On 30 May 2002 a group of supporters in south-west London decided they would not be left without a team. That is how AFC Wimbledon was born, a club owned by its own fans. On 30 May 2027 AFC Wimbledon turns 25.

When the team left town

The historic Wimbledon FC had been founded in 1889 and in 1988 lifted the FA Cup with the legendary "Crazy Gang". From 1991, however, it had left its ground, Plough Lane, and played as tenants at Crystal Palace's Selhurst Park.

In May 2002 a three-man independent FA commission approved, by two votes to one, the club's move to Milton Keynes. The FA and the Football League had opposed it, fearing it opened the door to "franchise" clubs. The club moved in 2003 and was renamed MK Dons in 2004.

A meeting in the pub

Many fans did not want to follow. Kris Stewart, Marc Jones, Trevor Williams and Ivor Heller met at the Fox and Grapes pub, on the edge of Wimbledon Common, to plan something new.

On 30 May 2002 a meeting of the independent supporters' association proposed a new, community-based club and launched an appeal for funds. The founders reckoned they would need about £15,000 for the first season. In the end, around £80,000 came in.

Trials in the park

On 29 June 2002 open trials were held on Wimbledon Common and 230 players turned up. The first manager was Terry Eames, who, as the story goes, at first thought the whole thing was a wind-up.

On 10 July 2002 the new team played its first friendly, against Sutton United. It lost 4-0, but 4,657 spectators were in the stands and kick-off was delayed twice by the crowds still arriving.

Blue, yellow and a double-headed eagle

AFC Wimbledon chose royal blue and yellow, the colours linked with the old Wimbledon's rise to the top of English football. Since 2002 the home shirt has been mostly blue with yellow details. The away shirt was white for the first two years and has usually been yellow since.

The crest is dominated by a double-headed eagle, borrowed from the coat of arms of the old Municipal Borough of Wimbledon. A local legend links it to Julius Caesar. The nicknames stayed the same, "The Dons" and "The Wombles", and Sports Interactive has sponsored the shirt since 2002.

From the ninth tier to the Football League

The rise was remarkable: the Combined Counties League title in 2004, the Isthmian First Division in 2005, promotion to the Conference South in 2008 and the title there in 2009. From 22 February 2003 to 4 December 2004 the team went unbeaten in 78 consecutive league games, a record in senior English football.

On 21 May 2011 it beat Luton on penalties after a 0-0 draw and entered the Football League a year ahead of its ten-year plan. On 30 May 2016, on its birthday, it beat Plymouth 2-0 at Wembley in front of 57,956 and went up to League One.

Kevin Cooper is the club's all-time top scorer with 107 goals. Danny Kedwell, Jack Midson and Lyle Taylor wrote their own chapters too.

Back to Plough Lane

For years the team played at Kingsmeadow. In November 2020 it moved to the new Plough Lane, about 250 yards from the historic ground, and on 3 November played its first match there, a 2-2 draw with Doncaster.

After relegation in 2022, Wimbledon beat Walsall 1-0 in the 2025 play-off final at Wembley and returned to League One. The owner is still the Dons Trust, the supporters' body, which in April 2026 voted to lower its minimum share of control from 75% to 50.01%.

Celebrate with us

AFC Wimbledon proves that a club is, above all, its people. The blue shirt with the double-headed eagle tells a story of loyalty that few clubs in the world can tell.

Happy birthday, AFC Wimbledon! Here's to the next 25.

See our AFC Wimbledon jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Plough Lane, AFC Wimbledon's ground, at its first match with spectators (18 May 2021) – Johnlp, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.