On 11 April 1885, at a public meeting in Luton town hall, local people voted to create a team for the whole town. Luton Town became the first fully professional club in the south of England and went on to reach the Premier League. On 11 April 2027 it turns 142.

A vote at the town hall

Luton's birth came with a bit of intrigue. In January 1885 the local Luton Wanderers had secretly renamed themselves "Luton Town". However, John Charles Lomax and George Deacon organised a public meeting, where townspeople voted for a new club that would represent the whole town.

The first home was Dallow Lane, the old ground of Excelsior, a team set up by hat workers. In 1891 Luton became the first fully professional club in southern England, and since 1905 it has played at Kenilworth Road.

Why "Hatters"

Luton has a long tradition of hat-making that goes back to the 17th century. That is why the team is called "The Hatters". In the 1930s hat-themed badges also appeared.

Today's badge is based on the town's coat of arms. In the 2009-10 redesign the red of the town crest was replaced with orange to match the club's colours.

From pink and blue to black and white

According to the club's minute book, the first colours were navy blue and pink, for both shirts and caps. A 1926 newspaper item says the shirts were halved, but there are no contemporary records to confirm it.

Many changes followed: red in 1889, which earned the team the nickname "The Reds", black and white stripes in the late 19th century and light blue and white in the early 20th. From 1920 white with black became the norm, partly because the league required every team to carry a set of white shirts and it was cheaper to wear them as first choice.

1973: here comes the orange

In February 1973 Luton unveiled a bold orange shirt with a single black and white stripe down the left side. From the 1973-74 season it became the first-choice kit, with navy taking the place of black.

Since then the combination of orange, navy and white has been the team's identity, with variations. In 2010, for the 125th anniversary, Luton wore a special shirt in the original colours three times, and in 2022-23, the season of promotion to the Premier League, it released a Seventies-inspired kit.

Ten goals and a League Cup

On 13 April 1936 Joe Payne, who mostly played at half-back, was moved to centre-forward because of injuries. He scored 10 goals in a 12-0 win over Bristol Rovers, a record for a Football League match that is still cited today.

The greatest moment came in 1988, when Luton beat Arsenal 3-2 in the League Cup final, with Brian Stein scoring the winner with the last kick of the game. In 2023 the team won promotion to the Premier League through the play-offs, and although it went down in 2024, Kenilworth Road hosted Premier League matches for the first time.

Celebrate with us

From a vote at the town hall to the Premier League, Luton has always been the team of a proud town with a great manufacturing history. Its orange is one of the liveliest colours in English football.

Happy birthday, Hatters! Keep your hats held high for many years to come.

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Luton and West Ham line up before the first Premier League match at Kenilworth Road, 2023 – Egghead06, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.