Dagenham & Redbridge F.C.

Formation Dagenham & Redbridge F.C. was formed in 1992 following a merger between two clubs – Dagenham F.C. and Redbridge Forest F.C.. Both clubs had fallen on hard times due to dwindling attendances. The club can trace back its ancestry to 1881 as Redbridge Forest was an amalgamation of three of the amateur game's most famous clubs, Ilford, Leytonstone and Walthamstow Avenue. Between the clubs they won the FA Trophy once, FA Amateur Cup seven times, Isthmian League 20 times, Athenian League six times, Essex Senior Cup 26 times and London Senior Cup 23 times. The 2006–07 season saw Dagenham & Redbridge battle it out with Oxford United for the top of the league spot. Despite Oxford quickly racing to the top, a collapse in Oxford's form combined with an excellent run for the Daggers saw them overtake Oxford in the league. On 7 April, Dagenham & Redbridge beat Aldershot Town 2–1 to build an unbeatable lead in the league, becoming Conference champions, meaning the club would play in the Football League for the first time in its history. 2007–2015: Football League Dagenham & Redbridge played its first match in the Football League on 11 August 2007, a 1–0 defeat to Stockport County. The club won its first Football League game at home to Lincoln City on 1 September 2007. The Daggers finished the season in 20th place, ensuring a second season of Football League competition. The following season, the Daggers reached their highest ever position of eighth. They narrowly missed out on the League Two play-offs after losing to Shrewsbury Town at home on the final day of the season. The 2009–10 season saw the Daggers promoted from League Two to League One via the play-offs. They defeated Rotherham United in a dramatic 3–2 play-off final at Wembley on 30 May 2010. Twice the Daggers took the lead, only to concede moments later. Jon Nurse regained the advantage for Dagenham & Redbridge, scoring a scrappy 70th-minute winner. The Daggers first game in League One was a 2–0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday. It was an unsuccessful season in League One as they finished 21st and were relegated on the last day of the 2010–11 season back to League Two. They eventually finished the 2011–12 season in 19th place back in League Two. Moses Swaibu was similarly charged in January 2014. They were convicted of conspiracy to commit bribery for a failed plot to fix a game between AFC Wimbledon and Dagenham & Redbridge on 26 November. It is believed that the case may have been part of a wider Singaporean match-fixing syndicate which Europol and other investigations uncovered. In the 2014–15 League Cup, the Daggers played out an entertaining 6–6 match with Brentford before losing the subsequent penalty shootout. The League Cup paid tribute to the historic match by removing the goal nets at Victoria Road, putting them on display at the National Football Museum. In the 2015–16 season, the Daggers started the season poorly. Burnett was sacked in December 2015, to be replaced by John Still. In the 2015–16 FA Cup, Dagenham & Redbridge visited Premier League club Everton in the third round, losing 2–0. Still was unable to save Dagenham & Redbridge from relegation in his third spell. After a 3–2 defeat away to Leyton Orient, relegation from League Two was confirmed. 2016–2025: return to non-League In their first season back in the National League, they ended the season in fourth place; The 2017–18 season started positively, but after the club was hit by a financial crisis midway through the season, the Daggers finished the campaign in 11th place. Peter B. Freund of Trinity Sports Holdings purchased controlling interest in the club in 2018. He sold the club in 2024. In May 2024, Club Underdog, a subsidiary of North Sixth group, reached an agreement in principle to purchase the club. They became the fifth club owned by the group, joining Italian clubs Campobasso and Ascoli, Swiss club FC Locarno and American club Brooklyn FC. Manager since March 2023, Ben Strevens was sacked in December 2024, after a run of just seven wins from 23 league fixtures left the Daggers five points above the relegation zone. They were ultimately relegated to the National League South on the final day of the 2024–25 season. On 3 March 2026, British influencer Olajide "KSI" Olatunji purchased a minority stake in the club. He wants to get the team (who are currently in the National League South) to the heights of the Premier League. On 6 March, Variety announced that KSI alongside After Party Studios will be producing a docuseries titled "Race to the Top", chronicling his takeover of the club similarly to Ryan Reynolds' "Welcome to Wrexham." ==Club sponsorship==

First-team squad Out on loan Current staff Updated 07 July 2025 ==Managers==

Dagenham & Redbridge have had twelve different managers since their formation in 1992. ==Stadium==

Dagenham and Redbridge play out of the Chigwell Construction Stadium. Also known as Victoria Road, it has been used for football since 1917. However, it was not fully enclosed until 1955. The pitch was massively upgraded during that summer, including being re-seeded. In 1956, the main stand (boasting a capacity of 800) was built by JW Bowers. Before this, there was only a small wooden stand. Further improvements were made that summer by adding turnstiles and some toilets. 1958 saw the addition of the cover over the far side of the pitch. Very little happened until 1990, when Redbridge Forest F.C. paid for a new stand to be built. Just two years later, Redbridge and Dagenham merged, and they fixed the perimeter wall and the toilets. In 2001, a new stand (800 seat capacity) was built. Further upgrades occurred that year, as new turnstiles and floodlights were built. The year of upgrades continued when Bass Brewers PLC pledged £150,000 to build a new stand. It is currently known as the Carling Stand. Only a couple upgrades have occurred since 2001. The SD Samuels Stand was erected in 2009, seating 1200 fans and housing the dressing rooms. Finally, new floodlights were added in 2012. The ground has held multiple major matches, including a Women's FA Cup semi-final, multiple UEFA Youth International fixtures, and numerouse West Ham United U23 Premier League 2 games. ==Records and statistics==

League history Source: Club records • Record victory: • Football League – 6–0 vs. Chester City, 9 August 2008; 6–0 vs. Morecambe, 16 May 2010 • Football Conference – 8–1 vs. Woking, 19 April 1994 He netted against Basingstoke Town in October 2001, it was a fourth qualifying round. • First fully capped international whilst playing for Dagenham & Redbridge was Jon Nurse who was capped for Barbados against Dominica in 2008. • The highest ever scoreline in the first leg of a play-off game is now held by Dagenham & Redbridge, they defeated Morecambe 6–0 on 16 May 2010, although they could not build on this afterwards with a 2–1 defeat in the second leg. • The joint highest aggregate score in a League Cup match: 12 – On 12 August 2014, Dagenham & Redbridge drew 6–6 after extra time at home with Brentford in the first round of the League Cup. They went on to lose 4–2 on penalties. ==Honours==

Sources: League • League Two (level 4) • Play-off winners: 2010 • Conference (level 5) • Champions: 2006–07 • Isthmian League (level 6) • Champions: 1999–2000 Cup • FA Trophy • Runners-up: 1996–97 • Essex Senior Cup • Winners: 1997–98, 2000–01 • Runners-up: 2001–02 ==See also==