West Brom is one of the older clubs around; it was started by workers at a spring factory in 1878. (This whole area was very much ground zero for the Industrial Revolution.) At first they were called West Bromwich Strollers; then in 1880 they became the first team to use Albion, a pre-Roman word for the island of Great Britain. (The other big…

The other Birmingham-area clubs are rivals, especially Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers. With the latter they contest the Black Country derby, which goes all the way back to 1886 and has been played 162 times. That matchup—West Bromwich Albion vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers—is said to be the worst nightmare of the person who has about five…

The WBA FC Women play in the third-tier National Women’s League North. Home games are at Coles Lane in Sutton

The most random one is the 23rd Psalm. Yes, that one, “The Lord is my shepherd” and all of that. The leading theory traces it to a game away to Everton in 1974; issues with the electricity at the stadium moved the game to Sunday, and since it was the first Sunday game anyone could remember, they decided to get religious. It’s now written above…

The Hawthorns has been their home since 1900, and strangely, among the 92 Football League clubs, it’s the highest above sea level at 551 feet. The site had to be cleared of hawthorn bushes, hence the name. Capacity is 26,688; it somehow looks smaller from the outside and bigger on the inside. It’s a very cozy, enclosed ground and is intimidating…

GETTING THERE: The closest rail station is The Hawthorns, just a few minutes’ walk away. It’s about 20 minutes from the main Birmingham station, New Street, with a change at Snow Hill. You can also get there direct from Moor Street, right across from New Street, on West Midlands Trains. A few bus lines stop right outside. PUBS: There aren’t many…