– Origins

An Arsenal youth team was in place not long after the club’s inception in 1886, with the earliest record of such a side being in season 1893-94. Subsequently, a side entitled ‘Arsenal A’, effectively a third team, was in operation from 1929 until 1969.

Before officially being granted academy status in 1998, Arsenal produced many players who had a major impact at the club, including Tony Adams, Leslie Compton, Charlie George, Ray Kennedy, Paul Merson, Ray Parlour, John Radford, Graham Rix, David Rocastle, Peter Storey, Michael Thomas, Liam Brady, David O’Leary, Niall Quinn, Frank Stapleton, Steve Morrow, Terry Neill, Sammy Nelson and Pat Rice.

Arsenal established their own formal youth team in 1954, soon entering the South East Counties League and the associated South East Counties League Cup, up until the late 1990’s, when Arsenal became founder members of the newly-established Premier Academy League in 1998, with the club being granted Academy status in the process. From then onwards, they have competed in the Academy League and the FA Youth Cup.

An Arsenal Reserve side has been in place since 1887, the year after the club was formed, with the side initially playing friendlies prior to joining the Kent League, which they won before later joining the London League, West Kent League, South Eastern League and the London League First Division at various points before the end of World War One, when the second-string entered the London Combination league. The club continued to compete in the Football Combination prior to the establishment of the Reserve League in 1999, with the Gunners competing in the Southern section of the latter competition.

Honours

Reserves

Premier League 2: 2018.

Football Combination: 1923, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1934, 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1947, 1951, 1963, 1969, 1970, 1984, 1990.

Football Combination Cup: 1953, 1968, 1970.

London FA Challenge Cup: 1934, 1936, 1954, 1955, 1958, 1963, 1970.

Kent League: 1897.

West Kent League: 1901, 1902, 1903.

London League First Division: 1902, 1904, 1907.

Kent Junior Cup: 1990.

Youth team

Premier Academy League: 1998 (U18s), 2000 (U17s), 2002 (U19s), 2009 (U18s), 2010 (U18s), 2019 (U18s, southern section only).

FA Youth Cup: 1966, 1971, 1988, 1994, 2000, 2001, 2009.

South East Counties League: 1956, 1965, 1972, 1991.

South East Counties League Cup: 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1971, 1980.

Southern Junior Floodlit Cup: 1963, 1966, 1985, 1991, 1998.

London Minor FA Cup: 1967.

‘A’ Team

London Professional Mid-week League: 1932, 1953.

Eastern Counties League: 1955.

Metropolitan League: 1959, 1961, 1963.

Metropolitan League Cup: 1961, 1966.

Metropolitan League Professional Cup: 1961, 1962.

With thanks to Wikipedia.