The Lions.

Every football club has a badge representing them. In this sideways glance I’m looking at the badges that feature a lion or three.

Hundreds of teams throughout the world use lions on their badges in many different sports. In the UK Aston Villa, Scotland, Chelsea, Rangers and of course England, use lions in various forms. The lion is a large cat of the genus Panthera, native to Africa and India. So far, there are no wild lions in the county of Sussex, at least none that I know of!

Lions are often used in crests and coats of arms because they symbolize qualities that are considered to be important, such as courage, strength, royalty, and nobility. It is regarded as the “king of beasts” and is thought to best personify qualities of “Britishness”. I always thought it was the Bulldog!

Now for a touch of history. In the 12th century, King Richard I combined three lions to create the royal seal of the house Plant-agenet, which remains a royal symbol to this day.

I love nicknames, badges and colours of football teams and find it interesting how they are chosen. During my “nickname” article (Vol1) which proved popular, I thought it would be interesting to look at football badges for local teams in Sussex, starting with badges featuring Lions. 

Lions are so popular maybe someone should make a song about them!

To keep the article down to a readable length for footy fans, I have focused on eight teams.

Horsham FC

The Hornets play in the Isthmian Premier League and their badge depicts a lion on his hind legs with the colours of the club surrounding it.

Pagham FC

Nicknamed the Lions, they have a large leaping lion outlined in yellow with a black background. They play in the SCFL Premier Division.

Hastings United

The U’s are playing in the Isthmian Premier League. Their badge is fantastic and has a great male lion’s head in the colours of the club.

Rye Town FC

The Quarter Boys ply their trade in the East Sussex Premier Division. A slightly odd badge with three lions backed on to three castles on a red and black background.

Sussex Rangers FC

The Rangers are from Bognor Regis and play in the West Sussex Premier Division. This features a roaring lion with two swords behind it.

After an intense review which I deliberated over for minutes I decided that my top three out of the Sussex Lions are:

Third: Horsham YMCA FC.

The lion is on its hind legs with a Christian cross on its body. This refers to the club’s name, Young Men’s Christian Association. It shows strength and resilience.

My second place lion is from Three Bridges FC.

The badge depicts a lion on his hind legs opposite an eagle both with sharp talons and a football in between them. It has three arches behind, symbolising the name of the original village, which was given due to their three bridges which cross the River Mole in the 16th century.

My Number 1 badge in Sussex football which contains a lion is the brilliant and strange Wittering United. From West Sussex Football League Division One South.

A lion and a horse who seem to be depicted as a scary sea horse and lion, both have ferocious eagle talons gripping a shield with waves, which I would assume is due to Witterings seaside location.

Since the 12th century Lions have symbolised the British. They have been and will be used for many years. I find the lion a brilliant symbol for teams, but is it as good as a dragon?

More to come in part 2.