Portsmouth FC are a professional football club based in Portsmouth, England. They currently play in the Championship, the second tier of the English pyramid.

Portsmouth's glory years were way back in the 1930s and 40s, winning the FA Cup in 1939 and league championship in 1948/49 and 1949/50.

Portsmouth played in the Premier League as recently as 2010 and were regulars in the division throughout the 2000s.

Under the guidance of Harry Redknapp, Portsmouth qualified for European football and were a force to be reckoned with, winning the FA Cup in 2008.

England stars such as Glen Johnson, Jermaine Defoe, Peter Crouch and David James starred for Pompey, but the club got into financial difficulties and plummeted through the divisions, dropping as low as League 2 by 2013/14.

Portsmouth stabilised and began to slowly claw their way back through the divisions, winning League Two in 2016/17 and League One in 2023/24. They also won the EFL trophy along the way in 2019.

After a 12-year absence from the second tier, Portsmouth returned to the Championship for the 2024/25 season and, despite having one of the division's lowest budgets, avoided relegation with just two matches to spare.

Portsmouth early history

Portsmouth Football Club was founded in 1898 and Fratton Park, their home ground today still, was opened shortly over a year after the formation of the club.

Pompey, as they are affectionately known, were the winners of the Southern Football League in 1901/02 and 1919/20. The club also emerged as the winners of the Western Football League in 1900/01, 1901/02 and 1902/03.

In 1920, Portsmouth joined the national English Football League system. After earning promotion from the Second Division in the 1926/27 campaign, Portsmouth became the first club based South of London to win a place in the First Division.

What followed was a 32-year run in the First Division which would yield great success which arguably remains the pride of Portsmouth Football Club to date.

Portsmouth made the FA Cup final for the third time in the 1938/39 season under the guidance of manager Jack Tinn. Bert Barlow and John 'Jock' Anderson scored, while Cliff Parker netted two goals as Pompey beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 4-1 in the final to pick up the trophy.

Manager Jack Tinn reportedly hid the FA Cup under his bed during World War II as the threat of bombs was serious. The FA Cup was held by Pompey until after the end of the Second World War.

However, Pompey’s success continued after the war. Ernest Butler, Phil Rookes, Harry Ferrier, Jimmy Scoular, Reg Flewin, Jimmy Dickinson, Peter Harris, Duggie Reid, Ike Clarke, Len Phillips, Jack Froggatt, Jasper Yeuell, Lindy Delapenha, Bert Barlow and Cliff Parker made up the team which won the top flight title in 1948/49, beating Manchester United to the prize to become English champions for the very first time.

In 1949/50, Portsmouth were once again crowned champions. They finished on 53 points, level with runners-up Wolverhampton Wanderers, and won the league title on Goal Average. Sunderland finished close behind on 52 points.

Portsmouth finished seventh the following season and never got their hands on the top flight title again to date.

In 1957/58, they avoided relegation on Goal Average, but Pompey finished bottom of the First Division during the following season and were relegated, bringing to an end a 32-year run in the top flight.

Several relegations and financial woes followed during the course of the next two decades. At the end of the 1977/78 season, they finished bottom of the Third Division and were relegated to the Fourth Division.

In 1978/79, Pompey finished a lowly seventh in the Fourth Division. Manager Jimmy Dickinson suffered a heart attack and was replaced by Frank Burrows.

Portsmouth's rise and fall in the 80s and 90s

Under the guidance of Burrows, Portsmouth were promoted to the Third Division after finishing the 1979/80 season in fourth place.

In 1983, three seasons later, Pompey won the Third Division title and gained promotion back up to the Second Division.

In 1983/84, Portsmouth finished 16th in the Second Division table. Alan Ball took over as manager from Bobby Campbell after the campaign.

Under Ball, Pompey’s results took a turn for the better. After successive fourth-place finishes in the Second Division, Portsmouth were promoted to the First Division after finishing as runners-up to Derby County in the 1986/87 season.

In 1987/88, by the middle of the First Division season, Portsmouth were once again in financial turmoil. They were relegated back to the Second Division and chairman John Deacon sold the club to former Queens Park Rangers chairman Jim Gregory in 1988.

Between 1988 and 2003, Portsmouth languished in the second tier. There were more financial troubles in the late 1990s, but Milan Mandaric saved the club in May 1999.

Portsmouth and the Premier League years

Kanu and Sol Campbell with the FA Cup

Portsmouth won promotion to the Premier League as champions at the end of the 2002/03 season under the guidance of Harry Redknapp.

They finished 13th in their first season in the Premier League. However, Redknapp left the club in November 2004 following a fallout with Mandaric.

Portsmouth survived relegation in the 2004/05 season, but looked set to drop back down to the Championship in 2005/06. Redknapp was re-appointed as a replacement for Alain Perrin.

Redknapp was able to keep Pompey in the top flight, pulling off the great escape.

In January 2006, Portsmouth were sold by Milan Mandaric. The club was purchased by businessman Alexandre Gaydamak and there were several big signings made, including Benjani and Andres D’Alessandro.

In 2006/07, Portsmouth rose to the top half of the Premier League and finished only one point off European qualification.

Then, in 2007/08, they finished eighth in the Premier League and won the FA Cup, beating Cardiff City in the final with Nigerian legend Nwankwo Kanu scoring the winner.

Although he guided Portsmouth into the 2008/09 UEFA Cup, Redknapp left the club in October 2008 and took the reins at Tottenham Hotspur.

Portsmouth went into freefall and were soon plagued by financial trouble once again.

In 2009/10, they went into administration and were relegated from the Premier League. Even so, there was one last bright moment as they made the final of the FA Cup, losing 1-0 to Chelsea under the guidance of former Blues manager Avram Grant.

Portsmouth's rise from the ashes

Portsmouth spent just two seasons in the Championship before being relegated to League One at the end of the 2011/12 campaign.

Portsmouth subsequently dropped down to the fourth tier after finishing bottom of the League One table and going into administration at the end of the 2012/13 campaign. It meant they would be playing at the League Two level for the first time in 33 years.

The Pompey Supporters' Trust (PST) reached an agreement to buy Portsmouth and pulled the club out of administration. They then avoided a further relegation in the 2013/14 finishing 13th.

In September 2014, the club declared itself debt free and two seasons later were promoted as champions in the 2016/17 campaign under manager Paul Cook.

Cook left for Wigan in May 2017 and in the same month PST accepted a bid from The Tornante Company, headed by former Disney chief executive Michael Eisner.

The takeover was completed in August 2017 and the club continued to unsuccessfully challenge for promotion for the next six seasons. They did win the 2019 EFL trophy beating Sunderland on penalties in the final.

In January 2023, 39-year-old John Mousinho was named as the new Portsmouth manager, his first managerial role.

He steered the club to an eighth-place finish in the 2022/23 campaign and then the League One title in the following season.

In Portsmouth's first season back in the Championship the club finished 16th, despite having one of the division's lowest budgets, staying clear of relegation with two games to spare.

Portsmouth were six points adrift of safety after 15 matches with just one win to their name, but the club stuck with Mousinho and he turned their fortunes around, which included the club claiming 11 home wins from November 2024.

Portsmouth rivalries

Southampton are Portsmouth’s main rivals. The Saints acquired the services of Harry Redknapp after he left Portsmouth the first time, much to the chagrin of Pompey supporters. However, he ultimately returned to his “spiritual home”.

Portsmouth fanbase

Portsmouth have a famously supportive fanbase known for chants such as “Play up Pompey, Pompey play up”.

Portsmouth finances

Financial problems have plagued Portsmouth for much of their history, but now appear to be under a more stable footing with Michael Eisner as the club’s chairman.

Portsmouth's financial accounts for the year ended June 2024 show an overall loss of £5.6m, up £2.6m compared to the previous year.

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After years of financial uncertainty, former league champions and FA Cup winners Portsmouth are working their way back up the English Football League.

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