Cambridge United

Cambridge United's best two seasons ran back to back. Promoted through the 1990 Fourth Division play-off final — Dion Dublin's winning goal took them up before he moved on to a career in the top flight and later returned to the club as a director — they went again the following year and won the Third Division outright, reaching the second tier of English football for the only time in their history. John Beck was the manager who took them there, building a team known for long throws and a relentless press rather than for finesse.

The club started out in 1912 as Abbey United, named for the Cambridge district where it was formed, and turned professional in 1949. It became Cambridge United in 1951. Home games have been played at the Abbey Stadium ever since, a ground now known commercially as the Cledara Abbey Stadium and holding 7,937, with 4,321 of those seats. The club has said the ground has fallen behind what a modern stadium needs and has plans to move to a new home.

Relegation from the Football League followed in 2005, and it took until 2014 to get back: Richard Money's side won the Conference Premier play-off final and, in the same year, beat Gosport Borough in the FA Trophy final. The rivalry with Peterborough United, a short trip up the A1, is still what United fans call the derby, even without a settled name for it, though Luton Town and the now-defunct Histon have their own history with the club.

Mark Bonner took Cambridge United into League One in 2021, the level at which the club competes now.