007, the winner of that fixture receives the Brian Clough Trophy, honoring the legendary manager who led both clubs. [edit]

Nottingham Forest were founded on a winter night in 1865 when a group of shinty players gathered at the Clinton Arms on Shakespeare Street. J.S. Scrimshaw proposed they switch to football, and 15 founding members agreed. At that same meeting, they chose Garibaldi Red as the club colour, inspired by the Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi and his redshirt fighters. Initially the colour appeared only on tasselled caps; red shirts came later. The club name came from the Forest Recreation Ground, a public park north of the city centre where they first played.

Forest joined the Football Alliance in 1889 and entered the Football League in 1892. They won their first FA Cup in 1898, beating Derby County 3-1 in the final at the Crystal Palace. The club moved to the City Ground in 1898, a riverside stadium they have occupied ever since. A second FA Cup arrived in 1959 under manager Billy Walker, with a 2-1 victory over Luton Town.

The most transformative moment came in 1975, when Brian Clough was appointed manager. Clough, who had won the league with Derby County, brought his assistant Peter Taylor with him. Within two seasons they won promotion from the Second Division, and in 1977-78 they won the First Division title. The following year Forest won the European Cup, beating Malmö 1-0 in Munich, and retained the trophy in 1979-80 with a 1-0 win over Hamburg in Madrid. That team, featuring Peter Shilton, Viv Anderson, John Robertson and Trevor Francis, remains the most decorated in the club's history.

After Clough's departure in 1993, Forest yo-yoed between divisions. They finished third in the Premier League in 1995 under Frank Clark, but were relegated in 1997 and again in 1999. A 23-year top-flight exile followed, punctuated by near misses in the Championship play-offs. Steve Cooper ended that drought in 2022, guiding Forest to promotion via a 1-0 play-off final win over Huddersfield Town at Wembley. [edit]