“Nil Satis Nisi Optimum” – The origin of the Everton motto
There are many details about football clubs that fade into the obscurity of myth and history. Many football clubs have mottos that date back decades or even a century and a bit.
One of the most famous mottos in the English game is at Everton, whose motto is the Latin phrase “Nil Satis Nisi Optimum”, which translates into English as “Nothing but the best is good enough”.
Why did the club adopt the motto “Nil Satis Nisi Optimum”?
The Merseyside giants are reported to have adopted the motto in the 1930s after the team experienced brief success. The motto served as a reminder of the standards of the club after they had suffered its first-ever relegation to the second tier of the English game.
The club has used the motto for close to a century. In 1991, the club added the motto to the kit under the club’s crest. In 2013, the club revealed a new badge, which did not include the motto.
Evertonians hated the design, and 22,000 people signed a petition to get it changed. The Toffees officials apologised for not consulting the fans about changing the badge.
In the end, the club only used the unloved badge for one season, and the motto was back on the shirt on the 11th version of the club badge, which is still used on the current kit.
Everton are not the only organisation to use the motto
The Merseyside club are not the only organisation to use the motto “Nil Satis Nisi Optimum”. One of the other famous organisations that use it is the 967 Squadron of the Air Training Corps.
Various schools and colleges also use the phrase as their motto, including Carlton le Willows Academy, Clifton Hunter High School and Loughborough University.
Other clubs with Latin mottos
Other high-level clubs who have mottos in Latin. Blackburn Rovers motto is “Arte et Labore,”, which means “by skill and labour” in English. Meanwhile, Manchester City’s motto “Superbia in proelia,” meaning “Pride in battle,”
Tottenham Hotspur use “Audere est facere,” or in English “To dare is to do”, which is also a motto used by the British SAS.
Has the club lived up to the motto?
While Everton has struggled for form and success in recent decades, the Toffees are still considered to be one of the most historically significant clubs in the English top flight.
In fact, only three clubs in the history of English football, Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, have won the top-flight crown more than the Toffees in the history of the game.
Everybody connected with Everton will be hoping that, at some point in the future, the club can get back to living up to its motto.