Bradford City | Club | History | History

In The Beginning

If one was to try and encapsulate some of the successes and failures associated with one of the game's less glamorous clubs, then the undulating fortunes of Bradford City over the years would possibly be included in its pages.

Along with Chelsea who emulated City's feat in 1905, Bradford City remain the only club to be elected to The Football League before they had played a single senior match.

Indeed they had literally walked into full membership of the Second Division before a team had been assembled or the certainty of a ground on which to play, yet they topped the Covent Garden polling with 30 votes from a possible 35 on that eventful day of 25 May 1903.

Thus they became the pioneers of professional association football in the West Riding of Yorkshire.

Even more remarkably at the time of formation, Bradford City achieved the distinction in a stranglehold of football under the rugby code.

Manningham Rugby Football Club had the dominant sporting force in the wool city but it became more apparent that the handling outfit could not remain solvent - despite a summer archery contest that realised a sum sufficient to have ensured their survival-members were persuaded to switch their allegiance to the game of soccer.

1911 Match Ball