Back to the First Division:

The remaining war years saw little first class football and at the end of the war, Sir Henry Norris (the Arsenal Chairman) achieved the unbelievable and gained Arsenal promotion back to the First Division!

The 1919 season (the first since the 1914-15 season) saw the First Division increase the number of clubs from 20 to 22.

Previous extensions to the Division had seen the two lowest teams in the Division avoid relegation and the top two of the Second Division gain promotion. Had this practice been followed on this occasion, Spurs and Chelsea would have remained in the First Division and Derby and Preston would have gained promotion.

Instead, and there is no clear explanation as to just how Sir Henry achieved this, Chelsea remained in the First Division and Derby, Preston and Arsenal were promoted, with Spurs relegated to Second Division football.

Spurs, perhaps "spurred" on by the injustice of it all, achieved promotion back to the First Division with a record 70 points, 32 wins and 107 goals in their first season of Second Division football. Arsenal now hold the record for the longest unbroken spell of first division football (beating Sunderland’s 68 year record in the 1986-87 season).

History Overview

In the beginning, 1886, the team played at and were referred to as Dial Square. Later switching to Woolwich they became known as Woolwich Arsenal. In 1903 Woolwich Arsenal gained promotion to the first division. After a disastrous season in 1919, the team moved to Highbury and dropped the "Woolwich" from their name. Sir Henry Norris did some amazing dealings to get Arsenal promoted back to the first division (at the expense of Spurs), where Arsenal have remained ever since. Between 1925 and 1934, Chapman took the helm and Arsenal adopted the famous 3-4-3 formation and the ubiquitous red and white shirts. On Chapman's death Allison took over and held the club in the first division, during this period Cliff Bastin established a goal scoring record of 178 goals (a record not broken until 50 years later when Ian Wright scored his 179th against Bolton Wanderers). Tom Whittaker took the reins from Allison and despite some lean years lifted the fa cup and won the division. Like Chapman, Whittaker died young whilst in command of Arsenal. Following Whittaker came some unmemorable years, before Bertie Mee took the helm in 1966, Mee's most famous achievement would be the double in 1970. After Neil and Howe's years in control, George Graham (himself a player of the double season) took over, until the infamous bung scandal that cost him his job in 1995. Eventually, Arsenal would see the arrival of Arsene Wenger who achieved the unbelievable in his first full year, Arsenal's second double.

Arsenal's full honours