Club History

Formed in 1905 by a group of local teenagers, Charlton Athletic rapidly grew, creating decades of history that our supporters can be truly proud of.

From our rise to the top flight in the 1930s and winning the FA Cup in the 1940s, to leaving The Valley in the 1980s and the fans leading the fight to come home in the 1990s, it can all be found in our interactive timeline which tells the whole story of the Addicks. 

Just click on one of the eras on the right-hand side to learn more about the history of Charlton…

Why ‘the Addicks’?

Charlton have had a number of preferred nicknames over the years including the ‘Valiants’ and the ‘Robins’, but the ‘Addicks’ is the one that has stuck.

Certainly one of the more unusual nicknames in football, it can be traced back to the club’s formative years and, more specifically, back to East Street, where the club was formed. It was there that a fishmongers was located, owned by Arthur Bryan.

Bryan supplied haddock and chips to players from both sides after Charlton’s matches and, with South London linguistics coming into play, that became ‘addick and chips’ and thus the Addicks (haddocks) nickname was born.

To find out more about Charlton's history, please visit the Charlton Athletic Museum.