We don't do quiet at West Ham. The club was welded in a Thames shipyard in 1895, and you can still feel the rivets — every shirt here is a small piece of East London defiance. This is the fan-edition corner of the internet: not a club shop, not pretending to be one. Just the story, the silverware, and the kit worth wearing on your back. Dates and honours below are sourced, not guessed.
Who London Are
A club that was welded, not founded
West Ham wasn't founded so much as welded. Thames Ironworks FC (1895) was the works team of a shipbuilder on the Thames, and the crossed hammers on the crest aren't a logo — they're the actual tools of that yard. Both nicknames, the Hammers and the Irons, come straight off the anvil.
'Bubbles' is the only song that matters
No club owns a song the way West Ham owns 'I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles.' Sung since the 1920s, on a full house at the London Stadium it still raises the hair on your neck — and it's the one pre-match ritual in England that can quiet a seasoned away end.
The Academy of Football is a business model
West Ham sells itself as a developer of players, and it has the receipts: Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters — three of England's four scorers in the 1966 World Cup final — were all West Ham men. Then Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard and Declan Rice followed. The Academy of Football isn't a nickname; it's a production line.
Two European trophies, 58 years apart
The 1965 European Cup Winners' Cup and the 2023 UEFA Conference League are the two European trophies in the cabinet. That 2023 win ended a 58-year wait for a major European honour — and proved the club's European soul never really left.
Relegated — and more interesting for it
An 18th-place finish in 2025-26 dropped West Ham into the Championship for 2026-27, their first season outside the top flight since 2011-12. Captain Jarrod Bowen leads the rebuild under Nuno Espírito Santo. The contrarian take: a relegated club's shirt is the most interesting shirt in the catalogue — the moment it drops, it becomes a cult object.
London at a Glance
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1895 (as Thames Ironworks) · re-formed 1900 as West Ham United |
| Ground | London Stadium, Stratford — around 62,500 seats |
| Colours | Claret and sky blue |
| Nicknames | The Hammers · The Irons · The Academy of Football |
| Honours | 3 FA Cups · 1 European Cup Winners' Cup (1965) · 1 UEFA Conference League (2023) |
| Rivalry | Millwall — the oldest, fiercest derby in London football. |
Shop the Edit — London 2026/27 Jerseys
Fan-edition and replica cuts, shipped worldwide. Every shirt below is a real, current release — tap a card to view sizes and checkout.
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Shop the full soccer club edit →Browse all 2026/27 fan-edition and replica cuts
FAQ: London Quick Answers
Where do West Ham play now?
West Ham moved from the Boleyn Ground (Upton Park) to the London Stadium in Stratford in 2016. The converted Olympic Stadium holds around 62,500.
What colours are West Ham shirts?
Claret shirts with sky-blue sleeves and white trim — the look the club settled on in the early 1900s and has worn ever since.
Who is West Ham's biggest rival?
Millwall. The two East London clubs share the oldest and most heated derby in the capital.
What is the West Ham anthem?
'I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles' has been sung by West Ham supporters since the 1920s and is part of matchday at the London Stadium.
Did West Ham ever win in Europe?
Yes — the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1965 and the UEFA Conference League in 2023.
Which West Ham shirts can I buy here?
We stock the 2026/27 home, away and third shirts in fan-edition and replica cuts. See the Shop the Edit above.
Sourced facts, no embellishment — because the story of a club this old doesn't need it. — Pro Sports Kit, autumn 2026