Watford FC Tickets

The Hornets are seeking a return to the English top flight and their supporters are determined to help them get there. Whether at Vicarage Road or away from home, you can find tickets at the best and cheapest prices for all Watford matches at SeatPick. Secure your seats for all football matches involving Watford FC.

Watford FC History

The club was established back in 1881, under the name Watford Rovers. Based in Hertfordshire, England, the team initially played at various grounds in the town due to financial difficulties. From 1907, the team began playing at Vicarage Road.

Watford first joined the Football League in 1920, playing in the Third Division, and would remain in this tier for the best part of 40 years until the introduction of the Fourth Division in 1958. The Hornets returned to the Third Division a couple years later and eventually climbed up to the Second Division in 1969. Watford suffered two relegations in the space of four seasons, dropping back down to the Third Division in 1972 before falling further to the Fourth Division three years after.

After British pop star Elton John gained ownership of the club in the mid-1970s, Watford FC achieved back-to-back promotions to reach the Second Division. In 1982, the Hornets earned promotion to the top flight for the first time in the club's history. Inspirational manager Graham Taylor led the team to the First Division before spectacularly guiding his charges to a 2nd-place finish in their first season playing top-flight football.

Watford thus qualified for European football and took part in the UEFA Cup (precursor to the Europa League) during the 1983/84 campaign. The Hornets progressed to the last-16 but ultimately crashed out to Czech outfit Sparta Prague. That same season Watford came within touching distance of lifting the FA Cup in front of 100,000 spectators at Wembley Stadium. Watford lost 2-0 to Everton in what was the Hornets' first appearance in the FA Cup final.

The Yellow Army would drop out of the top flight in 1988 and even suffered another relegation to the third tier in 1996. Graham Taylor returned to Vicarage Road and subsequently steered Watford to back-to-back promotions, just as he had done some two decades prior, and the Hornets gained Premier League status for the first time since the English football pyramid had reformatted in the early 90s.

Watford FC Today

In recent years Watford FC have been considered a yo-yo club due to the team's constant floating between the Premier League and the EFL Championship. The Hornets spent five years in the top flight from 2015 until the end of the 2019/20 campaign, narrowly surviving relegation on multiple occasions, before they finally succumbed to the drop.

Watford were back in the Premier League 12 months later but once again returned to the Championship in 2022. The 2018/19 season was a relatively successful one as the Yellow Army finished 11th in the Premier League and also reached the FA Cup final for the first time since 1984. The Hornets were on the receiving end of a 6-0 thrashing by Manchester City, with 85,854 in attendance at Wembley.

After the heavy defeat in the FA Cup final, Watford went through a flurry of managerial changes with no fewer than 10 full-time appointments in the space of four years.

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Watford FC Rivalries

The club's greatest rivals are Luton Town, with the two separated by approximately 20 miles. These teams go way back, with both of them established in the 1880s, though it wasn't until the late 1960s that this rivalry significantly grew in animosity.

The Watford-Luton rivalry is often referred to as the 'M1 Derby', derived from the M1 motorway which passes both towns. To date there've been more than 120 editions of this rivalry, however these teams haven't contested a top-flight fixture since May 1988.

Watford FC Famous Players

Luther Blissett is the most-capped Watford player of all time, with 503 appearances to his name. The ex-England forward also netted a club record 186 goals across his three spells with the Hertfordshire outfit.

In recent times there's perhaps no player more synonymous with the Hornets than Troy Deeney. The former striker scored 140 goals in 419 outings for Watford and he also captained the team for more than half of his 11 years with the club.

Other former Watford players include the likes of Lloyd Doyley, Tommy Smith, Adrian Mariappa, John Barnes, and Heiðar Helguson.

Watford FC Top Managers

For most Watford supporters, the club's greatest ever manager would have to be none other than Graham Taylor. He spent a combined 14 years in the hot seat at Vicarage Road, taking charge of more than 450 games. Taylor guided the Yellow Army to several promotions up the English football pyramid as well as runners-up finishes in the 1982/83 First Division as well as the FA Cup the following year.

Taylor was later a non-executive board member at Watford before he was named interim chairman in 2009. He also retained the position of honourary life president of the club until his death in 2017.

Watford have been through a flurry of head coaches in recent times, though some of the more successful appointments over the years have included Aidy Boothroyd, Brendan Rodgers, Gianfranco Zola, and Slavisa Jokanovic.

Javi Gracia was manager of the club during the 2018/19 season in which Watford advanced to the FA Cup final.

Watford FC Stadium

Vicarage Road Stadium first opened its doors in 1921 and it has been the home of Watford FC for more than a century. The ground has a capacity in the region of 22,000.

In 2014 the Main Stand was redeveloped and named after ex-chairman Sir Elton John. In 2017 the Rous Stand was renamed the Graham Taylor Stand in honour of the club's former manager. The other two stands are known as the Rookery Stand and the Vicarage Road Stand.

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