Southampton Football Club was founded in 1885 in Southampton, Hampshire, England, growing out of a church youth organisation at St Mary's Church. The club's roots in that parish gave rise to their enduring nickname, The Saints, and to the red and white colours they wear to this day.
After years in the Southern League — which they won six times — Southampton joined the Football League in 1920 and spent much of the following decades oscillating between the second and third tiers. Their most celebrated moment came on 1 May 1976, when, as a Second Division side, they defeated Manchester United 1–0 in the FA Cup Final thanks to Bobby Stokes's goal. It remains the club's only FA Cup title and its defining trophy. Manager Lawrie McMenemy subsequently steered them back into the top flight, where they reached their highest-ever league finish of second place in the First Division in 1983–84, finishing three points behind Liverpool. During that era, legends such as Kevin Keegan and goalkeeper Peter Shilton graced the squad, and the club became founding members of the Premier League in 1992.
The 1990s and early 2000s are remembered in part for Matt Le Tissier, a one-club man who scored 209 goals and became an icon of loyalty in the modern game. Southampton were relegated from the Premier League in 2005 after 27 consecutive seasons at the top level, dropped as far as League One by 2009, and then mounted a remarkable recovery — winning the Football League Trophy in 2010 and earning back-to-back promotions to return to the Premier League in 2012. They were relegated again in 2023, won the Championship play-off final in 2024 to bounce straight back, but were relegated once more in April 2025.
The club's fiercest rivalry is the South Coast Derby against Portsmouth, rooted in geographic proximity and shared maritime heritage.