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.
The club dropped 'Borough' from its name in June 2010, ahead of its first season in the Football League, in which Stevenage won promotion to League One via the play-offs. After three seasons in League One, the club was relegated to League Two in 2014. Stevenage returned to League One following promotion during the 2022–23 season and recorded their joint-highest league finish in 2025–26, when they placed sixth, matching their position in the 2011–12 season.
Stevenage has also won the FA Trophy twice, defeating Kidderminster Harriers in the 2007 final to become the first club to win a competitive final at the new Wembley Stadium, before winning the competition again in 2009. The club has also recorded notable FA Cup results against higher-level opposition.
History
1976–2010 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.
After the FA Trophy success in 2007, and while retaining the majority of the first-team squad, Stevenage started the 2007–08 season by setting a new club record with the defence keeping eight consecutive clean sheets. Stimson was offered a new contract by Stevenage in October 2007, but resigned the following day to join Football League club Gillingham. In November 2007, he was replaced by Peter Taylor. After failing to reach the play-offs, Taylor resigned at the end of the season, and was replaced by former manager Graham Westley. On Westley's return, Stevenage started the season slowly before going on a 27-game unbeaten run from December to March, culminating in qualification for the play-offs, where they lost 4–3 on aggregate in the semi-finals to Cambridge United. During the same season, Stevenage enjoyed success in cup competitions; winning the Herts Senior Cup for the first time, beating Cheshunt 2–1 in the final, and the FA Trophy, where they defeated York City 2–0 in the final.
The following season, Westley retained the core of the squad and Stevenage were positioned in first place by New Year's Day. The team won eight consecutive games through February and March 2010, and Stevenage were promoted to the Football League for the first time in the club's history with two games to spare. Promotion was secured following a 2–0 victory away to Kidderminster Harriers, as Stevenage finished the season 11 points clear at the top of the table. The club reached the final of the 2010 FA Trophy, losing 2–1 after extra-time to Barrow. Shortly after the conclusion of the season, chairman Phil Wallace stated that the club would be changing its name to Stevenage Football Club, dropping the word 'Borough' from its title as of June 2010.
Football League (2010–present) Stevenage's first Football League fixture was played against Macclesfield Town in August 2010, ending in a 2–2 draw at Broadhall Way. Following four defeats in six matches across December 2010 and January 2011, the club was positioned in 18th, four points above the relegation zone. During a congested period throughout February and March 2011, Stevenage won nine games out of 11 games, propelling the club up the league table and into the play-off positions. Stevenage subsequently reached the League Two play-offs, finishing sixth. They faced Torquay United in the 2011 Football League Two play-off final on 28 May 2011 at Old Trafford. Stevenage won the match 1–0, thereby securing promotion to League One for the first time in the club's history, and achieving back-to-back promotions. During the same season, Stevenage matched their previous best performance in the FA Cup, reaching the fourth round of the competition before losing 2–1 to Reading. In the previous round, Stevenage were drawn against Premier League club Newcastle United, whom they had previously met in the 1997–98 season, losing over two contentious games. Stevenage subsequently defeated Newcastle 3–1 at Broadhall Way, marking the first time the club had ever beaten top-flight opposition.
In their first season in the third tier of English football, Stevenage were positioned in the League One play-off places following a 14-match unbeaten run that lasted for three months. In January 2012, Westley opted to depart Stevenage to take up the vacant managerial position at Preston North End. Former Colorado Rapids manager Gary Smith was appointed as Westley's replacement. A run of four wins in their last five games meant that Stevenage finished in sixth, thus securing the final play-off position, where they lost 1–0 on aggregate to Sheffield United in the semi-final. Stevenage also reached the fifth round of the FA Cup for the first time in their history during the season, losing 3–1 to Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur in a replay at White Hart Lane, following a 0–0 draw at Broadhall Way.