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Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, is an association football club based in Coventry, England. Coventry City were founding members of the Premier League in 1992.
They currently play in the Football League Championship, the second-highest tier of the English league system. Their only major trophy was won in 1987 when they beat Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 to win the FA Cup, a game often cited as one of best FA Cup Finals of all time. They also reached two League Cup semi-finals in 1981 and 1989.
From 1899 to 2005, Coventry City played at the Highfield Road stadium. During the 1980s it became the first all-seater stadium in English football, but by the end of the following decade the club's directors decided it was time to build a bigger stadium and chose a site in the Foleshill area of the city. The Ricoh Arena was opened in August 2005.
1901 - The club suffer their worst ever defeat with a disappointing 11-2 loss against Worcester-based Berwick Rangers in the qualifying round of the FA Cup.
1919 - The club are voted into the Football League, where they have remained ever since.
1928 - In the cold of February and with Coventry struggling near the foot of Division Three South, the club's worst ever attendance is recorded. Only 2,059 turn up for the match against Crystal Palace.
1932 - Centre-forward Clarrie Bourton heads the Football League scoring lists with 49 goals. The following season he scored 40 goals.
1934 - City record their biggest ever victory a 9-0 league drubbing of Bristol City.
1936 - Coventry City win the Third Division South championship after a nail-biting final day 2-1 victory over Torquay United and return to Division Two after eleven years in the lower division.
1958 - Goalkeeper Alf Wood becomes the oldest player to start a game for the club, this year founding members of Division Four (now Football League Two). He played against Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup aged 43 years and 207 days.
1961 - Former Fulham player and P.F.A. chairman Jimmy Hill is appointed manager following an embarrassing FA Cup defeat to Kings Lynn.
1967 - Coventry City promoted from Division Two to the top flight for the first time in their history. This made manager, and BBC Sport presenter Jimmy Hill a legend at the club. Coventry's record attendance was also set in this year - 51,455 against Wolverhampton Wanderers, the team which Coventry would only just finish above at the top of the table.
1970 - Coventry qualified for the European Fairs Cup but lost 7-3 on aggregate in the 2nd round to Bayern Munich, despite winning the second leg 2-1 at Highfield Road.
2007 - Coventry narrowly avoided administration when Ray Ranson took over the club at the last minute.
2008 - The club celebrates its 125th anniversary and avoids relegation to League One despite being beat 4-1 at Charlton on the final day of the season.
Playing Kit
Coventry's home shirts are now always sky blue. However this hasn't always been the case. During the 1880s and 1890s, the club used black and red. Sky blue was first used by Coventry in 1898, the sky blue theme was then used until 1922, the colour made its return in 1962 thanks to the then manager, Jimmy Hill. This season, Coventry are using sky blue and white stripes, a design that has been used three times this millennium. This is a contrast to the late 1990s where sky blue and navy stripes were chosen three times. To mark the 125th year of the club, Coventry will wear a special brown shirt on the last day of the 2008-09 season against Watford. The choice of a brown kit is owed to the infamous brown Admiral kit that Coventry had worn in the 1970s.
Fans
Former Players Association
In February 2007 a Former Players Association was launched. Set up by club historian Jim Brown, former 1980s player Kirk Stephens and a committee of enthusiastic volunteers, its aim was to bring former players of the club together and cherish their memories. Around 50 former stars of the club attended the launch including Coventry City legends George Hudson, Cyrille Regis, Charlie Timmins and Bill Glazier. By February 2008 almost 120 former players had joined the association. The association's first newsletter was published in autumn 2007 and a website www.ccfpa.co.uk had been launched.
Sky Blue Sam
Sky Blue Sam is Coventry City's mascot. Famed for his (or her) acrobatics, including forward rolls and backflips.
Sky Blue anthem
The club song was written in 1962 by manager Jimmy Hill and director John Camkin. It was launched at the home game with Colchester on 22 December 1962 (a match abandoned at half-time because of fog)with the words printed in the programme. It quickly became popular with supporters during the epic FA Cup run in 1963 when the Third Division team reached the Sixth Round of the FA Cup before losing to eventual winners Manchester United. To the tune of the Eton Boating Song:
Coventry City began playing at the Highfield Road stadium in 1899, although the club did not buy the freehold to the site until 1937. The record crowd at the ground was on 29 April 1967 when 51,452 watched the Second Division title decider against Wolverhampton Wanderers. This was more than 6,000 more than the previous record set against Aston Villa in 1938. The ground has an interesting history. In 1940 it was bombed by Luftwaffe planes. In 1968, the main stand burnt down and new stand to replace it built within four months. In 1981, Highfield Road was converted into England's first ever all-seater stadium with a capacity of just under 21,000 . It had been gradually upgraded since then, with the final phase of work being completed in the mid-1990s, including fully-enclosed corners. The final game played at the stadium was against Derby County F.C. on 30 April 2005, with Coventry winning the game with a 6–2 scoreline. On an emotional day, the final goal at Highfield Road was fittingly scored by a homegrown youngster Andrew Whing. Other goals came from Trinidad and Tobago international Stern John, Dele Adebola, and Coventry-born player Gary McSheffrey, who scored two of the goals. One of these was from a penalty given away by the ex-City captain Mo Konjic
Relocating to Ricoh Arena
For the 2005–06 season, Coventry City moved to the new 32,609 capacity Ricoh Arena after 106 years at Highfield Road. In 1998, the club had decided that it was time to relocate to a new stadium in the Foleshill area of the city, three miles north of the city centre and close to the M6 motorway. The original plan was for a state-of-the-art 45,000-seater, multipurpose stadium with removable pitch and retractable roof. It was due to be ready for the 2001–02 season. However, relegation, financial problems, financier/contractor withdrawals and England's failure to secure the 2006 World Cup competition led to a radical redesign. Despite initiating the project and being the principal attraction there, Coventry City's financial situation means that they no longer own the stadium and must pay rent to use it.
The stadium naming rights were originally sold to Jaguar Cars which has strong links with Coventry. Jaguar Cars pulled out of the project on 16 December 2004 and a new major sponsor was needed. A £10 million deal, which included naming rights, was signed and electronics manufacturer Ricoh became the new chief sponsor for the stadium. The project was funded largely by Coventry City Council & the (Alan Edward) Higgs Charity (of which former CCFC and current ACL director Sir Derek Higgs is a trustee), and includes shopping facilities, a casino, exhibition halls and a concert venue.
At the beginning of the 2005-06 season, construction delays at the ground forced Coventry City to play their first three games of the season away and postpone their home games. On Saturday 20 August 2005, City hosted Queens Park Rangers F.C. in the first-ever game at the Ricoh Arena. Coventry won the game 3–0, the first goal at the Ricoh Arena being scored by Claus Bech Jorgensen, with an 11th-minute diving header. Dele Adebola then added two more for the Sky Blues.
Cashless Till System
The Ricoh Arena hosts a cashless till system inside the football stadium, which is the first of its kind in the country. You top up (very similar to pay as you go mobiles) and present your card at the till and your purchased items i.e Pie and chips are deducted from your credit. There is also a £2 deposit taken for the card itself which is refundable at any time.
Current squad
As of 26 November 2008.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Ray Ranson
Chris Coleman
Current season
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TBA
