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Newton Heath Elected to the Football League

Manchester United Football Club was founded in 1878 by workers of the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway. The club was originally called Newton Heath LYR but by the time they joined the Football Alliance, "LYR" had been dropped from the name.

In 1892, Newton Heath successfully applied for one of the new slots in the expanded First Division. However, their stay in the top flight was a short one and in 1894 they were relegated.

Money Worries

By the turn of the century, the club was in serious financial difficulty and was only saved by the intervention of a local brewer, John Henry Davies. In 1902, Newton Heath changed their name to Manchester United.

Champions, and the move to Old Trafford

The early part of the century brought their first successes. Promoted in 1906, United won the FA Cup in 1909, and they were League Champions in 1908 and 1911.

In between those title wins, the club moved to Old Trafford in 1909.

Man United: Yo-Yo Club!

The period between the wars saw United relegated and promoted with some regularity, and they narrowly avoided relegation to Division Three (North) in 1934.

The Appointment of Matt Busby

Munich

In 1956 and 1957 a young side nicknamed the "Busby Babes" took successive Division One titles. Tragically, seven members of that side were among the twenty-two casualties of a plane crash at Munich. The 6th of February 1958 remains the darkest day in the history of Manchester United Football Club.

Champions of Europe

The Sixties saw the great United side featuring Bobby Charlton, Denis Law and George Best. They won the FA Cup in 1963, and were League Champions in 1965 and 1967.

In 1968, they became the first English side to win the European Cup, beating Benfica 4-1 at Wembley after extra time. A year later Matt Busby, Manchester United Football Club legend, retired.

Relegation

In 1974, United were relegated to Division Two (the goal that sent them down ironically being scored by former United great Denis Law). They bounced back the following season as champions and in 1977 beat Liverpool to win the FA Cup.

United won the FA Cup again in 1983 and 1985 but the league title continued to elude them, leading to the dismissal of Ron Atkinson and the appointment of Alex Ferguson in 1986.

A Shaky Start for Ferguson

Ferguson's reign as manager had a shaky start and he was rumoured to be on the way out before the 1990 FA Cup win. Manchester United Football Club was about to enter the most successful period in its history.

Titles, Doubles and the Treble

United won the inaugural Premiership title in 1993. The League and FA Cup double followed in 1994, and was repeated in 1996. The following year saw United crowned league champions again.

In the 1998-99 season, they achieved a unique treble, winning the domestic double plus the Champions League. Ferguson earned a knighthood for that achievement.

In 2001, United won the Premiership title for the third successive season. Ferguson announced his retirement in 2002 but changed his mind and in 2003 United clinched their fifteenth League title.

The Glazer Takeover

In 2005, despite the vociferous protests of fans, the club was sold to American businessman Malcolm Glazer.

United were Premier League runners-up in 2006, and in 2007 secured their sixteenth league title.

The seventeenth followed a year later in 2008, and they were also European Champions again after beating Chelsea on penalties in the first all English Champions League Final.

Beating Liverpool's 18 Titles

In 2009, United secured an 18th title, equaling Liverpool's record. They also won the Toyota World Club Championship and the Carling Cup, but were beaten by Barcelona in the Champions League final.

In 2009/2010 they relinquished their Premier League crown to Chelsea, thus failing in their quest for a record breaking 4th consecutive title. They also lost out to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter final and had to console themselves with retaining the Carling Cup.

A year later though, United won a record 19th league title. However, they again fell short in the Champions League where they lost the final 3-1 to Barcelona.

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