History of Sheffield Wednesday F.C.

The formation was announced two days later with the following statement in the Sheffield Independent newspaper: Even at this first meeting it became apparent that football would soon come to eclipse the cricketing side of the club.

They toured the north of England and Scotland but after allegations that the players were being paid, a practice that was illegal at the time, the team was forced to disband by the Sheffield FA in 1882.

Several players, all involved in the earlier Zulus controversy, temporarily left the club to play for a local works team which had managed to submit its entry on time.

At the meeting called to set up Sheffield Rovers, one of the rebel players, Tom Cawley, argued that Wednesday should be given one final chance and the football club duly turned professional on 22 April 1887.

The move to professionalism led to the team building their own stadium rather than playing at venues such as Bramall Lane or Sheaf House whose owners took a share of the "gate".

They finished fifth in the league at the end of the 1985–86 season and only missed out on a UEFA Cup place because English teams were banned from European competitions due to the Heysel Stadium disaster at this time.

Wednesday's on field woes paled into insignificance in April 1989 when 97 Liverpool supporters were unlawfully killed in a crush at the Leppings Lane end of the ground in an FA Cup semi-final hosted by the club.

David Pleat's first season as Sheffield Wednesday manager was frustrating, as they finished 15th in the Premiership despite an expensively-assembled line-up which included the likes of Marc Degryse, Dejan Stefanovic and Darko Kovacevic – who all had disappointing and short-lived tenures at the club.

Pleat was sacked the following November with the club struggling at the wrong end of the Premiership, and Ron Atkinson briefly returned to steer the Owls clear of relegation.

At the end of the 1997–98 season, Ron Atkinson's short-term contract was not renewed and Sheffield Wednesday turned to the Barnsley boss Danny Wilson as their new manager after being given the backword by both Gerard Houllier and Walter Smith who joined Liverpool and Everton respectively.

Danny Wilson was sacked the following March with relegation looking a certainty for the Hillsborough club, following a disastrous season where they had been hammered 8–0 by Newcastle United as early as September.

Yorath resigned in October 2002 after Wednesday made a terrible start to the 2002–03 season, and in came Hartlepool manager Chris Turner – a former Owls goalkeeper – as his successor.

Sturrock made a brave triple substitution bringing on 18-year-old striker Drew Talbot and the Owls' top scorer of the season, Steve MacLean (who had been out injured for the previous three months and had not kicked a ball).

Talbot was adjudged to have been pushed down inside the box and Sheffield Wednesday were awarded a controversial penalty, which also resulted in the dismissal of Hartlepool player Westwood.

Irvine won the January Championship Manager of the Month award, but the form was not sustained and the club was relegated after failing to beat Crystal Palace in front of 37,121 on the final day of the season.

Jones carried on Megson's good work and completed the season unbeaten with ten wins and two draws, picking up two consecutive League One Manager of the Month awards.

Season 2014–15 was preceded by a story in the French newspaper, L'Equipe, of the imminent takeover of Wednesday by Hafiz Mammadov, an Azerbaijani industrialist and effective owner of RC Lens.

With the Sheffield public hungry for news, Mandarić, perhaps unwisely, confirmed the takeover before its completion and announced a shirt sponsorship deal with the supposed new ownership.

Mammadov subsequently failed to fulfil his legal obligations within the terms of the takeover agreement and Mandarić called time on the deal, instructing the club's lawyers accordingly.

Many felt that the home form was the catalyst for Stuart Gray's departure from the club in June 2015 and the appointment of Carlos Carvalhal, a widely travelled but largely unknown Portuguese coach.

Defeat in the playoffs at the semifinal stage by eventual winners Huddersfield Town signalled criticism in some quarters of the marked change in playing style from the previous season.

After much confusion over Carlos Carvalhal's future due to conflicting press reports it was announced that he would remain in charge for the coming season although the length of his contract was not disclosed.

A disappointing start to season 2017–18 led to Carlos Carvalhal leaving the club on Christmas Eve, reviving painful memories of Derek Dooley's departure 44 years earlier.

His first match in charge was a derby at Bramall Lane against high flying Sheffield United, but against all expectations and despite having a man sent off, the team achieved its first clean sheet of the season.

After Wednesday agreed to allow Bruce to conclude a family holiday, he eventually took over the reins in February 2019 after sterling work by Lee Bullen as caretaker, his second spell in the role.

Wednesday entered the second half of season 2019–20 in the play-off positions but facing a possible points deduction after being charged by the EFL with financial irregularities over the purchase of the stadium by Mr Chansiri.

Despite a mixed start, a strong second half to the 2021–22 season saw Moore guide the Owls to the League One playoffs only to be eliminated by Sunderland who went on to secure promotion to the Championship after a four-year absence.

They also set an EFL record in the playoff semifinal by overcoming the largest first leg deficit (four goals) to win on penalties and secured promotion at Wembley Stadium by beating South Yorkshire rivals Barnsley 1–0 in front of 74,292.

The worst start to a season in the club’s history (two points from 10 games) saw Muñoz replaced by former Germany assistant manager Danny Röhl in his first appointment as a team boss.

Despite having been in the bottom three for practically the whole season, Röhl led the club to safety on the final day at the expense of Birmingham City who had at one stage been 16 points clear of Wednesday.