10 English Football Clubs That Went Bust
10 English Football Clubs That Went Bust in the 1990s and 2000s
Football clubs spend millions on the best players and stadiums - but what happens when unchecked spending leads to spiralling debts?
Here at The Sporting Blog, we’ve put together 10 English clubs that went bust!
Maidstone United - founded in 1897 and dissolved in 1992
The Sporting Blog covered Leeds United’s rise and fall in the 2000s, enjoying unfettered spending before being on the brink of collapse after spiralling debts - but they’re not the only English club to suffer serious financial difficulty.
Aston Villa were close to a winding up order after their previous owner mortgaged their future, but a timely takeover has them in great financial health - and they’re one of the most successful English football clubs.
There are a lot of English clubs that weren’t so lucky, however, notably low down the Football League and in Non-League.
Clubs rack up debt and don’t have the means to pay it off, so the decision is made to fold and try again with a phoenix club.
We’ve put together 10 English football clubs that went bust in the 1990s and 2000s. So, what exactly happened to these well-known football clubs?
Aldershot FC (Dissolved in 1992)
The club was founded in 1926
Aldershot FC resigned from the league in March 1992
The phoenix club Aldershot Town was formed in April 1992
Aldershot were founded in 1926 and were a Football League side from the 1930s onwards. The best period of their history was an 8th-place finish in Division Three in 1974, but they would end up dissolving 18 years later.
Aldershot were in Division Three in the late 1980s but suffered relegation to Division Four as debts rose.
Although Spencer Trethewy invested money to keep them in the Football League, he would later be jailed for fraud after lying about the money he had to keep Aldershot afloat.
The club would struggle on the pitch, finishing 22nd and 23rd in consecutive Division Four campaigns, so it was clear they were in trouble.
They resigned from the league in March 1992 and had their results expunged. Phoenix club Aldershot Town were formed a month later.
Maidstone United (Dissolved in 1992)
The club was founded in 1897
Maidstone turned semi-pro in the 1970s
The club experienced stadium debt and planning permission issues
Maidstone were formed in 1897 but dissolved in 1992 due to spiralling running costs.
The Stones were a non-league team for decades but turned semi-pro in the 1970s and pushed to become a professional outfit in the 1980s.
Despite earning promotion to the Football League in 1984, they weren’t elected to play in the division due to their derelict stadium.
The club would finally reach Division Four years later but had to groundshare with Dartford.
The move resulted in low attendance at games, and debt rose from stadium rent and planning applications – Maidstone previously bought land for £500k to build a local stadium for the Football League, but they couldn’t get planning permission.
The Stones opted to sell all valuable assets to make back some money, leaving them without a squad to fulfil fixtures and a ground to play on. They had to resign from the Football League and liquidate.
Telford United (Dissolved in 2004)
The club was founded in 1872
Majority owner Andy Shaw was investing £1m a year to keep Telford afloat
Telford United were wound up in 2004
Telford were founded in 1872 but never managed to get out of the Conference before dissolving in 2004.
Businessman Andy Shaw was the majority owner of the Bucks and promised to have Telford in the Football League by 2003, but it didn’t bear fruit.
Shaw, who was reportedly investing £1m a year to keep Telford afloat, sought a new stadium which resulted in £6m of debt.
The club didn’t have the revenue to pay that off and Shaw would end up resigning after his business empire collapsed.
Telford were in big trouble as they didn’t have another benefactor to assume financial responsibility.
Players agreed to a wage cut and their manager offered to work for free, but United were wound up in 2004. Supporters established AFC Telford United the same year.
Scarborough FC (Dissolved in 2007)
The club was founded in 1879
Scarborough FC dissolved in 2007 with debts of £2.5m
After the club suffered relegation in 1999, they never returned to the Football League
Scarborough were founded in 1879 and were a Football League team between the late-1980s and late-1990s, but they dissolved in 2007 with debts of £2.5m.
Boro suffered relegation back to the Conference in 1999 and never returned to the Football League.
Suffering the drop is expensive as running costs remain the same but revenue dries up due to poor attendance and no lucrative broadcasting deals, so Scarbrough racked up debt.
The Seadogs wanted to sell their stadium but ran out of time after going into administration for a third time.
They were relegated to the Conference North in 2006 and played out the 2006/07 season before going out of business.
However, the Supporter's Trust formed Scarborough Athletic and are making their way up the English football pyramid.
Halifax Town AFC (Dissolved in 2008)
The club was founded in 1911
The team reached the Conference playoffs in 2006
Halifax Town AFC were dissolved in 2008 with an £800k tax bill and £2m debt
Halifax were founded in 1911 but dissolved in 2008 due to an £800k tax bill and debt that rose to £2m.
The Shaymen were placed into administration in 2002 after relegation to the Conference but were saved by local businessmen and the club supporters’ trust.
Halifax remained in financial difficulty in the seasons that followed but impressively reached the Conference playoffs in 2006. They failed to get promoted, however, and were in administration over a year later.
Staff and players were getting paid late, the club had no training facilities, and there wasn’t enough revenue to chip away at the debt, so a winding-up order followed in 2008.
The club would reform under the name of FC Halifax Town the same year.
Chester City (Dissolved in 2010)
The club was founded in 1885
Chester City were expelled from the league in 2010
Chester City were dissolved in 2009 with £7m in debt
Chester City were founded in 1885 but dissolved in 2010 due to financial difficulty. The Seals fell out of the Football League in 2009 and racked up debts of £7m, so a winding-up order was served by HMRC.
Chester failed to fulfil fixtures while in the Conference as squad members refused to play due to non-payment of wages, so the club were expelled from the league in 2010.
And after failing to join the Welsh Premier League, Chester were officially wound up in the High Court. Fans took little time organising a phoenix club, establishing Chester FC weeks after the dissolution.
Rushden & Diamonds FC (Dissolved in 2011)
The club was founded in 1992 after Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds merged
The team fell out of the Football League in 2006
Rushden & Diamonds entered administration in July 2011
Rushden & Diamonds didn’t have as much history as Bury, having been founded in 1992 after Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds merged, but they were a Football League side that enjoyed some success before dissolving in 2011.
After rising to the third tier of English football, problems arose for the Diamonds after suffering two relegations in three seasons.
They fell out of the Football League in 2006 and struggled back in their first few years in the Conference. Attendance subsequently waned, so revenue was cut significantly.
Rushden & Diamonds would lose their chairman and their vice-chairwoman while being given a transfer embargo due to their spiralling finances. And after failing to fulfil a fixture due to unpaid player wages, the club would be expelled months later.
The Diamonds entered administration in July 2011 and fans created AFC Rushden & Diamonds in response.
Hereford United FC (Dissolved in 2014)
The club was founded in 1924
They earned promotion to League One in 2008
Hereford were dissolved in late 2014
Hereford were founded in 1924 and would be dissolved before turning 100 years old. The Bulls earned promotion to League One in 2008 but found themselves in the Conference four years later.
Relegation proved costly and Hereford were considering administration in 2013 after posting losses of £500k while needing £300k to see out the 2012/13 season.
The Bulls earned £717k in TV revenue while in League Two but would only make £47k in the Conference. Attendance went from 3,421 in 2008 to 1,658 in 2014, so the writing was on the wall.
Hereford were wound up in late-2014 and Hereford FC were founded.
Bury FC (Dissolved in 2019)
This club was founded in 1885
Bury FC were expelled from the Football League in 2019
Bury’s total liability was around £12m
Bury FC were founded in 1885 and played at Gigg Lane since their creation, but their future was in doubt after being expelled from the Football League in 2019 due to financial difficulties.
The Shakers were placed into administration the following year and couldn’t find an investor willing to acquire the club’s debt, resulting in local MPs and supporters creating Bury AFC to take its place.
It’s believed Bury’s total liability was more than £12m after being kicked to non-league, resulting in staff redundancies, player departures and a manager departure.
They were a dormant club for the longest time and eventually a merger between the Shakers Community Society, who own the phoenix club, and the Bury FC Supporters Society, who own Gigg Lane and Bury FC, was agreed in 2023.
Macclesfield Town FC (Dissolved in 2020)
This club was founded in 1874
Macclesfield Town FC dissolved in 2020
Local businessman Robert Smethurst established Macclesfield FC
Macclesfield were another club with a long history in the Football League, having been founded in 1874, but they would suffer a similar fate to Bury, Rushden & Diamonds and Chester.
The Silkmen dissolved in 2020 after racking up debts of over £500k. Town were late paying squad members while owing money to HMRC and creditors.
Club owner Amar Alkadhi tried to delay the winding-up order with a myriad of excuses, but Judge Sebastian Prentis said he had had enough time to pay.
Local businessman Robert Smethurst bought Macclesfield Town’s assets and established Macclesfield F.C. the same year.
Are there any clubs we’ve missed? Tell us in the comments!
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