Farsley Celtic experienced severe instability during the 2024–25 season, driven primarily by financial pressures and infrastructure problems at their home ground, the Citadel. Delays in installing a new 4G pitch left the surface unplayable, forcing the club to play home matches nearly 70 miles away in Buxton for most of the season, which sharply reduced revenue and led to a £25,000 fundraising appeal to cover running costs.[3] Amid this period, the club underwent board changes, appointed former professional goalkeeper David Stockdale as manager,[4] and struggled on the pitch, ultimately suffering relegation from the sixth to the ninth tier. In June 2025, with a proposed takeover by Stockdale under review, the club withdrew from the Northern Counties East League for the 2025 to 2026 season as part of a structural review, leading to the departure of its elite talent and academy programmes, while women's, deaf, and development teams continued to operate.[5][3]
David Stockdale took over the club and it was liquidated on 18 December 2025.[6] On the same day, the phoenix club FC Farsley was founded with the intention of fielding a senior team during the 2026–27 season.[1]
Women's team
A women's team has played since the 2023–24 season under the FC Farsley name. They won the 2023–24 West Riding County Women's Football League Division 3 after a 3–0 victory against Queensbury,[7] and they currently play in the North East Regional Women's League Premier Division under manager Izzy Roads.[8]
Ground
The Citadel
Farsley Celtic moved to Throstle Nest in 1948.[9] Following the club's collapse into administration in 2009, Leeds City Council purchased the ground from the administrators and sold it to the owners of the new club, while retaining the adjoining sports hall and land proposed for new football pitches.[10] The ground was renamed The Citadel in 2019. During the 2024–25 season, Farsley were forced to play some home games at other stadiums including Bradford (Park Avenue)'s Horsfall Stadium and Buxton's the Silverlands due to issues with installing artificial turf at the stadium.[11]
FC Farsley stayed at The Citadel and intend to add a 4G pitch to the ground.[1]
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