Originally founded in
1880 as
Sandown Bay, the club initially played friendly matches until becoming founder members of the
Isle of Wight League. In
1898 they joined the
Southern League where they finished 4th in the short lived Division 2 South & West Section. At the same time, they also played in the
Hampshire League but dropped out in 1900 after finishing bottom. They returned to the county league in 1903 as
Sandown & Lake United, but after finishing bottom of the South Division five years running they again before the Great War. The twenties saw an upturn in fortunes. Now known as
Sandown, they twice won
Isle of Wight Gold Cup and the Hampshire Intermediate Cup once. This saw a return to the Hampshire League, where they consolidated before once again returning to Island football in 1930. The Gold Cup was won again before the outbreak of World War II. The post-war era saw renewed interest as Sandown began entering national cup competitions and returned to the Hampshire League. This this time their fortunes were much improved - regularly playing to large crowds, they twice won the Division 3 East title and after challenging for promotion they won the Division 2 title in 1957. They spent two short stays in the top flight, which at time was extremely tough, consisting of the top non-league clubs in the area. In 1959, Sandown won the Gold Cup for the fourth time after a pulsating 7-4 final victory against East Cowes Vics. After a sustained spell of consolidation in Division 2, the seventies saw their fortunes gradually decline. Two relegation's saw them drop to Division 4 and due to the high cost of travelling, they left the competition in 1979. Sandown have since become mainstays of the Isle of Wight League, with the first team frequently alternating between the top two divisions. In April 2021 they merged with the local youth club,
Sandown & Lake (founded in 1973) - becoming their adults section and amending their name accordingly. ==Honours==