It has been 43 years since the header by Trevor Brooking won the Hammers the FA cup for the third time. Ever since there has not been a major trophy addition to the cabinet though there might be a couple of popping bubbles here and there. In total, West Ham has 12 honors on their name and 12 runners-up titles, most of them coming in captivating underdog stories.
Despite their exceptional performance in the top tier of English football, they have only finished 3rd as their highest year end rank in the 1985/86 season. West Ham was really consistent and competent in the 80s, never finishing below the top 10 for four seasons straight.
With the Hammers winning all of the group stage matches of their conference campaign it is interesting to see the history of their Lawrence and achievements.
The complete list of badges and trophies won by West Ham FC is as follows:-
Tournament | Title – Year | Runners Up – Year |
Second – Tier League | 1957/58, 1980/81 | 1922/23, 1990/91, 1992/93 |
Second-Tier Play-Offs | 2005, 2012 | – |
European Cup Winners’ Cup | 1965 | 1976 |
FA Cup | 1964, 1975, 1980 | 1923, 2006 |
UEFA Intertoto Cup | 1999 | – |
Football League War Cup | 1940 | – |
Football League Cup | – | 1966, 1981 |
FA Youth Cup | 1963, 1981, 1999 | 1957, 1959, 1975, 1996 |
Here is a tournament wise breakdown of West Ham’s major awards in their trophy cabinet:-
Second – Tier League
1957
West Ham faced a brutal relegation almost a decade ago and it had been high time that their fans were demanding a redemption. Their was roar to see their time play at top level once again. This dream was fulfilled by a team of exceptional players led by Noel Cantwell and Malcom Allison’s final season. The debut star Joe Kirkup also shined exceptionally throught the season to eventually lift the 1965 Cup Winners’ Cup and register his name in the club legends book and an undying fan favourite.
A new award and one of the oldest existing club awards was created for the player of the season. The hammer of the season was presented for the very first time to the midfielder Andy Malcolm.
1980/81
If there is one fairytale season for West Ham United, it is this one. After the absence from the first division for three seasons, the Hammers topped the league with a loss of just 4 games and 13 points clear of the second place. A record points table. Iconic names as Billy Bonds, Phill Parks and Trevor Brooking were regular starters of the season.
European Cup Winners’ Cup
1965
West Ham faced 1860 Munich of West Germany at Wembly. Alan Sealey scored a brace to give the home side a comfortable victory.
FA Cup
1964
The team’s inaugural FA Cup victory was orchestrated by manager Ron Greenwood. Preston North was defeated in a clutch 3 – 2 victory. The first half ended in a one goal trail via, Doug Holden and Alex Dawson scoring for Preston respectively. John Sisson equalised once and Geoff Hurst again. Ronnie Boyce, in the dying seconds of the game scored to seal the victory for the East London Club and send the Hammers to sing loud chants welcoming their champions.
1975
On a historic Sunday evening in the May of 1975, West Ham United won the FA Cup for the 2nd time. The Hammers, led by Billy Bonds, defeated Fulham 2-0 at Wembley thanks to two goals in the second half from Alan Taylor, an underrated striker who had been recruited from Fourth Division the previous season and whose goals had propelled the Hammers there. The final was an emotional and momentous event from several aspects, in addition to historic victory. It was Moore’s final game at the venue wherein he won the FA Cup in 1964 and the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1965 for West Ham.
A fitting conclusion to a memorable weekend was provided the following day as the heroes were transported through the streets of Newham while being cheered on by hundreds of thousands of supporters.
1980
Legendary 1 – 0 Victory over Aresnal in the 1980 FA cup final. This was Aresenal’s third FA cup final in row and they were unsurprisingly the favourites. Not only was Aresenal a top notch of the first division but also West Ham were second division underdogs who were just trying hard enough to make it to the first.
Moreover, it was a big surprise that West Ham made this far in the first place. Having most of the possession and a huge chunk of ball control, the gunners were unable to get the ball past a walled defence of Billy Bonds and Alvin Martin as centre backs. The deadlock broke on the 12th minute and remained that way for the rest of the game when Trevor Brooking reacted to shot which went across the mouth of the goal.
West Ham almost sealed it when Paul Allen was one on one with Pat Jennings with two minutes remaining on the clock, Willie Young tackled him just outside the box and earned himself a yellow card. The final whistle blew and the Wembly Hammers sung I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles while their team lifts their last major trophy to the day.
UEFA Intertoto Cup
In the summer of 1999, West Ham United’s season got underway early with their first competitive match taking place on July 17 in the Intertoto Cup. They sailed through the group stages quite easily but faced a tough matchup against FC Metz in the finals. Trailing behind in the first leg with a 1 – 0 loss, the Blue Army had lots of work to do to uplift their teams’ spirit for a comeback. Within the first 45 minutes, the Hammers were leading 2 – 1 on aggregate with strikes from Trevor Sinclair and Frank Lampard. Metz spurred back hard but were unable to get past the defensive wall. Finally, after long minutes of sensational defending, the full time whistle blew and the Hammers made past for the UEFA Cup first round draw.