Season: 1935–36
Football League First Division
League
Leslie Knighton’s third season was Chelsea’s best league finish of the 1930s so far: 8th in the First Division on 43 points (15 wins, 13 draws, 14 defeats, 65–72).
- Division
- Football League First Division (Tier 1)
- Manager
- Leslie Knighton
- Top scorer (league)
- Joe Bambrick (15)
- Top scorer (all comps)
- Joe Bambrick (19)
- Avg. league attendance
- 34,977
Cups & Europe
- FA Cup
- Fifth round
- League Cup
- —
- Europe
- —
- Other
- London Challenge Cup: Round 2 (beat Millwall 2–1, 7 Oct 1935; lost to Tottenham Hotspur 0–1, 21 Oct 1935)
Notes
Leslie Knighton’s third season was Chelsea’s best league finish of the 1930s so far: 8th in the First Division on 43 points (15 wins, 13 draws, 14 defeats, 65–72). Joe Bambrick led the scoring with 15 league goals and 19 in all competitions, including a hat-trick in the FA Cup replay win over Norwich City. Dick Spence added 13 in the league, with Harry Burgess and George Mills on 11 apiece. The lasting image of the campaign came on 12 October 1935, when 82,905 packed Stamford Bridge for a 1–1 draw with Arsenal — still the club’s official home attendance record. That same month founding chairman Claude Kirby died and was succeeded by Charles Pratt. In the FA Cup the Blues beat Norwich (after a replay) and Plymouth Argyle before falling 2–3 to Fulham in a fifth-round replay at Craven Cottage. Average home league attendance was 34,977. In the London Challenge Cup they beat Millwall then lost to Tottenham in the second round.
Kits
Home stayed on the classic royal-blue rugby-collar look through the mid-1950s (HFK has finer panels including Sept–Oct 1934 hooped-sock experiments, Nov 1934–1944, wartime 1944–46, and 1946–48 / 1948–49 / 1949–55). Away remained red with a white collar from the 1933–34 switch; the 1955 champions wore this era’s home look.
- https://www.historicalkits.co.uk/Chelsea/Chelsea.htm
- https://www.historicalkits.co.uk/Chelsea/Chelsea-change-kits.html
Illustration from hex colours (not official kit photography).
On this day (related years)
History
Eras, trophies, and great matches in the History section.
Explore history →Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chelsea_F.C._seasons
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1935%E2%80%9336_Chelsea_F.C._season
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1935%E2%80%9336_Football_League
- https://www.fchd.info/CHELSEA.HTM
- https://www.bounder.friardale.co.uk/Summaries/1935.htm
- https://bounder.friardale.co.uk/Results/1935.htm
- http://free-elements.com/England/Goals/CheL/CheL1935.html
- https://www.stamford-bridge.com/seasonsummary.php?season=1935%2F36
- https://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/archive/eng/aveeng1936.htm
- https://www.cfchistory.co.uk/chelsea-season-stats.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Knighton
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Bambrick
- https://www.historicalkits.co.uk/Chelsea/Chelsea.htm
- https://www.historicalkits.co.uk/Chelsea/Chelsea-change-kits.html
- https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/article/120-memorable-meetings-with-arsenal