Newcastle United Football Club
St. James' Park, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, NE1 4ST
Tel: 0191 261 1571
Founded: 1892 | Nickname: The Magpies, The Toon | Ground: St. James' Park | Capacity: 52,387
Newcastle United fans have had a rollercoaster time since the inception of the Premier League. When Kevin Keegan took over the reins in 1992, the club was on the brink of relegation to the old Division Three. But under his management, they romped to the title and took their place in the FA Carling Premiership in time for the 1993-94 season.
With a goal-hungry Andy Cole and veteran Peter Beardsley at the forefront of an attacking team, they were dubbed "The Entertainers". Attack was the first form of defence and it worked as the North East outfit finished third in their first season. They went even closer two years later. Leading Manchester United by 12 points, they eventually slipped to second.
Signing Alan Shearer for a world record £15million eased the Toon Army's disappointment and again they were runners-up. Managerial upheaval has seen the club fail to reach those dizzy heights since, but much is expected under new manager Sam Allardyce. St James' Park is the only Barclays Premier League stadium not to have a scoreboard of any kind.
In 1881, Stanley Cricket Club formed a football team to occupy themselves in winter. A year later, they changed their name to East End FC, turning professional in 1889. In 1892, they took over fierce rivals West End and moved into their ground - St James' Park. And on December 22nd, the FA approved the name Newcastle United.
The Magpies joined the Football League in 1893 and swiftly became one of the game's giants - winning three league titles and an FA Cup by 1914. In 1934 they were relegated though - despite memorably defeating Liverpool 9-2 and Everton 7-3. The Magpies started to rebuild, helped enormously by former stars Stan Seymour and Joe Harvey, as director and manager respectively.
The end of the Second World War saw the birth of another great team. Newcastle signed Jackie Milburn after he responded to their advert for trialists, and with his help, they lifted the FA Cup three times in five years. They also recorded the highest victory in English League football, 13-0 over Newport County.
European success followed when the Magpies won the Fairs Cup - re-named the Uefa Cup in 1969 - despite a brief spell in Division Two, and in 1971 Malcolm Macdonald was signed from Luton Town. Devastating in front of goal, 'Supermac' led the Magpies to Wembley twice - in the FA Cup in 1974 and League Cup in 1976 - and quickly established himself as a Newcastle legend. The club have had their ups and downs since then but players such as Kevin Keegan, Paul Gascoigne and Chris Waddle have seen them maintain their ethos of attractive and attacking football.
1992-93 - Promoted to FA Carling Premiership as Division One Champions
1994-95 - Sell Andy Cole to Manchester United for English record transfer fee of £7million.
1995-96 - FA Carling Premiership runners-up
1996-97 - Sign Alan Shearer for world record £15million. Manager Kevin Keegan quits in January. Replaced by Kenny Dalglish. FA Carling Premiership runners-up.
1997-98 - Lose FA Cup Final 2-0 to Arsenal
1998-99 - Ruud Gullit replaces Dalglish. Lose FA Cup final 2-0 to Manchester United
1999-00 - Bobby Robson replaces Gullit. Wins first match 8-0 against Sheffield Wednesday
2004-05 - Robson sacked. Replaced by Graeme Souness
2005-06 - Sign Michael Owen for club record £17million. Souness sacked, replaced by Glenn Roeder. Shearer becomes record goalscorer - overtaking Jackie Milburn's tally of 200. Retires having scored 206 goals for Newcastle
2006-07 - Roeder sacked with one game of the Barclays Premier League season to go. Sam Allardyce appointed two days after season ends. June 26 - Mike Ashley and St. James' Holdings gain 90% of shares, enough to takeover the club
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