The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed the Bombers, is a professional Australian rules football club. The club plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the game's premier competition. The club was formed by the McCracken family in their Ascot Vale home "Alisa", and while the exact date is unknown, it is generally accepted to have been in 1872. The club’s first recorded game took place on 7 June 1873 against a Carlton Second 20. From 1878 until 1896, the club played in the Victorian Football Association then joined seven other clubs in October 1896 to form the breakaway Victorian Football League. Headquartered at the Essendon Recreation Ground, known as Windy Hill, from 1922 to 2013, the club moved to The Hangar in near Tullamarine in late 2013 on land owned the Melbourne Airport. The club currently plays its home games at either Docklands Stadium or the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Dyson Heppell is the current club captain.
The 1897 VFL season was the inaugural season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the new highest-level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured eight clubs, ran from 8 May until 4 September, and comprised a 14-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1908 VFL season was the twelfth season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria.
The 1912 VFL season was the 16th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured ten clubs, ran from 27 April until 28 September, and comprised an 18-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1918 VFL season was the 22nd season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria.
The 1950 VFL season was the 54th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 22 April until 23 September, and comprised an 18-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1921 VFL season was the 25th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured nine clubs, ran from 7 May until 15 October, and comprised a 16-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1922 VFL season was the 26th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured nine clubs, ran from 6 May until 14 October, and comprised a 16-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1926 VFL season was the 30th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 1 May until 9 October, and comprised an 18-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1935 VFL season was the 39th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 27 April until 5 October, and comprised an 18-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1943 VFL season was the 47th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria.
The 1949 VFL season was the 53rd season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 16 April until 24 September, and comprised a 19-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1948 VFL season was the 52nd season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 17 April until 9 October, and comprised a 19-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top four clubs.
The 1974 VFL season was the 78th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 6 April until 28 September, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top five clubs.
The 2000 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Melbourne Football Club and the Essendon Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 2 September 2000 rather than in its usual last Saturday of September date to avoid conflicting with the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. It was the 104th annual grand final of the Australian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for the 2000 AFL season. The match, attended by 96,249 spectators, was won by Essendon by a margin of 60 points, marking that club's 16th premiership and thereby equalling the record for the most VFL/AFL premierships.
The 1923 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Essendon Football Club and Fitzroy Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 20 October 1923. It was the 26th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for the 1923 VFL season. The match, attended by 46,566 spectators, was won by Essendon by a margin of 17 points, marking that club's fifth premiership victory.
The 1950 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Essendon Football Club and North Melbourne Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 23 September 1950. It was the 53rd annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for the 1950 VFL season. The match, attended by 85,869 spectators, was won by Essendon by 38 points, marking that club's tenth premiership victory.
Essendon (Association) Football Club was an Australian rules football club which played in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) from 1900 until 1921. The Dreadnoughts wore black and red, and played their home games at the Essendon Recreation Reserve. They were also known by the name "Essendon Town" (1900–1904), in order to distinguish them from the Essendon Football Club that played in the Victorian Football League (VFL).
The 1951 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Geelong Football Club and Essendon Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 29 September 1951. It was the 54th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for the 1951 VFL season.
The AFL Australian Football League is the top professional Australian rules football league in the world. The league consists of eighteen teams: nine based in the city of Melbourne, one from regional Victoria, and eight based in other Australian states. The reason for this unbalanced geographic distribution lies in the history of the league, which was based solely within Victoria from the time it was established in 1897, until the time the league expanded through the addition of clubs from interstate to the existing teams starting in the 1980s; until this expansion, the league was known as the VFL (Victorian Football League).
