Aston Villa’s nicknames – Why are Aston Villa known as the Villans and the Lions?
Aston Villa are one of the most historic clubs in all of English football.
The B6 club are one of the founding members of the Football League in 1888 and have largely played in the top flight throughout their history at Villa Park.
As it stands, Villa and their £475.5million squad are on an upwards trajectory under Unai Emery, with hopes of a positive season rekindled after Villa’s signings of Harvey Elliott and Jadon Sancho on loan.
Even if this campaign doesn’t go to plan, having the Spaniard in charge and Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens in charge of Aston Villa, there is reason for positivity.
The B6 club have a bright future ahead, but now, Villa News takes a look to the past to understand where the claret and blue outfit got their famous nicknames from.
Why are Aston Villa known as the Villans?
This may come across as a silly question, but this name simply comes as a result of the club being called Villa.
There is no sort of negative connotation surrounding the name, with this being a simple play on words to give the side a clever nickname.
But this does go deeper, however, as the name “Aston Villa” has hugely unique origins of its own, which ultimately gives the side its famous nickname.
To understand this, you have to go back to when Villa were founded back in 1874, as cricketers from the “Aston Villa Wesleyan Chapel” formed a football team to play in the winter months.
The cricket team had been formed two years earlier, near the “Villa Cross” pub in 1850, showcasing just how traditional the “Villa” name is.
This ultimately went on to spark the Villans’ nickname, which still takes centre stage of the Premier League club 175 years later.
Why are Aston Villa known as the Lions?
In yet another seemingly simple question, Villa are sometimes referred to as the Lions due to the ever-present, rampant lion on their crest.
This also dates back to the founding of the club, where the first chairman in B6, William McGregor, based the club’s badge on the Scottish Royal Coat of Arms.
Reflecting his heritage on the Villans became their identity, with the badge featuring a lion frequently ever since, despite a sizable number of redesigns.
This has seen the centre piece of the badge face in different directions on many iterations since 1957, with the most significant change coming in 2007.
Ultimately, this is where the name came from in the Midlands, with Villa having a pair of hugely traditional nicknames, showcasing their historic nature in the English footballing picture.
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