I’m honoured to welcome you to Craven Cottage for our final home fixture of the Premier League season. I am thrilled to be in attendance with you and especially pleased to write programme notes given the wonderful campaign we’re able to reflect upon as we prepare to face our London neighbours Crystal Palace. Thank you for choosing to spend your afternoon with us!
Matchday at Craven Cottage is always special, but some dates are truly exceptional and today will be one of those days. First, I have a lot of respect for Crystal Palace and will always treasure the memory of my first Fulham away game as Chairman in October 2013, a 4-1 win at Selhurst Park that our supporters – like me – will never forget by virtue of Pajtim Kasami’s stunning strike to tie the match (and Steve Sidwell’s go-ahead goal was amazing as well!). That was Palace’s first year in the Premier League following promotion, and the team has stayed up ever since. That’s commendable and we look forward to returning to top‑flight football with the Eagles in August.
It's also a privilege for all of us at Fulham to welcome back Roy Hodgson and Ray Lewington to Craven Cottage. Roy has led a Palace squad here in the past, but it’s a delight to celebrate his return once more as manager. Roy was here several months ago to lay flowers on the pitch with our own Marco Silva in tribute to George Cohen, who had just passed away, and the mutual respect between Roy and Marco was a joy to behold. For however long Roy is back at Palace, that’s good for everyone who loves this London Derby and football itself.
Of course, the main reason we’re able to celebrate this weekend is the outstanding performance of Fulham, certainly in the past several weeks but also through the entire course of the season. We are coming off victories over Leicester City and Southampton that were entertaining and emotionally uplifting, and with two matches to go we have already achieved historical heights at Fulham with the opportunity for even more.
I commend everyone – Marco, his staff, our recruitment team, the players and unquestionably our supporters – who have all admirably played their role in helping Fulham reach all-time highs in Premier League victories with 15 and away wins with seven. None of this happens if we’re not coming together as one, especially in the face of adversity with excruciating losses after conceding decisive goals in added time at Manchester City and vs. Manchester United, significant injuries to begin and end the season, suspensions and various other obstacles along the way. Undaunted, we’ve carried on, and impressively so.
Never was this more evident than just last Saturday at Southampton. Our travelling supporters numbered in the thousands to will us to a club-record overall and away league victory, and Aleksandar Mitrović returned from an eight-match suspension to brilliantly score his personal-best 12th Premier League goal. The scene on the pitch and in the stands was one of pure joy, and for me it served as the ultimate illustration of what has been arguably one of our best seasons in Premier League competition and easily my favourite campaign during my time at Fulham.
For all there is to celebrate, I have no doubt we will be motivated over these final two matches. With a win this afternoon or at Manchester United on 28 May, we would surpass our current record of 53 points in a Premier League season – an accomplishment virtually no one outside our club thought possible last summer. A win today would ensure a finish in the top half of the table, a notable achievement for any newly promoted side. We’re still in the running to clip Brentford for West London bragging rights, and we may have a say in the final match of the season as to whether Manchester United qualifies for Champions League football.
No matter what unfolds in the days ahead, I am so proud of Marco and our squad for producing two consecutive seasons of spirited and attractive football. In 2022-2023, a strong case can be made for every player on our team having at least one match or signature moment that filled our hearts while gaining the admiration and respect of everyone who followed the league all season. And Marco’s brilliant work on the touchline has earned him a deserved nomination for Premier League Manager of the Year, for which you may cast your vote in his support on the Premier League website. Well done!
Now, I cannot wait for 15 June when the Premier League announces the fixtures for the 2023-2024 season that begins on 12 August. It’s hard to believe the opening weekend arrives only 12 weeks from today, but that is indeed the truth! I speak for Marco and everyone at Fulham Football Club in expressing our deepest appreciation for the energy and support we enjoyed from our fans all season, home and away, and we look forward to experiencing it again when the Premier League returns just a few months from now.
I am delighted at the prospect of Fulham preparing for next season as one of six clubs participating in the Premier League Summer Series in the United States. This is a tour that I strongly wanted for Fulham, both for the squad and to further develop our fan base in the States – a fan base that is very mature and knowledgeable given the number of U.S. national players who have played for FFC over the years, but whose capacity for growth is immense. Our three matches in the U.S. in July will afford our staff and players a spectacular experience while rewarding our longtime, new and future American supporters with opportunities to connect with Fulham like never before.
As you can imagine, being a U.S. citizen, all of this means a lot to me. I will be there for every stop along the way – vs. Brentford on 23 July in Philadelphia, vs. Aston Villa on 26 July in Orlando and vs. Chelsea on 30 July in suburban Washington, D.C. Please visit premierleague.com/SummerSeries for more.
And, while on the subject of performing on an international stage, the Jacksonville Jaguars gladly accepted the opportunity to play a second game in London this autumn in addition to our traditional home game at Wembley Stadium. If you’ve never attended a National Football League game in person, consider joining us at Wembley when the Jaguars face the visiting Atlanta Falcons on 1 October. Information is available at jaguars.co.uk/wembley2023. We then visit the Buffalo Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on 8 October, and the hope is Fulham will have a home match or two during the 10 days or so the Jaguars will be based in London.
While these notes are understandably and traditionally focused on Fulham Football Club, I appreciate you considering my thoughts on the Jacksonville Jaguars playing back-to-back games here in London. It’s a first for the NFL, so it’s huge for everyone involved. The Jaguars are honoured to consider London their home away from home, and I can assure you there are thousands of new Fulham supporters in Jacksonville who fell in love with FFC through their interest in the Jags. We’ll certainly see many of them in nearby Orlando when we face Aston Villa in July, and you’ll likely see a lot of the same people cheering on Fulham when the Jaguars are here in London.
What does all of this mean? Being global is essential to the health and promise of teams everywhere. It also makes everything more fun. We’re part of something bigger, and 2023 will undeniably be that and more for both the Jaguars and Fulham Football Club!
Before closing, our FFC Academy Teams are very much deserving of recognition, beginning with Head Coach Steve Wigley and his U21s came in with a fifth-place finish in their first season after getting promoted from Division Two. The team battled hard in every competition and reached the semi-finals of both the Premier League International Cup and Premier League Cup. Several of our players have regularly trained with the First Team and a handful even made their senior debuts. There will be plenty of optimism heading into next season!
It was an equally impressive season for Head Coach Ali Melloul and his U18s who finished in second despite being a considerably younger team than the sides they encountered. Striker Aaron Loupalo-Bi enjoyed an excellent season, scoring 18 league goals (25 in all competitions) to pick up the Golden Boot award. The squad enjoyed a decent FA Youth Cup run as well, reaching the Fifth Round after beating Rochdale and Sunderland away from home.
I should also note that our U18s recorded a 7-1 victory away at Chelsea, which was later followed by a 5-2 win over the same club at Motspur Park. Nice work!
The Fulham FC Women squad flourished this season, finishing third in their league while advancing to the semi-final of their league cup. The team also faced up against multiple Tier 4 sides and successfully knocked one out of the FA Cup. Further, we formed a Fulham FC Women U18s side at the start of the season to build a player pathway into the Women’s side, and the results were fantastic with League Cup and County Cup victories and a fourth-place finish in the league table. This is all great news for the entirety of Fulham Football Club, and I salute coaches Steve Jaye and Carla Joseph for their commitment and outstanding results!
And, finally, several of our homegrown players have returned from their loan spells and gained great experience. There are too many success stories to mention, but one to highlight is Jay Stansfield at Exeter City. Jay scored a hat trick in his final game, resulting in a beautiful moment in front of the stand at Exeter named after his late father Adam. The video is an absolute treasure and can be found at fulhamfc.com.
With that, as we anticipate today’s kickoff, I hope you’ll pause for a moment this Friday – as I will – to mark five years to the day of our promotion to the Premier League with the now-legendary 1-0 win over Aston Villa at Wembley Stadium.
The anniversary struck me as I rejoiced in the two goals scored by Tom Cairney here last week vs. Leicester City. Tom’s goal that afternoon is Fulham lore, but I’m also proud to say that three other players on our roster that day – Mitro, Tim Ream and Neeskens Kebano – are still with us today, admirably serving our Club as they did during that epic 2017-2018 season. Thank you, Tom, Mitro, Tim and Neeskens!
And to everyone who supported us then, and now, we owe you the greatest thanks of all. With that, let’s have a grand afternoon at Craven Cottage before enjoying a safe and refreshing summertime, wherever you may be.
Come On, Fulham!
