Aston Villa F.C. – History, Net worth, Sponsors, Trophies & More

The English Premier League is famous for its teams' rich history, which they proudly boast. Aston Villa club history is one of them. Aston Villa were established in 1874 and have been one of the oldest clubs in English football. The Club's home ground is Villa Park, where they have been competing with different top-flight clubs since 1897. Aston Villa are one of the most successful clubs, too; they have won numerous trophies and competed in Europe's top-flight in the continental competitions on many different occasions. Aston Villa is nicknamed The Villains and The Lions.

Aston Villa Club History – Founding, Growth & Milestones

Aston Villa F.C. was established by some members of the Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel in Handsworth, which is now a part of Birmingham. Aston Villa were founded by four members: Jack Hughes, Frederick Matthews, Walter Price, and William Scattergood. They were also members of the Chapel's cricket team. Due to a lack of local football teams, Aston Villa Football Club's first match was against the local Aston Brook St Mary's Rugby team.

In 1885, Aston Villa's president published an advertisement about the requirement for a manager for their Club.

The advertisement was like that: “Wanted: manager for Aston Villa Football Club, who will be required to devote his whole time under the direction of the committee. Salary £100 per annum. Applications with reference must be made not later than June 23rd to the Chairman of the Committee, Aston Villa Club House, 6 Witton Road, Aston.” The club received over 150 applicants for the role; however, on June 26, 1886, Aston Villa appointed its first football manager. They followed this unique style of appointing a manager for the first and the last time in Aston Villa club history.

In 1887, William McGregor became a founding member of the English Football League, and he included Aston Villa's name with 11 other clubs to play in the main division. The included teams were Burnley, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Blackburn Rovers, Derby County, Everton, Aston Villa, Accrington, Bolton Wanderers, Notts County, Preston North End, Stoke, and West Bromwich Albion. In 1920, Aston Villa were relegated for the first time in Aston Villa's history. Spending a few years in the second division, the club was back in its old form, as they won two European Cups, which is now famously known as the UEFA Champions League, and became the first team to taste European glory.

Since its establishment, the club have been managed by Aston Villa management. But in June 2016, after the takeover by the Chinese businessman, Tony Xia bought the club for £75 million, and since then, the club have been run by the Chinese business tycoon, and his primary target was, bring the club back to its level in the Premier League. Aston Villa Football Club were relegated in the 2015-2016 season, after spending 29 years in the English Premier League.

On 20 July 2018, Aston Villa announced that the NSWE Group, a Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris and American billionaire Wes Edens, were to invest in the football club. They purchased a controlling 55% stake in the club. In 2019, Aston Villa finally put their foot into the English Premier League. On that day, NSWE bought 100% stakes of the club as Tony Xia was no longer the owner of Aston Villa. Currently, under the Spanish coach, Unai Emery's tenure at the club, they are back in their old form, as they qualified for the UEFA Champions League for two consecutive seasons.

Aston Villa Net Worth

Aston Villa net worth is £9.6 billion; however, the club's net worth is an estimated number, as the exact number is not available in public media. Its maximum earnings come from Aston Villa sponsors, shirt sales, broadcasting, and commercial revenue. However, Aston Villa management spends most of the club's money on developing the team.

Aston Villa Sponsors

Let's take a look at Aston Villa sponsors.

Aston Villa Management

Aston Villa management is one of the best in the English Premier League. Under its current ownership, it is growing rapidly, intending to secure a continental qualification spot in every season. Under Unai Emery's managerial tenure, they are hopeful that they will secure continental glory and reclaim their top spot, where they truly belong.

Aston Villa CEO

Aston Villa's CEO is Chris Heck, who claimed the role in September 2023. He replaced Christian Purslow, who stepped down in June 2023. And slowly, Chris Heck has been becoming one of the crucial members of the Aston Villa management.

Aston Villa Sporting Director

Aston Villa's sporting director is Monchi, also known as Ramón Rodríguez Verdejo. He is the President of Football Operations, a role that manages all football-related responsibilities at the club.

Aston Villa Current Manager

Aston Villa F.C.'s current manager is Unai Emery, who was appointed as the manager of Villa Park on October 24, 2022. Unai Emery took the job as Aston Villa's manager after winning the UEFA Europa League with the Spanish side, Villarreal.

Aston Villa F.C. Rivals

Aston Villa have a local rivalry with Birmingham City, and the Second City derby between the teams has been played since 1879. There is also a local rivalry with West Bromwich Albion, with matches between the sides known as the West Midlands derby.

Derbies

Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion are two English football clubs from the West Midlands who share a local rivalry. The matches between them are known as West Midlands derbies, though this term may also be used for several other rivalries within the localities. Their stadiums, Villa Park and The Hawthorns, respectively, are four miles away from each other.

Aston Villa Trophies and Achievements

Aston Villa trophy cabinets are one of the most decorated in the English Premier League. Aston Villa trophies are the English League title 7 times, the FA Cup 7 times, the League Cup 5 times, the European Cup (now UEFA Champions League) once, and the European Super Cup once. Including, they have won the FA Community Shield once and the Intertoto Cup twice.

Aston Villa Kit History

Aston Villa started their journey with the kit of a claret shirt with sky blue sleeves, white shorts with claret and blue trim, and sky blue socks with claret and white trim. And in the Aston Villa kit history, they have played a long time wearing this kit, but after the new takeover, the new owner initially club's kit color for the first time in Aston Villa kit history, as the new kits are chocolate and blue, which replace claret blue, but the owners did not face any backlashes by the fans.

Aston Villa kept their home kit the same for the 2025-26 season, but made some minor changes in the away kit as the design on the shoulders is inspired by the Bullring, one of the iconic landmarks on the skyline of Birmingham and this kit is available for the fans as well in the official Aston Villa's store, meaning fans will enjoy the match at Villa Park in the new kit.

Famous Aston Villa Fans

Many famous personalities also follow Aston Villa, and they have also been spotted in the stadiums cheering the club. Famous fans are cricket stars Ian Bell and Chris Woakes, television and movie actors David Bradley, Oliver Phelps, Brendan Gleeson, and Domhnall Gleeson, musicians Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler, and Nigel Kennedy, and many, many more.

Aston Villa Stadium: Villa Park

Aston Villa F.C.'s home ground is Villa Park; the club's previous home ground was Aston Park, where they played many games since their establishment. Villa Park is the largest football stadium in the English Midlands, and the eighth largest stadium in England. However, Aston Villa football club have also played many games in Wellington Park.

Arsenal training ground

The current training ground is located at Bodymoor Heath near Kingsbury in north Warwickshire, the site for which was purchased by former chairman Doug Ellis in the early 1970s from a local farmer.