1992–93 in English football

Football in England

Season	1992–93
Premier League	Manchester United
First Division	Newcastle United
Second Division	Stoke City
Third Division	Cardiff City
FA Cup	Arsenal
League Cup	Arsenal
Charity Shield	Leeds United
← 1991–92 1993–94 →

The 1992-93 season was the 114th season of football in England. The season saw the Premier League in its first season replacing The Football League as the top league in England. The teams played in the Premier League twice a year each, one away and one home and were awarded three points for a win and one for a draw.

Overview

This season saw the birth of the FA Premier League. This meant a break-up of the 104-year-old Football League that had operated until then with four divisions.

In 1992 all of the First Division Clubs resigned from the football league and, on 27 May 1992, the FA Premier League was formed as a limited company, which worked out of an office at the then Football Association's headquarters, Lancaster Gate.

The three divisions which remained in the Football League were renamed. The old Division Two was now called Division One. The old Division Three was now called Division Two, and the old Division Four was now Division Three.

Successful players

Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs, 19, was voted PFA Young Player of the Year for the second year running after helping his employers win their first league title for 26 years.

Teddy Sheringham was the new Premier League's top scorer with 22 goals. He scored once for Nottingham Forest and was then transferred to Tottenham Hotspur, opening his goalscoring account with the club by scoring 21 league goals.

Chris Waddle was voted Player of the Year by the FWA after helping Sheffield Wednesday reach both domestic cup finals.

Guy Whittingham scores a club record 42 league goals during the season for Portsmouth. He was on target 46 times in all competitions.

The PFA Player of the Year award went to experienced Aston Villa centre-back Paul McGrath.

Coventry signed Newcastle striker Micky Quinn for a nominal fee in November, and he responded by scoring 17 Premier League goals (the first 10 in 6 games) to keep the Sky Blues clear of relegation.

Striker Les Ferdinand established himself as one of the country's top marksmen with more than 20 goals in all competitions for Queens Park Rangers.

Alan Shearer scored 16 goals in his first 21 Premier League games for Blackburn Rovers before a serious knee injury ended his season.

David Kelly scored 25 Division One goals to help Newcastle win promotion to the Premier League, but surprisingly he spurned the chance of Premier League football to sign for Wolves as strike-partner for the ever-prolific Steve Bull.

Andrew Cole scored 12 goals in his first 12 games for Division One champions Newcastle.

Successful managers

Alex Ferguson took Manchester United to title success in the new Premier League, ending their 26-year wait for the league title.

George Graham guided Arsenal to a unique double of winning both domestic cups in the same season.

Mike Walker pulled off one of the surprises of the season by taking Norwich City to a club best finish of third in the Premier League and helping them achieve European qualification for the first time in their history.

Gerry Francis helped Queens Park Rangers finish highest out of all the London-based clubs in the new Premier League as they finished fifth.

Kevin Keegan restored success to Newcastle United by guiding them to the Division One title.

Glenn Hoddle guided Swindon Town to success in the Division One playoffs to achieve promotion to the Premier League – and top-flight football for a club who had never played at that level before.

Lou Macari won the Division Two title with Stoke City.

Bruce Rioch continued the revival at Bolton Wanderers by gaining automatic promotion to Division One.

Alan Little had a dream start in management by winning the Division Three playoff with York City, just two months after he had taken over from John Ward.

Martin O'Neill took Wycombe Wanderers into the Football League as Conference champions.

Events

The Premier League is born

The FA launched its new Premier League of 22 elite clubs, which broke away from the Football League. The new league was backed up by a £305million exclusive TV rights deal with BSkyB. This paved the way for the Premier League's members to spend heavily on new players and also to convert their stadia into an all-seater format, which was necessary as a result of the Taylor Report's requirement that top division stadia should be all seater from the start of the 1994–95 season.

United's 26-year title wait ends

Manchester United won the first Premier League championship to end their 26-year wait for the league title. They fought off stiff competition from runners-up Aston Villa, third-placed Norwich City and fourth-placed Blackburn Rovers to finish top of the league. Brilliant young winger Ryan Giggs was PFA Young Player of the Year for the second year running, while Alex Ferguson received the Manager of the Year award. Other significant players in the title winning side were top goalscorer Mark Hughes, temperamental but brilliant French striker Eric Cantona, reliable centre back Gary Pallister and confident midfielder Paul Ince. Manchester United would go on further to dominate the Premier League till the present day, with challenges coming from Arsenal, Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Blackburn, Liverpool and Chelsea for the title. The top three of Manchester United, Aston Villa and Norwich City mirrors that of the final Second Division table of 1974-75, the last season Manchester United played outside the top flight. Blackburn Rovers won the Third Division the same season.

The Fall of Forest

Brian Clough retired after 18 years as manager of Nottingham Forest. In his final season as manager they were relegated from the Premier League, but earlier in his reign he had brought league championship and European Cup glory to the previously unfashionable club. There had even been some success in the final few years of his reign, as Forest were League Cup winners in 1989 and 1990. They were losing finalists in the 1991 FA Cup and 1992 League Cup, but finally bowed out of the top flight after the sale of key players like Des Walker and Teddy Sheringham who proved impossible to replace.

Morrow crocked as Arsenal crack the cup double

Arsenal became the first team to win the FA Cup and League Cup in the same season, beating Sheffield Wednesday 2–1 in both finals. Steve Morrow scored the winning goal in the League Cup final, but was accidentally dropped by captain Tony Adams during the post-match celebrations, broke his arm and missed the FA Cup triumph. Arsenal's double gave them two places in UEFA competitions, meaning that Norwich City were awarded a UEFA Cup place for finishing third in the League. Norwich had never qualified for Europe before, due to the ban on English clubs following the Heysel stadium disaster.

Swindon in the big time at last

Swindon Town finally reached the top flight of English football by beating Leicester City 4–3 in the Division One playoff final. They had been denied promotion three years earlier because of financial irregularities.

Manager of the jubilant Swindon side was 36-year-old Glenn Hoddle, the former Tottenham and England midfielder, who had built a formidable squad containing players like Shaun Taylor, Micky Hazard and Craig Maskell. Shortly after achieving promotion glory with Swindon, Hoddle agreed to become manager of Chelsea and was replaced at the County Ground by his assistant John Gorman.

Wycombe reach the league

Martin O'Neill, who played in the great Nottingham Forest team of the late 1970s and early 1980s, achieved his first success in management by getting Wycombe Wanderers promoted to the Football League as well as completing the double by winning the FA Trophy. They replaced Halifax Town, who finished bottom of Division Three. Wycombe's fortunes had been looking good since they moved into their new Adams Park ground in 1990, and the Conference and FA Trophy double all but erased memories of the previous year when they went through the agony of missing out on promotion on goal difference to their bitter rivals Colchester United.

Barclays pull out

Barclays bank ended their six-year sponsorship of the Football League. They were replaced by Endsleigh Insurance, who put pen to paper in a three-year sponsorship deal.

Barnet come out on top against all the odds

Controversial chairman Stan Flashman quit Barnet after a season of turmoil in which he regularly sacked and reinstated manager Barry Fry, but the club still managed to win promotion from Division Three despite spending months on the verge of oblivion due to a mounting financial crisis. They had been banned from the transfer market for most of the season because they were unable to afford their player's wages.

Maidstone go under

Maidstone United, struggling in the league's basement division with huge debts, no registered stadium and just two registered players, had their first game of the 1992–93 season cancelled and were given two days to guarantee that they would be able to fulfill their fixtures. Unable to comply with these requirements, the club resigned from the league on 17 August 1992. The club was soon reformed and applied to join the Kent County League for the following season. The League decided that Maidstone would not be replaced by another club, so the top four tiers of the English league pyramid would revert to the 92-club format which it had adopted until 1991.

Famous debutants

5 September 1992: Andy Turner, midfielder aged 17 years and 166 days, becomes the youngest Premier League scorer when he scores on his competitive debut for Tottenham Hotspur against Everton.

16 September 1992: Gary Neville, 17-year-old defender, makes his debut for Manchester United against Torpedo Moscow in the UEFA Cup first round first leg tie at Old Trafford, which ends in a goalless draw.

23 September 1992: David Beckham, 17-year-old midfielder, comes on as a substitute for Manchester United as they draw 1–1 at Brighton in the Football League Cup second round first leg.

27 September 1992: Nick Barmby, 18-year-old attacking midfielder, makes his debut for Tottenham Hotspur in a 2–0 Premier League defeat at Sheffield Wednesday.

21 November 1992: Nicky Butt, 17-year-old midfielder, comes on a substitute for Manchester United in their 3–0 home win over Oldham Athletic in the Premier League.

5 December 1992: Sol Campbell, 18-year-old defender, scores on his debut for Tottenham Hotspur as they lose 2–1 at home to Chelsea in the Premier League.

Notable retirements

• Tommy Caton, Charlton Athletic defender formerly with Manchester City and Arsenal, retired in March after two years out of action with injury, and died the following month from a heart attack at the age of 30.
• Chris Hughton, former Tottenham Hotspur and Republic of Ireland defender, retired at end of season when playing for Brentford.
• Darren Salton, retired after being badly injured in a car crash in November. Had played 18 times in the league for Luton Town and was capped six times by the Scotland under-21 side. His team mate Paul Telfer was also in the car but suffered only minor injuries.
• Gary A. Stevens, Portsmouth defender, retired after failing to recover from a knee injury suffered in the 1988–89 season when tackled by Vinnie Jones.

Top goalscorers

Premier League

• Teddy Sheringham (Nottingham Forest/Tottenham Hotspur) – 22 goals

Division One

• Guy Whittingham (Portsmouth) – 42 goals

Division Two

• Bob Taylor (West Bromwich Albion) – 30 goals

Division Three

• Darren Foreman (Scarborough)/Carl Griffiths (Shrewsbury Town) – 27 goals

English League Leading Goalscorers

Honours

Competition	Winner
FA Cup	Arsenal (6)
League Cup	Arsenal (2)
FA Premier League	Manchester United (8/1)
Football League First Division	Newcastle United
Football League Second Division	Stoke City
Football League Third Division	Cardiff City
Autoglass Trophy	Port Vale
Charity Shield	Leeds United

Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour (First Division & Premier League). Number after slash is Premier League only. * indicates new record for competition

English national team

Date	Opposition	Venue	Competition	Result	Score
9 September 1992	Spain	El Sardinero, Santander	Friendly	Lost	0–1
14 October 1992	Norway	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Drew	1–1
18 November 1992	Turkey	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Won	4–0
17 February 1993	San Marino	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Won	6–0
31 March 1993	Turkey	Atatürk Stadyumu, Izmir, Turkey	World Cup Qualifier	Won	2–0
28 April 1993	Netherlands	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Drew	2–2
29 May 1993	Poland	Stadion S'la;ski, Chorzów, Poland	World Cup Qualifier	Drew	1–1
2 June 1993	Norway	Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway	World Cup Qualifier	Lost	0–2
9 June 1993	U.S.A.	Foxboro Stadium, Foxboro, Massachusetts, USA	US Cup	Lost	0–2
13 June 1993	Brazil	R. F. Kennedy Stadium, Washington, D.C., USA	US Cup	Drew	1–1
19 June 1993	Germany	Silverdome, Pontiac, Michigan, USA	US Cup	Lost	1–2

League tables

FA Premier League

• For more detail on the Premier League this season see FA Premier League 1992-93

The first champions of the new Premier League were Manchester United, who ended their 26-year wait for a top division title in dramatic style. After some disappointing results in the opening months of the season, the arrival of French striker Eric Cantona from Leeds United in late November signalled a turnaround for Alex Ferguson's men, who only lost two more league games all season and finished as champions by a 10-point margin above their nearest contenders Aston Villa, managed by Ferguson's predecessor as United manager Ron Atkinson. Finishing in third place were a Norwich City side who had been among the pre-season favourites for relegation, but had instead spent the season chasing the title and actually leading the league more than once. Newly promoted Blackburn Rovers, in the top flight for the first time since the 1960s, finished fourth, their title challenge having slowed down after top scorer Alan Shearer was ruled out for the second half of the season with injury. Fifth placed QPR were the highest place of the London sides, although 10th placed Arsenal did manage to win a unique double of the FA Cup and League Cup, defeating Sheffield Wednesday in both finals.

Liverpool endured another relatively disappointing season in the league, finishing sixth for the second season running, although they had entered March in 15th place before a strong finish to the season, in which Ian Rush found the net 11 times, saw them climb up the table. Defending champions Leeds United had an even more disappointing campaign, finishing 17th and failing to win a single away game in the league.

The first team to go down from the Premier League were Nottingham Forest, whose iconic manager Brian Clough retired after 18 years at the helm. Newly promoted Middlesbrough, who had fallen from mid table after a disastrous run of late winter form, went down on the final day, as did Crystal Palace on goal difference - while Oldham Athletic survived on goal difference after winning their final three games of the season.

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Manchester United (C)	42	24	12	6	67	31	84
2.	Aston Villa	42	21	11	10	57	40	74
3.	Norwich City	42	21	9	12	61	65	72
4.	Blackburn Rovers	42	20	11	11	68	46	71
5.	Queens Park Rangers	42	17	12	13	63	55	63
6.	Liverpool	42	16	11	15	62	55	59
7.	Sheffield Wednesday	42	15	14	13	55	51	59
8.	Tottenham Hotspur	42	16	11	15	60	66	59
9.	Manchester City	42	15	12	15	56	51	57
10.	Arsenal	42	15	11	16	40	38	56
11.	Chelsea	42	14	14	14	51	54	56
12.	Wimbledon	42	14	12	16	56	55	54
13.	Everton	42	15	8	19	53	55	53
14.	Sheffield United	42	14	10	18	54	53	52
15.	Coventry City	42	13	13	16	52	57	52
16.	Ipswich Town	42	12	16	14	50	55	52
17.	Leeds United	42	12	15	15	57	62	51
18.	Southampton	42	13	11	18	54	61	50
19.	Oldham Athletic	42	13	10	19	63	74	49
20.	Crystal Palace (R)	42	11	16	15	48	61	49
21.	Middlesbrough (R)	42	11	11	20	54	75	44
22.	Nottingham Forest (R)	42	10	10	22	41	62	40

Leading goalscorer: Teddy Sheringham (Tottenham Hotspur) - 22

League Division One

Newcastle United's first full season under the management of Kevin Keegan ended in Division One championship glory and promotion to the Premier League. Following the Geordies into football's big-money league were West Ham United and Swindon Town. West Ham had suffered relegation just one season earlier, and had been many people's favourites for an automatic return to the elite. Swindon, meanwhile, had finally reached the top flight after 73 years of trying – they had actually won promotion via the playoffs three years earlier, but promotion had been denied a few weeks later due to financial irregularities.

Third-placed Portsmouth had opened up a 9-point gap over fourth-placed Tranmere Rovers, but lost to Leicester City in the playoff semi-finals and this ended any promotion hopes for a club who had begun the season as favourites for promotion, and ended it with 88 points. Grimsby Town finished an impressive ninth in the table, while 10th place was occupied by Peterborough United in their first season at this level.

Going down were Cambridge United (who had just missed out on promotion a year earlier), Brentford and Bristol Rovers. Brentford, newly promoted a season earlier, had stood in 10th place at the turn of 1993, but a sharp decline in form during the final few months of the season saw them relegated on the final day of the season. Luton Town narrowly avoided a second successive relegation.

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Newcastle United (C) (P)	46	29	9	8	92	38	96
2.	West Ham United (P)	46	26	10	10	81	41	88
3.	Portsmouth	46	26	10	10	80	46	88
4.	Tranmere Rovers	46	23	10	13	72	56	79
5.	Swindon Town (P)	46	21	13	12	74	59	76
6.	Leicester City	46	22	10	14	71	64	76
7.	Millwall	46	18	16	12	65	53	70
8.	Derby County	46	19	9	18	68	57	66
9.	Grimsby Town	46	19	7	20	58	57	64
10.	Peterborough United	46	16	14	16	55	63	62
11.	Wolverhampton Wanderers	46	16	13	17	57	56	61
12.	Charlton Athletic	46	16	13	17	49	46	61
13.	Barnsley	46	17	9	20	56	60	60
14.	Oxford United	46	14	14	18	53	56	56
15.	Bristol City	46	14	14	18	49	67	56
16.	Watford	46	14	13	19	57	71	55
17.	Notts County	46	12	16	18	55	70	52
18.	Southend United	46	13	13	20	54	64	52
19.	Birmingham City	46	13	12	21	50	72	51
20.	Luton Town	46	10	21	15	48	62	51
21.	Sunderland	46	13	11	22	50	64	50
22.	Brentford (R)	46	13	10	23	52	71	49
23.	Cambridge United (R)	46	11	16	19	48	69	49
24.	Bristol Rovers (R)	46	10	11	25	55	87	41

Leading goalscorer: Guy Whittingham (Portsmouth) - 42

League Division Two

Lou Macari guided Stoke City to their first successful season in years as they were crowned Division Two champions. Bruce Rioch brought some long-awaited success to Bolton Wanderers as they occupied the division's second promotion place. Osvaldo Ardiles guided West Bromwich Albion to promotion via the playoffs, bringing some long-awaited success to another club who had once enjoyed better times.

Preston North End, Wigan Athletic, Mansfield Town and Chester City occupied Division Two's four relegation places. Mansfield were newly promoted, while the other three teams had been established at this level for no less than six years.

Hartlepool United equalled an English football record by playing eleven consecutive matches without scoring a single goal, in a terrible mid-season run which saw them fall from the promotion chase to the relegation battle, although some decent results in the final stages of the season kept them up. Brighton finished ninth in the table despite rising debts, the constant need to sell players, and doubts regarding the future of the club.

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Stoke City (C) (P)	46	27	12	7	73	34	93
2.	Bolton Wanderers (P)	46	27	9	10	80	41	90
3.	Port Vale	46	26	11	9	79	44	89
4.	West Bromwich Albion (P)	46	25	10	11	88	54	85
5.	Swansea City	46	20	13	13	65	47	73
6.	Stockport County	46	19	15	12	81	57	72
7.	Leyton Orient	46	21	9	16	69	53	72
8.	Reading	46	18	15	13	66	51	69
9.	Brighton & Hove Albion	46	20	9	17	63	59	69
10.	Bradford City	46	18	14	14	69	67	68
11.	Rotherham United	46	17	14	15	60	60	65
12.	Fulham	46	16	17	13	57	55	65
13.	Burnley	46	15	16	15	57	59	61
14.	Plymouth Argyle	46	16	12	18	59	64	60
15.	Huddersfield	46	17	9	20	54	61	60
16.	Hartlepool United	46	14	12	20	42	60	54
17.	Bournemouth	46	12	17	17	45	52	53
18.	Blackpool	46	12	15	19	63	75	51
19.	Exeter City	46	11	17	18	54	69	50
20.	Hull City	46	13	11	22	46	69	50
21.	Preston North End (R)	46	13	8	25	65	94	47
22.	Mansfield Town (R)	46	11	11	24	52	80	44
23.	Wigan Athletic (R)	46	10	11	25	43	72	41
24.	Chester City (R)	46	8	5	33	49	102	29

Leading goalscorer: Bob Taylor (West Bromwich Albion) – 30

League Division Three

Cardiff City and Wrexham continued their good progress by occupying Division Three's top two places. They were joined in third place by Barnet, who had spent most of the season on the brink of expulsion from the league due to financial problems. The final promotion place went to York City, who won the playoffs just weeks after Alan Little was appointed manager.

Halifax Town, after 72 years of league membership, finished bottom of the league and were replaced by Conference champions Wycombe Wanderers. They went down following an escape act by Gillingham, whose player-manager Glenn Roeder then moved up two divisions to take charge of Watford.

Halifax's place in the league was taken by GM Vauxhall Conference champions Wycombe Wanderers, managed by the former Nottingham Forest player Martin O'Neill.

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Cardiff City (C) (P)	42	25	8	9	77	47	83
2.	Wrexham (P)	42	23	11	8	75	52	80
3.	Barnet (P)	42	23	10	9	66	48	79
4.	York City (P)	42	21	12	9	72	45	75
5.	Walsall	42	22	7	13	76	61	73
6.	Crewe Alexandra	42	21	7	14	75	56	70
7.	Bury	42	18	9	15	63	55	63
8.	Lincoln City	42	18	9	15	57	53	63
9.	Shrewsbury Town	42	17	11	14	57	52	62
10.	Colchester United	42	18	5	19	67	76	59
11.	Rochdale	42	16	10	16	70	70	58
12.	Chesterfield	42	15	11	16	59	63	56
13.	Scarborough	42	15	9	18	66	71	54
14.	Scunthorpe United	42	14	12	16	57	54	54
15.	Darlington	42	12	14	16	48	53	50
16.	Doncaster Rovers	42	11	14	17	42	57	47
17.	Hereford United	42	10	15	17	47	60	45
18.	Carlisle United	42	11	11	20	51	65	44
19.	Torquay United	42	12	7	23	45	67	43
20.	Northampton Town	42	11	8	23	48	74	41
21.	Gillingham	42	9	13	20	48	64	40
22.	Halifax Town (R)	42	9	9	24	45	68	36

Leading goalscorers: Darren Foreman (Scarborough), and Carl Griffiths (Shrewsbury Town) - 27

Transfer deals

For subsequent transfer deals see 1993-94 in English football.

Diary of the season

3 July 1992 – Ron Atkinson appoints Dave Sexton, whom he succeeded as Manchester United manager eleven years ago, to his coaching staff at Aston Villa.

6 July 1992 – Liverpool sign 21-year-old goalkeeper David James from Watford for £1million.

8 July 1992 – Blackburn Rovers sign Middlesbrough winger Stuart Ripley for £1.3million.

10 July 1992 – Oldham Athletic pay a club record £600,000 for Manchester City defender Neil Pointon.

11 July 1992 – Ted Fenton, manager of West Ham United from 1950 to 1961, dies aged 77 after being injured in a car crash in Leicester.

14 July 1992 – Arsenal sign John Jensen, midfielder in Denmark's European Championship winning team, from Brøndby in a £1.1million deal.

17 July 1992 – Chris Waddle returns to England after three years in France with Marseille, joining Sheffield Wednesday for £1million.

19 July 1992 – Striker Kerry Dixon ends nine years at Chelsea to sign for Southampton in a £575,000 deal.

21 July 1992 – Tottenham Hotspur sign defender Neil Ruddock from Southampton for £750,000.

23 July 1992 – David Rocastle ends nine years at Arsenal by joining Leeds United in a £2million deal.

25 July 1992 – Everton are reported to be £3.6million in debt.

27 July 1992 – The new Premier League rejects sponsorship deals offered by Bass Breweries and Ford Motor Company, meaning that it will be without a sponsor in its first season.

28 July 1992 – Alan Shearer signs for newly promoted Blackburn Rovers for an English record fee of £3.5million, with David Speedie moving in the opposite direction in part exchange. Aston Villa add Ray Houghton, from Liverpool for £900,000, to their ranks.

29 July 1992 – Lou Macari, the former Swindon Town manager now at Stoke City, is cleared of tax fraud offences at Winchester Crown Court. Swindon's former chairman Brian Hillier is found guilty and given a one-year prison sentence. Club accountant Vince Farrar is also found guilty and receives a six-month suspended sentence.

31 July 1992 – Coca-Cola become sponsors of the Football League Cup in a two-year deal worth £2.25million.

1 August 1992 – Nottingham Forest sell defender Des Walker to Sampdoria for £1.5million.

3 August 1992 - Bass Brewery's reported $17.1 million proposal to sponsor the Premier League for the first three seasons fails after three – Arsenal, Liverpool and Nottingham Forest – of the top-flight's 22 clubs object.

5 August 1992 – Manchester City sign winger Rick Holden from Oldham Athletic for £900,000.

7 August 1992 – Manchester United sign 23-year-old Cambridge United striker Dion Dublin for £1million.

8 August 1992 – Eric Cantona scores a hat-trick for Leeds United in a 4–3 victory over Liverpool at Wembley Stadium in the 1992 FA Charity Shield.

12 August 1992 – Chelsea pay a club record £2.1million for Norwich City's Scottish striker Robert Fleck.

14 August 1992 – Norwich City sign Mark Robins from Manchester United for £800,000, while Everton boost their attack with a £500,000 move for Paul Rideout. West Ham United winger Stuart Slater joins Celtic for £1.5million.

15 August 1992 – The new FA Premier League begins. The first goal is scored by Sheffield United striker Brian Deane in a 2–1 home win over Manchester United. Alan Shearer begins his Blackburn Rovers career with two goals against Crystal Palace in a 3–3 draw at Selhurst Park. In Division Three, debt ridden Maidstone United have their first game of the season cancelled and are given 48 hours to guarantee that they will be able to fulfill their fixtures for this season.

16 August 1992 – Sky Sports broadcast their first live Premier League game. Teddy Sheringham scores the only goal as Nottingham Forest beat Liverpool at the City Ground.

17 August 1992 – Maidstone United resign from the Football League after being unable to guarantee that they can fulfil their fixtures for this season.

24 August 1992 – Manchester United record their first Premier League win at the fourth time of asking when a late goal by Dion Dublin gives them a 1–0 win at Southampton.

25 August 1992 – Chester City lose 2–1 to Stockport County in the first match at their new Deva Stadium home in the Football League Cup. Manchester City equal the British national record for a defender (which they set last year when signing Keith Curle) by paying £2.5million for Wimbledon's Terry Phelan. In Leeds United's 5–0 home win over Tottenham Hotspur, Eric Cantona becomes the first player to score a hat-trick in the Premier League.

27 August 1992 – Tottenham Hotspur pay £2.1million for Nottingham Forest's 26-year-old striker Teddy Sheringham.

30 August 1992 – Exeter City manager Alan Ball and former Bolton Wanderers manager Phil Neal join the England coaching staff.

31 August 1992 – The first month of the season sees Blackburn Rovers top the new Premier League in their first top division season since 1965–66. Queens Park Rangers occupy second place, with third place occupied by a Norwich City. Bottom of the table are Tottenham Hotspur. Charlton Athletic lead Division One, with Swindon Town standing second and the playoff zone being occupied by Leicester City, Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Watford. Cambridge United, who reached the play-offs last season, lie bottom of the table with no points, joined by Southend United (also point-less) and Barnsley.

1 September 1992 – Crystal Palace sign 21-year-old striker Chris Armstrong from Millwall for £1million.

2 September 1992 – Aston Villa pay a club record £2.5million for Liverpool striker Dean Saunders.

6 September 1992 – Hereford United have a Football League record four players sent off in a 1–1 Division Three draw with Northampton Town at the County Ground.

9 September 1992 – Vinnie Jones returns to Wimbledon after three years away in a £700,000 move from Chelsea.

11 September 1992 - Dean Saunders signs for Aston Villa from Liverpool, for a transfer fee of £2.3 million.

15 September 1992 – All 22 Division Three clubs receive £10,000 compensation each from the Football League to cover the loss of gate revenue brought upon by the recent demise of Aldershot and Maidstone United.

16 September 1992 – Derby County pay the record fee for a club outside the top division – and a national record for a defender – when they sign Notts County centre-back Craig Short in a 2.5million deal. In the Premier League, Blackburn Rovers' unbeaten start comes to an end when Everton beat them 3–2 at Ewood Park, with Tony Cottee scoring twice.

19 September 1992 - At Villa Park, home debutant Dean Saunders sinks his former club, bagging two in a 4–2 win over a depleted Liverpool side. Meanwhile, Wimbledon's 1–1 draw with Blackburn Rovers ends with three players sent off: Tony Dobson and Mike Newell for Rovers and Vinnie Jones on his second debut for the Dons. Elsewhere in London, QPR and Middlesbrough drew 3–3 after a late Rangers penalty converted by Andy Sinton. Post-match, Boro boss Lennie Lawrence announces the cancellation of a move to sign Robert Lee, owing to the player's unwillingness to commit to a move away from the capital and the involvement of another club.

20 September 1992 – Division One leaders Newcastle United sign Charlton Athletic midfielder Robert Lee for £700,000.

26 September 1992 - Alan Shearer scored his tenth Premier League goal for Blackburn Rovers in his tenth appearance in a 2-0 defeat of Oldham Athletic at Ewood Park.

28 September 1992 – Preston North End's Les Chapman and Carlisle United's Aidan McCaffrey become the first managerial casualties of the season.

29 September 1992 – Manchester United are eliminated from the UEFA Cup on penalties after two goalless draws in their first round contest with Torpedo Moscow.

30 September 1992 – The month ends with Norwich City topping the Premier League, with Blackburn Rovers in second place, Coventry City third and Manchester United fourth. Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest prop up the top flight with just one win from their opening nine games. Crystal Palace, who finished third in the league two seasons ago, lie in second from bottom place. Newcastle United lead Division One with a 100% record in the league stretching eight games, with Charlton Athletic occupying second place without any defeats from their opening nine games. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leicester City, Birmingham City (in the hunt for a second successive promotion) and Millwall occupy the playoff zone. Derby County, who began the season as most people's favourites for the Division One title, are third from bottom in the table, only a point ahead of Bristol Rovers and Barnsley.

3 October 1992 – Blackburn Rovers go top of the Premier League, displacing former leaders Norwich City in dramatic fashion with a 7–1 win at Ewood Park. Strikers Alan Shearer and Roy Wegerle both find the net twice.

9 October 1992 - Leeds United defeat VFB Stuttgart 2–0 in a play-off in the First Round of the European Cup. Based on the first two matches, Leeds were eliminated from Europe on the away goals rule. However near the end of the second leg at Elland Road, Stuttgart had fielded four foreign players rather than the maximum permitted three. The result was declared void and Leeds were awarded the match 3-0 meaning that a play-off was needed, which was staged in Barcelona.

14 October 1992 – England draw 1–1 with Norway in their disappointing opener to the World Cup qualifying series.

16 October 1992 – Tottenham Hotspur striker Gordon Durie is banned for three games after feigning an injury in order to win his team a free kick.

18 October 1992 – Cardiff City chairman Rick Wright announces that he is considering withdrawing the club from the Football League in order to transfer to the League of Wales. Ian Rush breaks Roger Hunt's 23-year goalscoring for Liverpool, and scores his 287th goal for the club in their 2–2 league draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford.

20 October 1992 – Chester City part company with charismatic manager Harry McNally after seven years in charge, following a poor start to the season.

22 October 1992 – Cambridge United sack John Beck, who had guided them to successive promotions in the first two of his three seasons as manager.

23 October 1992 – Barclays Bank announce that they will not be renewing their sponsorship of the Football League after the end of the season. Barclays have been the league's sponsors since the start of the 1987–88 season.

24 October 1992 – Newcastle United's 11-match winning start to the Division One campaign ends with a 1–0 defeat at home to Grimsby Town.

26 October 1992 – Former Queens Park Rangers captain Glenn Roeder is appointed player-manager of Gillingham in place of Damien Richardson.

31 October 1992 – October ends with Blackburn Rovers top of the league on goal difference ahead of Norwich City. Queens Park Rangers are two places and four points off the top. Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace occupy the bottom two positions, while Liverpool are just six places and three places clear of the relegation zone. Newcastle United remain top of Division One with 11 wins from their opening 13 games, with Swindon Town second in the table. Leicester City, West Ham United, Tranmere Rovers and Wolverhampton Wanderers occupying the playoff zone. Derby County's terrible start to the season has given way to a good recovery and they now stand 10th in the league. There has been no such luck for Bristol Rovers, who stand bottom of Division 1, joined in the relegation zone by Southend (23rd) and a Luton Town side fighting a second successive relegation.

4 November 1992 - Leeds United play Rangers at Elland Road in the second leg of their Second Round European Cup tie. Trailing 2–1 from the first leg in Glasgow, Leeds went in to the return match strongly favoured to turn the tie around. Rangers, however, defied expectations and won 2–1 again on the night to progress to the first ever Group Stages of the European Cup (now Champions League).

9 November 1992 – Mark Robins scores a hat-trick for Norwich City in their 3–2 away win over Oldham Athletic, which takes the Canaries back to the top of the Premier League.

10 November 1992 – Dennis Rofe resigns as manager of Division One strugglers Bristol Rovers, and is succeeded by 65-year-old Malcolm Allison on an interim basis.

13 November 1992 – Graham Barrow is appointed player-manager of Chester City, having been caretaker since the dismissal of Harry McNally the previous month.

15 November 1992 – Transfer-listed Newcastle United striker Micky Quinn joins Coventry City on a month's loan.

18 November 1992 – England achieve a comfortable 4–0 win over Turkey in the second World Cup qualifying game. Wimbledon midfielder Vinnie Jones is fined £20,000 for his appearance in the video Soccer's Hard Men.

19 November 1992 – The High Court rules that Liverpool fan Tony Bland, 22, who suffered brain damage in the Hillsborough disaster in April 1989 and has been in a persistent vegetative state ever since, can have treatment withdrawn and be allowed to die.

20 November 1992 – Manchester United's seven-match winless Premier League run ends with a 3–0 home victory over Oldham Athletic. Midfielder Neil Webb leaves Old Trafford after three years and returns to Nottingham Forest for £800,000.

26 November 1992 – Manchester United sign the Leeds United and France striker Eric Cantona in a £1.2million deal.

27 November 1992 – 65-year-old former Manchester City manager Malcolm Allison is appointed team manager by Bristol Rovers.

28 November 1992 - Aston Villa's twelve-match unbeaten run is ended at home to Norwich: Daryl Sutch seals the win for the Canaries. Elsewhere in the Premier League, Mark Hughes scores the only goal as Manchester United win at the Arsenal, and at Ewood Park, Alan Shearer's goal helps the Rovers overcome the Rangers 1–0.

30 November 1992 – Norwich City finish November as Premier League leaders, leading Blackburn Rovers by five points. Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest continue to prop up the top flight, while Everton have climbed out of the relegation zone at the expense of Wimbledon. In Division One, leaders Newcastle United now have a 12-point lead over their nearest contenders, Tranmere Rovers (in the hunt for top-flight football for the first time in their history, which would give them three promotions in just five seasons). The playoff zone is occupied by West Ham United, Swindon Town, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Millwall. A surprise promotion challenge is coming from Grimsby Town (who were playing in the old Fourth Division three years ago) who now occupy eighth place in Division One. The relegation zone is unchanged from the end of October, except for Luton Town having climbed a point above another team fighting two successive relegations, Notts County. UEFA announces that Euro 96, held in England, will be contested by 16 teams – doubling the number of entrants from the traditional eight.

1 December 1992 – Barnet sack manager Barry Fry, despite being second-top of Division Three.

4 December 1992 – Birmingham City coach Ian Atkins is appointed manager of Cambridge United.

5 December 1992 – The Manchester derby at Old Trafford sees United beat City 2–1, with Eric Cantona making his debut as a substitute. Blackburn Rovers suffer a shock 3–2 defeat to Middlesbrough at Ayresome Park, with John Hendrie scoring a hat-trick.

7 December 1992 – Birmingham City are put up for sale with offers in the region of £750,000 invited for the 84% shareholding of former owner Samesh Kumar, who was recently declared bankrupt.

8 December 1992 – John McGrath resigns as manager of Halifax Town, who are 17th in Division Three. Due to the club's desperate financial situation, they make the unorthodox move of appointing physiotherapist Mick Rathbone as manager for the remainder of the season.

11 December 1992 – Ipswich Town sign Bulgarian striker Bontcho Guentchev from Sporting Lisbon for £250,000. Barnet reinstate manager Barry Fry ten days after sacking him.

15 December 1992 – Micky Quinn signs for Coventry City on a permanent basis for £250,000, having scored six goals in four games on loan.

18 December 1992 – Liverpool sign Norway defender Stig Inge Bjørnebye from Rosenborg for £600,000. A takeover of Peterborough United sees manager Chris Turner installed as chairman, with Lil Fuccillo being appointed manager.

19 December 1992 – Coventry City thrash Liverpool 5–1 at Highfield Road, inflicting Liverpool's heaviest league defeat for 16 years. Micky Quinn scores twice, taking his tally to eight goals in five games, as does defender Brian Borrows.

20 December 1992 – Eric Cantona scores his first goal for Manchester United in a 1–1 league draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

22 December 1992 – Chelsea sign Russian goalkeeper Dmitri Kharin from CSKA Moscow for £200,000.

26 December 1992 – Manchester United draw 3–3 at Sheffield Wednesday after being 3–0 down at half time, and are now second in the table behind Norwich City. Micky Quinn's good form for Coventry City continues as he scores twice in their 3–0 home win over title-chasing Aston Villa. Alan Shearer scores in a 2–1 home win for Blackburn over Leeds United to take his goals tally to 16 in the league and 22 in all competitions, but suffers a serious knee injury and is expected to be ruled out until next season.

28 December 1992 – Andy Sinton scores a hat-trick in Queens Park Rangers' 4–2 win over Everton.

31 December 1992 – The year ends with Norwich City still leading the table, with a three-point lead over Manchester United. Nottingham Forest remain bottom, Wimbledon remain in the relegation zone and Crystal Palace have moved clear of the bottom three at the expense of Sheffield United. Newcastle United enter the new year with their 12-point lead over Tranmere Rovers still intact. West Ham United, Millwall, Portsmouth and Leicester City occupy the playoff zone. Newly promoted Brentford occupy 10th place, and are just two points short of the playoff zone that would give them a real chance of reclaiming the top division place they lost in 1947. Birmingham City's early promotion challenge, however, has given way to a drastic loss of form that has pushed them to the bottom of Division One. Also facing the threat of relegation are Luton Town (who only slipped out of the top flight last season, and are only one point clear of the relegation zone) as well as Southend United and Cambridge United, who were both in last season's promotion hunt.

1 January 1993 – 35-year-old midfielder Gordon Strachan is awarded an OBE.

2 January 1993 – Crystal Palace, the 1990 FA Cup finalists, suffer a shock third round exit from the competition when they lose 1–0 at Hartlepool United.

4 January 1993 – Scunthorpe United manager Bill Green becomes the first Football League managerial casualty of 1993 when he is sacked in favour of Richard Money.

6 January 1993 – Eighteen months after leaving Manchester United for Aston Villa, Les Sealey returns to Old Trafford on a free transfer.

7 January 1993 – Blackburn Rovers sign Swedish midfielder Patrik Andersson from Malmö for £800,000.

13 January 1993 – Liverpool suffer a shock FA Cup exit in the third round replay, losing 2–0 at home to Division Two side Bolton Wanderers.

14 January 1993 – Notts County, bottom of Division One and in danger of a second successive relegation, sack manager Neil Warnock.

21 January 1993 – Denis Smith is sacked after less than ten months as manager of Bristol City.

26 January 1993 – Blackburn Rovers sign Norway defender Henning Berg from Lillestrøm in a £400,000 deal.

31 January 1993 – January ends with Norwich City still top of the Premiership, but with their lead over Manchester United now down to a single point. Aston Villa and Ipswich Town are continuing to keep up the pressure, but Blackburn Rovers have slumped to fifth place. Nottingham Forest and Oldham Athletic hold the bottom two places, with Sheffield United still occupying the final relegation position. The Division One promotion chase is still led by runaway leaders Newcastle United, whose nearest challenge is from a West Ham United side who are 11 points behind them with a game in hand. Millwall, Tranmere Rovers, Portsmouth and Leicester City occupy the playoff zone. The division's bottom two clubs, Luton Town and Notts County, are under serious threat of a second successive relegation, joined in the bottom three by a Southend United side who spent much of last season challenging for promotion to the Premier League.

1 February 1993 – Sunderland, struggling in Division One, sack Malcolm Crosby as manager, nine months after he led them to the FA Cup final.

4 February 1993 – Nearly seven years after selling him to Aston Villa, Arsenal buy Martin Keown from Everton for £2 million.

5 February 1993 – Terry Butcher is named as the new manager of Sunderland, one year after being sacked by Coventry City.

12 February 1993 – Newcastle United sign Andy Cole from Bristol City for a club record £1.75 million.

13 February 1993 – Manchester United's double hopes are ended when they lose 2–1 to Sheffield United at Bramall Lane in the FA Cup fifth round. Steve Bruce misses a penalty.

14 February 1993 – Paul Compton resigns as Torquay United manager hours after a defeat by Division Three leaders Cardiff City, which leaves Torquay bottom of the entire Football League and in serious danger of relegation to the Conference. Neil Warnock, who joined the club only days beforehand as a "Footballing Consultant," replaces Compton as manager.

15 February 1993 – Ian Porterfield is sacked after less than two years as manager of Chelsea. David Webb, who left the Southend United job last summer, is appointed as Chelsea's new manager on a trial contract until the end of the season. Alan Shearer will miss the rest of the season following surgery on his knee injury.

17 February 1993 – England achieve a third successive win in their World Cup qualifying series, triumphing 6–0 over San Marino at Wembley.

28 February 1993 – February ends with Aston Villa top of the Premier League, two points ahead of Manchester United, who have a game in hand. Norwich City, Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn Rovers complete the top five. Oldham Athletic prop up the table, with Middlesbrough and Sheffield United joining them in the bottom three. Division One leaders Newcastle United have a seven-point margin over their nearest rivals West Ham United, and the playoff zone is occupied by Millwall, Swindon Town, Portsmouth and Tranmere Rovers. Grimsby Town's unlikely promotion challenge continues as they are just three goals away from a place in the top six. An improvement in form has seen Notts County and Luton Town climb out of the bottom three and ease their fears of a second successive relegation; the relegation zone now consists of Southend, Bristol Rovers and Birmingham.

3 March 1993 – Tony Bland dies in hospital after treatment was withdrawn, making him the Hillsborough disaster's 96th victim after nearly four years in a coma.

6 March 1993 – Manchester United beat struggling Liverpool 2–1 at Anfield in the Premier League.

7 March 1993 – With Bristol Rovers having fallen back to the foot of Division One after a brief improvement in results, Malcolm Allison announces his intention to resign as soon as a successor can be appointed.

8 March 1993 – Birmingham City are taken over by newspaper publisher David Sullivan, who appoints 24-year-old Karren Brady as the first female managing director of a professional football club.

12 March 1993 – Russell Osman becomes the Bristol City's new manager. John Ward leaves York City to take over at Bristol Rovers, and is succeeded at Bootham Crescent by Alan Little.

24 March 1993 – Bryan Hamilton resigns as Wigan Athletic manager in the wake of a defeat to Division Two's basement side Chester City, with Wigan in serious danger of their first-ever relegation. Dave Philpotts is appointed as caretaker manager for the remainder of the season.

25 March 1993 – Blackburn Rovers sign Chelsea defender Graeme Le Saux for £700,000. Norwich City sign 25-year-old AFC Bournemouth striker Efan Ekoku for £500,000. Blackburn Rovers pay Coventry City £2.5 million for striker Kevin Gallacher, with £1 million-rated Roy Wegerle moving in the opposite direction.

28 March 1993 – Aston Villa's Paul McGrath is voted PFA Player of the Year. The Young Player of the Year award goes to Manchester United's Ryan Giggs for the second year running.

31 March 1993 – England make it four wins from their first five World Cup qualifying games by beating Turkey 2–0 in Izmir. The month ends with Norwich City back on top of the Premier League, though Aston Villa are just a point behind with a game in hand. Manchester United are still close behind, while Blackburn Rovers have three games in hand on the leaders. Nottingham Forest have slipped back into the relegation zone behind Sheffield United, while Oldham Athletic are still in the relegation zone and Middlesbrough now occupy bottom place. In Division One, Newcastle United still lead the way, though West Ham United have cut their lead down to five points. Portsmouth, Swindon Town, Millwall and Leicester City occupy the playoff zone. A dismal run of form for Tranmere Rovers has taken them from second to seventh place in just three months, and they are now six points outside the playoff zone. A dismal month for Grimsby Town has seen their promotion challenge virtually ended: in fact, they are actually closer to the relegation zone than to sixth place (albeit only by goal difference). Bristol Rovers are six points away from safety and look certain for relegation, but fellow strugglers Southend and Cambridge end March still optimistic of avoiding the drop. In Division Two, Stoke City are ten points clear of second-placed Port Vale and looking all but assured of promotion. Controversial chairman Stan Flashman leaves Division Three leaders Barnet, and as a parting shot sacks and reinstates manager Barry Fry on the same day.

1 April 1993 – Within 24 hours of his latest dismissal and reinstatement at Barnet, Barry Fry finally leaves the troubled North London club to succeed Colin Murphy as manager of Southend United. Fry's assistant Edwin Stein agrees to take charge of the club for the remainder of the season, but makes it clear that he will not continue as manager beyond that.

3 April 1993 – Sheffield Wednesday reach their first FA Cup final in 27 years as they defeat Sheffield United 2–1 at Wembley with goals from Mark Bright and Chris Waddle. United's consolation goal came from Alan Cork. The two teams are led out by Sheffield United's cancer-stricken goalkeeper Mel Rees.

4 April 1993 – Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur meet in the FA Cup semi-finals for the second time in three seasons. Arsenal win 1–0, with captain Tony Adams scoring the only goal of the game.

9 April 1993 – Norwich City's Premier League title hopes are damaged by a 5–1 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur.

10 April 1993 – Centre-back Steve Bruce scores two late goals to give Manchester United a 2–1 home win over Sheffield Wednesday.

12 April 1993 - Trailing Birmingham City 4-1 after 60 minutes, Swindon Town score five goals in 30 minutes to win 6-4.

12 April 1993 – Ian Rush continues his return to form with his seventh league goal in eight games as Liverpool draw 1–1 with Manchester City at Maine Road.

17 April 1993 – Midfielder Mark Walters scores a hat-trick as Liverpool beat Coventry City 4–0 in the Premier League at Anfield.

18 April 1993 – Arsenal beat Sheffield Wednesday 2–1 in the League Cup final. Steve Morrow, the scorer of Arsenal's winning goal, breaks his arm in a freak accident during the on-pitch celebrations and would likely miss next month's FA Cup final between the same two teams.

19 April 1993 – Norwich City's 3–1 defeat at Ipswich Town ends their title hopes.

26 April 1993 – Brian Clough announces that he will retire as Nottingham Forest manager at the end of the season after 18 years in charge.

28 April 1993 – England and the Netherlands draw 2–2 at Wembley in their World Cup qualifier. Stoke City clinch the Division Two title.

30 April 1993 – Former Charlton Athletic defender Tommy Caton dies at his home in Oxfordshire at the age of 30 after suffering a heart attack, just weeks after retiring from playing following a two-year absence due to injury. As April draws to a close, Manchester United are four points ahead of Aston Villa in the league with two games remaining. The Division One promotion race is still wide open, with Newcastle United still top and needing just two points from their final three games to seal promotion. Portsmouth occupy second place and need four points from their final two games to get promoted, but West Ham United could still overtake them if they managed at least one win and a draw from their next two games. West Ham United, Swindon Town, Leicester City and Tranmere Rovers complete the top six. Millwall are now the only team who can prevent the Wirral side from finishing in the play-off zone and maintaining their challenge to get into the Premier League. Bristol Rovers are mathematically relegated, needing a minimum of 10 points as well as a 21-goal swing between them and 21st-placed Sunderland from the remaining two matches, but Cambridge and Brentford are more optimistic of avoiding the drop.

1 May 1993 – Nottingham Forest are relegated from the Premier League after a 2–0 defeat to Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

2 May 1993 – Manchester United are confirmed as league champions of England for the first time in 26 years after Aston Villa lose 1–0 at home to Oldham Athletic.

4 May 1993 – Newcastle United seal the Division One title and promotion to the Premier League with a 2–0 win at Grimsby Town.

5 May 1993 – Oldham Athletic remain in with a slim chance of Premier League survival by achieving a surprise 3–2 home win over Liverpool at Boundary Park.

8 May 1993 – Liverpool's 6–2 home win over Tottenham Hotspur sees them finish sixth. Millwall lose 3–0 at home to Bristol Rovers in Division One in their last game at The Den; they will move into a new 20,000-seat stadium at the start of next season. Halifax Town, who are bottom of Division Three after a disastrous second half of the season, are relegated from the Football League due to Northampton Town, the only team they could have caught, winning their final game of the season.

9 May 1993 – The first season of the Premier League ends with Manchester United as champions and European Cup entrants, with Aston Villa and Norwich City going into the UEFA Cup. Oldham Athletic pull off a remarkable survival act by beating Southampton 4–3, and the three relegations places go to Crystal Palace, Middlesbrough and Nottingham Forest.

12 May 1993 – Leyton Orient managing director Frank Clark, a former Nottingham Forest player, returns to the City Ground as the club's new manager.

13 May 1993 – Chris Waddle is voted FWA Player of the Year.

14 May 1993 – Tottenham Hotspur chairman Alan Sugar sacks chief executive and former team manager Terry Venables, who helped him take control of the club two years ago. However, Venables is reinstated within hours by a High Court injunction.

15 May 1993 – Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday draw 1–1 in the FA Cup final. Ian Wright opens the scoring for the North Londoners in the 20th minute, but David Hirst equalises for Trevor Francis's men after 61 minutes.

17 May 1993 – Six days after leaving Chelsea, David Webb is named as the new manager of Brentford, in place of Phil Holder after the West London club's relegation from Division One.

20 May 1993 – Arsenal beat Sheffield Wednesday 2–1 in the FA Cup final replay. Once again, Ian Wright opens the scoring, with a goal in the 34th minute. Chris Waddle equalises in the 68th minute, but with just one minute of extra time remaining, Andy Linighan wins the match with a goal for Arsenal. Steve Coppell resigns after nine years manager of Crystal Palace.

21 May 1993 – Keith Alexander becomes the first permanent black manager of an English league side when he is named as Steve Thompson's successor at Lincoln City.

27 May 1993 – Striker Nigel Clough agrees to join Liverpool from Nottingham Forest in a £2.75million deal.

28 May 1993 – Wigan Athletic announce Kenny Swain as their new manager following relegation to Division Three.

29 May 1993 – England draw 1–1 with Poland in Katowice, extending their unbeaten run in the World Cup qualifiers to seven games. York City win the Division Three play-off final on penalties over Crewe Alexandra after a 1–1 draw.

30 May 1993 – West Bromwich Albion win the Division Two play-off final and secure promotion to Division One with a 3–0 win over Port Vale. Sheffield United goalkeeper Mel Rees dies of cancer aged 26.

31 May 1993 – Swindon Town are promoted to the top division of English football after 73 years of trying thanks to a 4–3 win over Leicester City in the Division One play-off final.

2 June 1993 – England suffer their first defeat of this World Cup qualifying series, losing 2–0 to Norway in Oslo.

3 June 1993 – Former assistant manager Alan Smith is promoted to role of manager at Crystal Palace. Barnsley recruit 36-year-old defender Viv Anderson from Sheffield Wednesday to become their new player-manager. Neil Warnock ends his tenure at Torquay United, and is replaced by player-assistant manager Don O'Riordan.

4 June 1993 – Glenn Hoddle is named as Chelsea's new manager. Hoddle, 36, will also be registered as a player with the club.

9 June 1993 – Paul Ince becomes England's first black captain in their 2–0 defeat against the USA in Foxboro.

10 June 1993 – David Kelly, whose 25 Division One goals helped Newcastle United reach the Premier League this season, completes a £750,000 transfer to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

14 June 1993 – Arsenal pay Crystal Palace £1 million for Ireland winger Eddie McGoldrick.

17 June 1993 – Manchester United break the national transfer record by paying Nottingham Forest £3.75 million for Roy Keane.

18 June 1993 – David O'Leary, who has spent his whole career playing for Arsenal, moves to Leeds United on a free transfer.

19 June 1993 – Ossie Ardiles, who won promotion from Division Two as manager of West Bromwich Albion this year, is unveiled as manager of Tottenham Hotspur. His assistant at Albion, former Spurs boss Keith Burkinshaw, succeeds him.

23 June 1993 – Peter Beardsley signs for Newcastle United in a £1.5million deal from Everton, six years after he left Tyneside. Nottingham Forest prepare for their promotion push by paying £2.5million for Southend United striker Stan Collymore.

29 June 1993 – Merthyr Tydfil decide against joining the League of Wales and opt to remain in the GM Vauxhall Conference.

30 June 1993 – Edwin Stein resigns as Barnet manager and follows his predecessor Barry Fry to Southend United, where he becomes assistant manager. Goalkeeper and club captain Gary Phillips is provisionally announced as manager for the following season, though it remains to be seen whether Barnet will even start the next season due to their financial problems.

Deaths

• 11 July 1992 - Ted Fenton, 77, who died from injuries sustained in a Leicestershire car crash, was manager of West Ham United from 1950 to 1961 and had served them as a player from 1932 to 1946.
• 11 December 1992 - Billy Cook, 83, was the last surviving player from Everton's FA Cup winning side of 1933. He was also capped 15 times for Northern Ireland at centre-half.
• 25 December 1992 - Ted Croker, 68, was Secretary of The Football Association from 1973 to 1989. He was the younger brother of footballer Peter Croker, who won the FA Cup with Charlton Athletic in 1947.
• 11 January 1993 - Tommy Walker, 77, played 97 league games at inside-forward for Chelsea in the immediate post World War II years after his transfer from Hearts, where he had been prolific with 192 goals in 170 Scottish league games. He was less prolific south of the border, but after retiring as a player enjoyed huge success back at Hearts as manager, winning no less than seven major trophies between 1951 and 1966.
• 17 February 1993 – Jack Froggatt, 70, forward who won the league with Portsmouth in 1948 and 1949, and was capped 13 times by England.
• 24 February 1993 – Bobby Moore, 51, who captained England to World Cup glory in 1966 as well as winning an FA Cup and Cup Winners' Cup with West Ham, died after a two-year battle against bowel cancer. Just over a week before his death, Moore had given radio commentary on an England game. More than 1,800 people attended a memorial service to Moore at Westminster Abbey on 28 June 1993.
• 3 March 1993 – Tony Bland, 22, who had been in a coma for nearly four years due to injuries suffered in the Hillsborough disaster, became the tragedy's 96th victim when he died following a landmark High Court ruling which allowed treatment to be withdrawn.
• April 1993 – Roy Bailey, 60, former Crystal Palace and Ipswich goalkeeper. Kept goal for Ipswich when they won the league in 1962. Father of Manchester United and England goalkeeper Gary Bailey.
• 30 April 1993 – Tommy Caton, 30, who played for Manchester City, Arsenal, Oxford United and Charlton Athletic. Was on the losing side for Manchester City in the 1981 F.A Cup final. Died following a heart attack in April 1993.
• 30 May 1993 – Mel Rees, 26, Sheffield United goalkeeper, died of cancer. Had previously played for Cardiff City and West Bromwich Albion.
• 8 June 1993 – John Atyeo, 61, who played for Bristol City during the postwar years, scored a club record total of 350 goals in nearly 600 games between 1951 and 1966. He was capped six times at senior level by England during the 1950s, scoring five goals.