Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United, or simply United, is a professional football club based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Nicknamed the Red Devils, they were founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, but changed their name to Manchester United in 1902. After a spell playing in Clayton, Manchester, the club moved to their current stadium, Old Trafford, in 1910.
The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third tier became known as the Football League Second Division, while the second level was branded "First Division," below the Premiership. After the rebranding of the Football League in 2003–04, the second tier became known as the Championship, and the third tier became known as Football League One.
Football is the most popular sport in England, where the first modern set of rules for the code were established in 1863, which were a major influence on the development of the modern Laws of the Game. With over 40,000 association football clubs, England has more clubs involved in the code than any other country. England hosts the world's first club, Sheffield F.C.; the world's oldest professional association football club, Notts County; the oldest national governing body, the Football Association; the joint-oldest national team; the oldest national knockout competition, the FA Cup; and the oldest national league, the English Football League. It also has 31% of the population interested in Football. Today England's top domestic league, the Premier League, is one of the most popular and richest sports leagues in the world, with five of the ten richest football clubs in the world as of 2022.
Harry Stafford (1869–1940) was an English footballer who played a principal role in the formation of Manchester United Football Club. Born in Crewe, Cheshire, Stafford became a locomotive boilermaker employed by the London & North Western Railway (LNWR) at the expansive Crewe Works.
Manchester United Football Club was formed in 1878 as Newton Heath LYR Football Club by the Carriage and Wagon department of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway depot at Newton Heath. The team initially played games against other departments and rail companies at their home ground at North Road, but by 1888 the club had become a founding member of The Combination, a regional football league. However, following the league's dissolution before the end of its first season, Newton Heath joined the newly formed Football Alliance, which ran for three seasons before being merged with The Football League. This resulted in the club starting the 1892–93 season in the First Division, by which time it had become independent of the rail company, dropped the "LYR" from its name and moved to a new ground at Bank Street. After just two seasons, the club was relegated to the Second Division.
The Manchester derby refers to football matches between Manchester City and Manchester United, first contested in 1881. City play at the Etihad Stadium in Bradford, east Manchester, while United play at Old Trafford in the borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester; the two grounds are separated by approximately 4 miles (6.4 km). The teams have played 194 matches in all competitions; United winning 79, City 61, and the remaining 54 have been drawn. Amongst the most successful clubs in England, they have won a combined 104 honours: 68 for Manchester United and 36 for Manchester City. They are also the first two English clubs and first cross-city rivals to have won the treble; United's success came in 1999, while City's occurred 24 years later.
North Road was a football and cricket ground in Newton Heath, Manchester, England. It was the first home of Manchester United Football Club – then known as Newton Heath Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Football Club – from its foundation in 1878 until 1893, when the club moved to a new ground at Bank Street, Clayton.
The Staffordshire Senior Challenge Cup is a football cup tournament based in the county of Staffordshire in England first competed for in 1877–78. Organised by the Staffordshire Football Association, it is competed for by a mix of clubs from Staffordshire and the surrounding areas. Both professional and amateur clubs may enter. In the modern age however professional teams such as Stoke City and Port Vale, the main clubs in Staffordshire, usually field a reserve team as they place more prestige on their respective leagues and professional cup competitions. This has left the door open for non-league sides to have more success in the cup as it is classed as a bigger achievement for them to win it.
The Sussex Senior Cup is an annual association football knockout cup competition for men's football clubs in the English county of Sussex; the winning team is presented with the Sussex Senior Challenge Cup, the county senior cup of the Sussex FA. For sponsorship purposes the trophy is also known as the Sussex Transport Senior Challenge Cup, after a new sponsorship deal was agreed in 2023.
The Aston Villa Under-21s, formerly known as Aston Villa Reserves and Aston Villa Under-23s, are the most senior youth development team of Aston Villa and compete in Premier League 2, the Premier League Cup, and the EFL Trophy in the 2023–24 season. The team plays its home games at Aston Villa's training ground, Bodymoor Heath and occasionally Villa Park. Aston Villa also have an academy side that competes in the Under-18 division of the Professional Development League, the U18 Premier League Cup, and the FA Youth Cup annually. They also field a youth side in the Birmingham Senior Cup annually. They will compete in the 2024–25 UEFA Youth League following Aston Villa's senior side qualifying for the UEFA Champion's League.
The 1886–87 season was the first season in which Newton Heath LYR F.C. – now known as Manchester United F.C. – took part in a major football competition. The club had previously entered the Lancashire Cup and the Manchester and District Challenge Cup, but this season was the first in which they competed in the FA Cup. However, their cup run was short-lived as they drew with Fleetwood Rangers in the first round, but were disqualified when they refused to play extra time.
The 1883–84 season was the first season in which Newton Heath LYR F.C. competed in a senior competitive football competition, having spent the first five years of their existence playing friendly matches against local clubs. The club entered the Lancashire Cup in October 1883, but were knocked out in the first round by Blackburn Olympic's reserve team.
The 1887–88 season was Newton Heath LYR's final season before entering into league football. They only entered one competitive cup competition during the season, the Manchester and District Challenge Cup. They won the tournament, beating Denton 7–1 in the final at Whalley Range.
The 1884–85 season was Newton Heath LYR's second season of competitive football. Having entered the Lancashire Cup for the first time the previous year, they reached the Second Round this time around. However, it was to be the last time that the club entered a senior team in the competition until 1889.
The 1885–86 season was Newton Heath LYR's third season of competitive football. The only competition that the club entered their first team in this season was the Manchester Cup, a competition in which they had reached the final at the first attempt the previous season. It was a case of "second time lucky" for the Heathens, as they went one better in the 1886 competition, beating Manchester 2–1 in the final to claim the first trophy in the club's history.
Sunderland A.F.C. Academy is the collective name for the youth development squads of Sunderland Association Football Club, primarily the U18 and U21 teams. Sunderland have an 'Elite' Category 1 football academy based on the Elite Player Performance Plan and their teams are members of the Professional Development League.
T. Craig was a footballer who played as a forward for Newton Heath LYR in the late 1880s and early 1890s.
Greater Manchester