Stevenage Football Club (known as Stevenage Borough Football Club until 2010) is a professional association football club based in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England. The club competes in EFL League One, the third tier of the English football league system, and plays its home matches at Broadhall Way.
Founded in 1976 following the demise of Stevenage Athletic, the club joined the United Counties League in 1980 and won the United Counties League Division One title and the United Counties League Cup in its first season at senior level. Following three promotions in four seasons in the early 1990s, Stevenage reached the Conference National in 1994. They won the division in the 1995–96 season but were denied promotion to the Football League because Broadhall Way did not meet the required ground standards. Stevenage remained in the top division of non-League football for the following 14 seasons, before winning the Conference Premier in the 2009–10 season to earn promotion to the Football League.
Stevenage Borough was formed in 1976 following the bankruptcy of Stevenage Athletic. Chairman Keith Berners, along with "a number of like-minded volunteers", were tasked with arranging a team to play Hitchin Town Youth at Broadhall Way in November 1976, as a "curtain-raiser" for the new club. However, the Broadhall Way pitch was subsequently dug up for non-footballing purposes after Stevenage Borough Council sold the land to a local businessman, who dug a trench across the full length of the pitch to ensure that no football was played. Consequently, the new club began playing in the Chiltern Youth League on a roped-off pitch at the town's King George V playing fields and subsequently moved up to intermediate status, joining the Wallspan Southern Combination shortly after. Stevenage Borough Council granted consent for the club to incorporate the name "Borough" in their title and to adopt the town's civic emblem as the club badge. In 1980, the council reacquired the lease for Broadhall Way and permitted the football club to become its tenant. With the council as their landlords and a refurbished stadium, Stevenage Borough attained senior status, under the management of Derek Montgomery, and joined the United Counties Football League in the same year. The club's first competitive league match was a 3–1 victory against ON Chenecks on 16 August 1980, played in front of 421 spectators. In their first season as a senior club, the team won the United Counties League Division One championship, scoring 106 goals. The club also won the United Counties League Cup during the same season.
After three successive seasons in the United Counties Premier Division, the club joined Division Two North of the Isthmian League in 1984, and the following season earned promotion to Isthmian League Division One after finishing the season as champions. Two years later, the club was relegated back to Division Two North, having finished second from bottom of the division. Brian Williams was tasked with steadying the club following the relegation; he was appointed as manager in July 1988. He spent two full seasons in charge, guiding Stevenage to two fourth-place finishes. Paul Fairclough was appointed as the club's manager in June 1990 and he would ultimately guide the team to four league titles in eight years. The club secured promotion during the 1990–91 season, Fairclough's first season in charge, winning 34 of their 42 games. The league triumph included winning every home match, scoring 122 goals and amassing 107 points. The following season, Stevenage won the Isthmian League Division One title, remaining unbeaten at home for the second consecutive season, and were promoted to the Isthmian League Premier Division. A third promotion in four years followed at the end of the 1993–94 season, as Stevenage earned promotion to the Football Conference after winning the Isthmian League Premier Division. Two seasons later, Stevenage won the Conference, but were denied promotion to the Football League due to insufficient ground facilities, thereby reprieving Torquay United, who had finished in last place in Division Three. During the same season, the club reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time, losing 2–1 to Hereford United of the Third Division at Edgar Street.
The 1996–97 season marked the club's first progression to the third round of the FA Cup, following a 2–1 victory against Leyton Orient at Brisbane Road. They were subsequently drawn against Birmingham City at Broadhall Way, but due to ground issues, the tie was relocated to St Andrew's, where Birmingham won 2–0. The following season, the club reached the fourth round, drawing Premier League club Newcastle United at Broadhall Way. A temporary stand was erected behind the South Stand, which was allocated to the Newcastle supporters, increasing the stadium capacity to 9,000, sufficient to meet the Football Association's requirements. Stevenage held Newcastle to a 1–1 draw, with Giuliano Grazioli equalising after Alan Shearer had given Newcastle an early lead. Stevenage lost 2–1 in the replay at St James' Park, a goal from Alan Shearer that appeared not to have crossed the line, proved decisive. Despite earning significant revenue from the two respective cup runs, the club faced financial difficulties. Chairman Victor Green announced his intention to close the club down if no buyer was found. Phil Wallace purchased the club and set about rebuilding its finances and its relationship with the local council.
During the 2001–02 season, the club reached the FA Trophy final for the first time, losing 2–0 to Yeovil Town at Villa Park. The following season, Stevenage were positioned in last place of the Conference National in January, seven points from safety. The club appointed Graham Westley as manager in January 2003. Westley guided the club to 12th place, winning eight out of 12 league games. During the 2004–05 season, Stevenage qualified for the play-offs after finishing fifth under Westley's management. The team lost 1–0 to Carlisle United at the Britannia Stadium in the play-off final. The following year, the team finished sixth, outside the play-off places, and Westley's contract was not renewed, ending his three-and-a-half-year spell as manager. The club appointed Mark Stimson as their new manager and the team finished in eighth position in Stimson's first season. That season, the club reached the FA Trophy final again, overturning a 2–0 deficit to defeat Kidderminster Harriers 3–2 in front of a record FA Trophy crowd of 53,262. The victory meant that Stevenage became the first team to win a competitive final at the new Wembley Stadium.
