A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
 | |
| Other names | South East London derby |
|---|---|
| Location | South London, England |
| Teams | Bromley Charlton Athletic Crystal Palace Millwall AFC Wimbledon Formerly: Sutton United |
| First meeting | Millwall 0–3 Crystal Palace[a] (PFA Charity Fund, 31 October 1910) |
| Latest meeting | AFC Wimbledon 0–1 Sutton United (League Two, 26 December 2023) |
| Stadiums | The Den Hayes Lane Plough Lane Selhurst Park The Valley |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 331[b][c] |
| Most wins | Millwall (96) |
| All-time series | Millwall: W96 D73 L71 Crystal Palace: W80 D52 L69 Charlton Athletic: W50 D52 L83 AFC Wimbledon: W8 D6 L13 Sutton United: W5 D1 L3 |
| Largest victory | Millwall 6–0 Charlton Athletic (Second Division, 3 January 1931) |
The South London derby is the name given to a football derby contested by any two of Bromley, Charlton Athletic, Crystal Palace, Millwall, and AFC Wimbledon, the five professional Football Association clubs that play in the Football League in South London, England.[1] A sixth club, Sutton United, is also located in South London but currently do not compete in the Football League. It is sometimes more specifically called the South East London derby when played between Charlton and Millwall.[2] The close geographical proximity of all the teams contributes significantly to the rivalries.
Charlton and Millwall are located in South East London, with Millwall's The Den based in New Cross and Charlton's The Valley situated in Greenwich, being less than four miles apart. Crystal Palace are based further south in the suburb of Selhurst, their stadium Selhurst Park being six miles from The Den and eight from The Valley. AFC Wimbledon are located at Plough Lane in Merton, South West London, which is five miles west of Selhurst Park, eight from The Den, and seven and a half from The Valley. Bromley's Hayes Lane in Bromley is over nine miles east from Plough Lane, four and half miles east of Selhurst Park, and around seven miles south of The Den and the Valley.
According to a 2013 fan survey on football rivalries, Charlton considers their main rival to be Crystal Palace, with Millwall being their second biggest rival. Millwall's main rivalry is with East London club West Ham United, with Palace placed second and Charlton third. Crystal Palace fans consider their main rival to be Brighton, with Millwall second and Charlton third. AFC Wimbledon's main rivalry is with Milton Keynes Dons, with their fans considering Crawley Town as their second biggest rival.
Millwall was founded in 1885, with Palace and Charlton both founded twenty-years later in 1905. The earliest fixture between two of the teams was in 1906 when Crystal Palace and Millwall first met in the Southern League. The two teams have contested the most games, over 130 derbies. Palace and Millwall both entered the Football League in the 1920–21 season. Charlton joined the next year in the 1921–22 season, playing in the same division as Palace and Millwall for the first time. Wimbledon were founded in 1889 and spent the majority of their history as an amateur club, until joining the Football League in the 1977–78 season. In 2003 Wimbledon were relocated to Milton Keynes as part of a franchise takeover and became Milton Keynes Dons. During this period of decline, the club reformed as a phoenix club in 2002, founded by supporters against the move, renaming itself AFC Wimbledon, as it won a rapid succession of non-League promotions to gain Football League status nine years later. AFC Wimbledon played their first derby in 2009, an FA Cup game against Millwall.
Sutton United were founded in 1898 but only played their first competitive derby in 2017, an FA Cup game against AFC Wimbeldon. Sutton gained promotion into the English Football League for the first time in the 2020–21 season. They competed in League Two for three seasons, playing seven derbies against Wimbledon and Charlton, before being relegated back to the National League in 2024. Bromley were founded in 1892 and played their entire history in non-league, until winning promotion from the National League in the Play-off Final in 2024.
Millwall hold a winning record over Charlton, Palace, and Wimbledon. Wimbledon and Crystal Palace both have winning records against Charlton but have yet to play a game against each other. Charlton hold a losing record against all three. Bromley have yet to play a South London derby in the Football League. As of the 2024–25 season, Crystal Palace play in the Premier League, Millwall play in the Championship, Charlton play in League One, and Bromley and AFC Wimbledon play in League Two.
History
Early rivalries
Millwall were founded in 1885,[3] some 20 years before Charlton Athletic and Crystal Palace, who were both founded in 1905.[4][5] Soon after Crystal Palace were formed, they joined the Southern Football League, of which Millwall were founding members. The two teams played against each other for ten seasons in this league.[3] The first contested competitive game between the sides was played on 17 November 1906, with Palace winning 3–0[3] although the fixture was not yet a South London derby – Millwall were based in East London until 1910. Up until that point the most successful team based in South London was Woolwich Arsenal, who were the first Southern member elected to the Football League in 1893.
Charlton Athletic's early years were somewhat hindered by the presence of Woolwich Arsenal, who were the closest team in locality and were well supported. Charlton spent the first years of their history playing in non-professional leagues and did not play either Palace or Millwall.[4] Eventually, Woolwich Arsenal moved to North London, losing the 'Woolwich' from their name, in 1913.[6] The same year Charlton adopted senior status. They became a professional team in 1920, joining the Southern League.[4] Both Millwall and Crystal Palace joined the Football League in the 1920–21 season,[3][5] playing in the Third Division, while Charlton Athletic joined the year after for the 1921–22 season,[4] finally competing at the same level as both their South London neighbours. Wimbledon became a Football League club five decades later in the 1977–78 season, playing their first South London derby against Millwall in 1980.
Four in the same league
There have been two occasions where four of the current five South London teams have played in the same league together. In the 1985–86 season, Charlton Athletic, Crystal Palace, Millwall and Wimbledon all competed in the Second Division. Charlton finished 2nd and Wimbledon 3rd, both being automatically promoted. Palace finished 5th and Millwall 9th. The 1989–90 season signifies the only time all four teams competed in the First Division together, the top tier of English football. Wimbledon finished the season 8th, Palace 15th and Charlton and Millwall were relegated, finishing 19th and 20th respectively.
Ground sharing
During World War II Millwall's ground The Den was severely damaged by a German bomb and a fire destroyed a stand a few days later. For a brief time the club was invited by their neighbours to play their games at The Valley and Selhurst Park. In 1984 Charlton went into administration. The club were forced to leave The Valley just after the start of the 1985–86 season after its safety was criticised by league officials. The club began a groundshare with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, which lasted for six years until 1991. After another year groundsharing at West Ham United's Upton Park, Charlton moved back into The Valley in 1992. Wimbledon groundshared at Selhurst Park from 1991 until their relocation to Milton Keynes in 2003. The campaign of Wimbledon's fans against the relocation led to the formation of AFC Wimbledon.
Notable matches
- Crystal Palace 3–0 Millwall Athletic (17 November 1906)
- The first meeting between any of the three original teams saw Palace, who were only formed a year prior, secure a comfortable victory over the visitors from East London. It was a Southern League match watched by 6,000 fans at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre.[3][7]
- Millwall 0–3 Crystal Palace (31 October 1910)
- This was the first game between the teams since Millwall moved to South London (in 1910), making this the first true South London derby. 3,000 supporters watched a Palace victory at The Den in a London PFA Charity Fund game. The match against their new neighbours was Millwall's second game at their new ground.[8]
- Millwall 0–1 Crystal Palace (15 January 1921)
- First derby contested in The Football League. Palace won the Third Division game with a second half goal in front of 20,000 fans. Palace also won the reverse fixture 3–2 which was held only a week later on 22 January 1921, to complete the first South London Football League double and continue their early dominance of Millwall.[9]
- Millwall 2–0 Charlton Athletic (10 October 1921)
- This London PFA Charity Fund fixture was the first contest between the two teams, which Millwall won 2–0 in front of 10,000 supporters at The Den.[10]
- Millwall 0–1 Charlton Athletic (31 December 1921)
- On New Year's Eve of 1921 the teams met for their first League match, which Charlton won 1–0 at The Den. This was Charlton's first season as a Football League club and they completed a rare double over Millwall, winning the return fixture at The Valley 2–1.[10]
- Charlton Athletic 1–1 Crystal Palace (14 November 1925)
- The first competitive game played between the teams took place in the Third Division (south), and ended with a 1–1 draw at The Valley.
- Millwall 6–0 Charlton Athletic (3 January 1931)
- This Second Division game between the sides remains the widest winning margin between any of the clubs. Millwall led 1–0 at half-time and scored five more times in the second half, with goals from Harold Wadsworth (2), Joe Readman (2), Andrew Swallow and Jack Landells.[11]
- Millwall 2–2 Wimbledon (5 April 1980)
- Wimbledon's first South London Derby was away at Millwall in the Third Division. The game ended in a draw in front of a crowd of 5,364. This was the Wombles third season as a Football League club, they finished bottom of the table and were relegated.[12]
- Wimbledon 0–3 Crystal Palace (4 May 1991)
- The last South London derby and last ever game at Plough Lane. Wimbledon were forced to move at the end of the season due to a new FA rule requiring all-seater stadiums.[13] They started ground-sharing with Palace at Selhurst Park the following season. Palace won the game with a hat-trick by Ian Wright in the second half. Palace finished 3rd and Wimbledon 7th in the 1990–91 First Division.
- Charlton Athletic 1–3 Crystal Palace (aggregate score, 12 & 15 May 1996)
- Crystal Palace and Charlton met in the 1996 First Division play-off semi-final, after they finished third and sixth in the league respectively. Palace won the first leg at The Valley 2–1, and 1–0 in the second leg three days later. Palace went on to lose the play-off final to Leicester City 1–2 at Wembley.
- Wimbledon 0–1 Millwall (24 March 2004)
- A crowd of just 3,043 at the National Hockey Stadium in Milton Keynes saw Wimbledon's last game against South London opponents before they were renamed as MK Dons. A goal in the first half from Tim Cahill was enough to seal a win for Millwall against a Wimbledon side that finished bottom of the First Division and were relegated.[12]
- Charlton Athletic 2–2 Crystal Palace (15 May 2005)
- Palace led 2–1 with seven minutes left to play, before Charlton defender Jonathan Fortune scored an equaliser in the final game of the season, relegating Palace from the Premier League. Had Palace held on to win, they would have finished above West Brom and avoided relegation, but instead became the first club to be relegated from the top-flight of English football four times. The 2004–05 season was the only time Charlton and Palace played in the Premier League together.
- Millwall 4–1 AFC Wimbledon (9 November 2009)
- AFC Wimbledon's first competitive South London derby was a match against Millwall at The Den in the first round of the FA Cup. Kenny Jackett's League One side won 4–1 against the Conference National side.
- Charlton Athletic 4–4 Millwall (19 December 2009)
- The first meeting of the sides since the last meeting back on 9 March 1996 ended in the highest-scoring game between the teams. Millwall went 2–0 up through two Steve Morison goals but Charlton converted two penalties through Deon Burton. Millwall's Jimmy Abdou was sent off early in the second half and The Lions went twice behind to the home team but Danny Schofield scored a last-minute equaliser.[14] Both teams wore special kits for the match in honour of murdered local teenagers and supporters Jimmy Mizen and Rob Knox. The logos of both clubs' shirt sponsors were replaced by the text, "Street violence ruins lives".[15]
- Charlton Athletic 1–2 AFC Wimbledon (17 September 2016)
- AFC Wimbledon's first win in a south London derby. Also their first derby in the Football League, with their two previous derbies against Millwall being losses in cup competitions. Wimbledon came from a goal down to win, with a Tyrone Barnett goal in the 85th minute.
- Charlton Athletic 0–1 Millwall (3 July 2020)
- First South East London derby League game to be played with no fans present and in the summer. The game was re-arranged from 4 April due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The game was won in the 81st minute with a goal by Jake Cooper.[16]
- AFC Wimbledon 2–2 Charlton Athletic (20 March 2021)
- AFC Wimbledon's first south London derby at their new Plough Lane ground. No fans were present due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Charlton led twice through goals from Jayden Stockley and Diallang Jaiyesimi. A brace from Ryan Longman made sure Wimbledon earned a point in their battle against relegation, and denting Charlton's play-off push. Wimbledon were 23rd and Charlton 6th in the table at the end of the game.
- Sutton United 0–0 AFC Wimbledon (7 January 2017)
- First competitive South West London derby for Sutton United was an FA Cup Third round match against AFC Wimbledon at Gander Green Lane. The game ended in a goalless draw, with Sutton winning the replay 3–1.
- AFC Wimbledon 0–1 Sutton United (15 October 2022)
- Sutton United's first ever South West London derby in a league game was an away win at Plough Lane, with captain Craig Eastmond scoring the only goal of the game in the 30th minute, securing Sutton's first away win of the season.
- Charlton Athletic 1–1 Cray Valley Paper Mills (5 November 2023)
- Cray Valley Paper Mills are a non-league team, playing in the Isthmian League, the eighth tier of the football league. Their first ever competitive South London derby was a game against Charlton in the First round of the FA Cup. Both teams play in Greenwich, making it a South East London derby. The game ended in a shock 1–1 draw at the Valley. In the replay at the Badgers Sports Ground in Eltham, Charlton won 6–1.
Charlton Athletic v AFC Wimbledon
Charlton and AFC Wimbledon first met in 2016, after Wimbledon were promoted via the League Two playoffs and Charlton were relegated from the Championship.[17] Wimbledon won their first ever meeting at The Valley 2–1.[17] Charlton won only one of their first six meetings, with Wimbledon knocking Charlton out of the FA Cup in 2017 and Football League Trophy on penalties in 2018.[17] Charlton completed the double over their local rivals in the 2018–19 season.[17] Charlton hold their only superior record (in the league) in South London derbies, with Wimbledon dominating cup competitions, having won all four cup games.[17]
By competition
- As of 5 April 2022
| Competition | Played | Charlton wins | Drawn | AFC Wimbledon wins | Charlton goals | AFC Wimbledon goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Football League | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 12 |
| FA Cup | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| League Cup | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Football League Trophy | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Total[17] | 14 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 22 | 20 |
Full list of results
- Score lists home team first.
| # | Season | Competition | Date | Home team | Score | Away team | Att. | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2016–17 | League One | 17 September 2016 | Charlton Athletic | 1–2 | AFC Wimbledon | 11,927 | First ever league meeting. First Wimbledon win in a South London derby. |
| 2 | 11 February 2017 | AFC Wimbledon | 1–1 | Charlton Athletic | 4,595 | |||
| 3 | 2017–18 | League One | 28 October 2017 | Charlton Athletic | 1–0 | AFC Wimbledon | 12,575 | First South London derby win in 15 games (since a victory against Crystal Palace in 2009). |
| 4 | FA Cup | 3 December 2017 | AFC Wimbledon | 3–1 | Charlton Athletic | 3,270 | Second round | |
| 5 | League One | 10 April 2018 | AFC Wimbledon | 1–0 | Charlton Athletic | 4,457 | ||
| 6 | 2018–19 | EFL Trophy | 4 September 2018 | AFC Wimbledon | 2–2 | Charlton Athletic | Group stage. AFC Wimbledon won 4–2 on penalties. | |
| 7 | League One | 15 December 2018 | Charlton Athletic | 2–0 | AFC Wimbledon | 10,691 | ||
| 8 | 23 February 2019 | AFC Wimbledon | 1–2 | Charlton Athletic | 4,532 | First league double for Charlton Athletic. | ||
| 9 | 2020–21 | EFL Trophy | 1 September 2020 | AFC Wimbledon | 2–1 | Charlton Athletic | 0 | 2020–21 EFL Trophy. Played behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic, and at temporary venue pending completion of Plough Lane. |
| 10 | League One | 12 December 2020 | Charlton Athletic | 5–2 | AFC Wimbledon | 2,000 | Restricted admittance due to UK COVID-19 regulations. | |
| 11 | 20 March 2021 | AFC Wimbledon | 2–2 | Charlton Athletic | 0 | Played behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic. | ||
| 12 | 2021–22 | EFL Cup | 10 August 2021 | Charlton Athletic | 0–1 | AFC Wimbledon | 3,372 | First round. |
| 13 | League One | 5 February 2022 | Charlton Athletic | 3–2 | AFC Wimbledon | 22,486 | ||
| 14 | 5 April 2022 | AFC Wimbledon | 1–1 | Charlton Athletic | 8,184 | First derby at the new Plough Lane with fans present. |
Charlton Athletic v Crystal Palace
Charlton and Crystal Palace first met in 1925 in the Third Division (South), with the match ending in a 1–1 draw. Palace dominated their first 20 meetings, winning 13, and losing only four. Palace have completed the league double over Charlton six times, in 1926–27, 1927–28, 1964–65, 1968–69, 1989–90, and 2012–13. Charlton have done it twice, in 1999–2000 and 2007–08. Palace's longest unbeaten run in the fixture is nine games between 1993 and 1996, where they won six and drew three, including knocking their rivals out of the 1996 First Division Play-offs. Charlton's best unbeaten run is four games (three wins and a draw) twice, between 1982–83 and 2004–08.
By competition
- As of 23 September 2015