The club formed in August 1986, playing its first official match for premiership points in the 1987 AFL Season.

Across four decades in the AFL, the Eagles have won four premierships (1992, 1994, 2006 and 2018) and have appeared in more finals campaigns than any other AFL club since entering the competition. The club's AFLW side joined the national competition in 2020, playing its first premiership match in February that year.

Beyond football, the West Coast Eagles deliver extensive community and regional programs and support a number of charitable organisations, including the Waalitj Foundation. The club's headquarters are at Mineral Resources Park in the Perth suburb of Lathlain, while home matches are played at the state-of-the-art 60,000-seat Optus Stadium.

The Eagle mascot is based on the iconic Australian wedge-tail eagle and the colors of royal blue and gold represent the vivid imagery of Western Australia's land, sky and ocean.