Editing West Bromwich Albion F.C. (section)

===Success and decline (1950–1992)===
[[File:1954 FA Cup memorabilia.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Memorabilia from the [[1954 FA Cup Final]]]]
In 1953–54, Albion came close to being the first team in the 20th century to win the [[Double (association football)|League and Cup double]]. They succeeded in winning the [[1954 FA Cup Final|FA Cup]], beating Preston North End 3–2, but injuries and a loss of form towards the end of the season meant that they finished as runners-up to fierce rivals [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] in the league.<ref>McOwan pp. 67–68.</ref> Nonetheless, Albion became known for their brand of fluent, attacking football, with the 1953–54 side being hailed as the "Team of the Century". One national newspaper went so far as to suggest that the team be chosen ''en masse'' to represent [[England national football team|England]] at the [[1954 FIFA World Cup]] finals.<ref>{{Cite news
 | last=Wilson
 | first=Peter
 | title=Let 'Team of Century' play for England in World Cup
 | newspaper=[[Daily Mirror]]
 | date = 17 March 1954
 | page = 15
 }}</ref> They remained one of the top English sides for the remainder of the decade, reaching the semi-final of the 1957 FA Cup and achieving three consecutive top five finishes in Division One between 1957–58 and 1959–60.

Although their league form was less impressive during the 1960s, the second half of the decade saw West Brom establish a reputation as a successful cup side. Albion entered the Football League Cup for the first time in 1965–66 and, under manager [[Jimmy Hagan]], won [[1966 Football League Cup Final|the final]] by defeating [[West Ham United F.C.|West Ham United]] 5–3 on aggregate. That was the last [[two-legged]] final and, the following year, Albion reached the [[1967 Football League Cup Final|final]] again, the first played at [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley]]. They lost 3–2 to Third Division [[Queens Park Rangers F.C.|Queens Park Rangers]] after being 2–0 up at half-time.<ref>McOwan pp. 87–88.</ref> Albion's cup form continued under Hagan's successor [[Alan Ashman]]. He guided the club to their last major trophy to date, the [[1968 FA Cup Final|1968 FA Cup]], when they beat [[Everton F.C.|Everton]] in [[extra time]] thanks to a single goal from [[Jeff Astle]].<ref>McOwan pp. 94–96.</ref> Albion reached the FA Cup semi-final and [[European Cup Winners Cup]] quarter-final in [[1968–69 European Cup Winners' Cup|1969]], and were defeated 2–1 by [[Manchester City F.C.|Manchester City]] in the [[1970 Football League Cup Final|1970 League Cup Final]].<ref>McOwan pp. 97–99.</ref> [[File:The Three Degrees statue - New Square, West Bromwich (48488490306).jpg|thumb|upright|right|Statue of ''the Three Degrees'' by [[Graham Ibbeson]], in [[West Bromwich]]]]

The club were less successful during the reign of [[Don Howe]], and were relegated to Division Two at the end of 1972–73,<ref>McOwan p. 105.</ref> but gained promotion three years later under the guidance of player-manager [[Johnny Giles]].<ref>McOwan pp. 113–114.</ref> Under [[Ron Atkinson]], Albion reached the 1978 FA Cup semi-final but lost to [[Ipswich Town F.C.|Ipswich Town]].<ref>McOwan p. 120.</ref> In May of that year, Albion became the first English professional team to play in China, going unbeaten on their five-game trip.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCvLrMQHLJ8 | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211116/HCvLrMQHLJ8| archive-date=2021-11-16 | url-status=live|title=West Bromwich Albion in China 1978 | date=17 March 2011|publisher=YouTube |access-date=17 August 2012}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://wildeastfootball.net/2017/01/football-diplomacy-west-broms-1978-tour-of-china/|title=A trumpet-playing panda and half-time ice cream: West Brom's 1978 tour of China|date=13 January 2017|newspaper=Wild East Football|language=en-GB|access-date=25 January 2017|archive-date=2 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202104518/https://wildeastfootball.net/2017/01/football-diplomacy-west-broms-1978-tour-of-china/|url-status=live}}</ref> In [[1978–79 Football League|1978–79]], the team finished third in Division One, their highest placing for over 20 years, and also reached the [[1978–79 UEFA Cup|UEFA Cup]] quarter-final, where they were defeated by [[Red Star Belgrade]].<ref>McOwan pp. 124–127.</ref> The team around this time was notable for simultaneously fielding three black players: [[Cyrille Regis]], [[Laurie Cunningham]] and [[Brendon Batson]]; and is considered to be an integral part of the acceptance of black footballers in the English leagues.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-19077873|title=West Brom's 'Three Degrees' to be honoured by statue|work=BBC News |date=August 2012 |access-date=21 September 2019|archive-date=21 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190921165219/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-19077873|url-status=live}}</ref> In his second spell as manager, [[Ronnie Allen]] guided the team to both domestic cup semi-finals in 1981–82.<ref>McOwan pp. 136–138.</ref> The mid-1980s saw the start of Albion's longest and deepest decline. They were relegated in 1985–86 with the worst record in the club's history,<ref>McOwan p. 144.</ref> beginning a period of 16 years outside the top flight. Five years later, the club were relegated to the [[Football League Third Division|Third Division]] for the first and only time.<ref>McOwan p. 154.</ref>