The history of Leeds United Football Club, a professional association football club based in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, dates back to 1919, when the club was established following the demise of Leeds City F.C.
Leeds had their most successful period under the management of Don Revie in the 1960s and 1970s. The club won the English league title twice, the FA Cup once, the League Cup once and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup twice and Charity Shield in 1969. They were also finalists in the European Cup Winners Cup in 1973 and the European Cup in 1975. Leeds later won another league title in 1991–92 under manager Howard Wilkinson followed by the Charity Shield also in 1992.
Leeds City
Leeds United's predecessor club, Leeds City F.C., was formed in 1904, but was forcibly disbanded by The Football League in 1919 in response to allegations of financial irregularities regarding illegal payments to players during the First World War.
Formation of Leeds United
Shortly after the disbanding of Leeds City a new club, Leeds United, was formed on 17 October 1919, under the management of former player Dick Ray. They began playing in the Midland League, taking the place vacated by Leeds City's reserve team. Yorkshire Amateurs, who occupied Elland Road, offered to make way for the new team.
In 1920 Leeds United were acquired by Huddersfield Town's chairman Hilton Crowther. Crowther planned to amalgamate Huddersfield Town and Leeds United, but a public outcry in the Huddersfield press prevented this; eventually, enough money was raised in Huddersfield to buy Crowther out, leaving him to concentrate solely on Leeds United.
On 31 May 1920 Leeds United were elected to the Football League; they polled 31 votes and entered the Second Division along with Cardiff City, who won 23 votes.
Due to the connection with Huddersfield, Leeds adopted the home colours of Huddersfield for their first home kit.
1919–29
Honours Won: Second Division Championship (1923–24)
Leeds first manager was former Leeds City player Dick Ray, but chairman Hilton Crowther wasted no time in enlisting the Huddersfield boss Arthur Fairclough as his replacement; Ray was appointed as Fairclough's assistant.
Leeds' first fixture after their election to the league was against Port Vale, the club who had taken up Leeds City's fixtures following their expulsion. Leeds lost the game 2–0, but seven days later recorded their first victory in the corresponding fixture at Elland Road, which ended Leeds United 3 Port Vale 1. However, Leeds made little impact in 1920–21, their first season, eventually finishing 14th. Following seasons saw them consolidate their position in the league, finishing 8th in 1921–22 and 7th in 1922–23, before winning the Second Division Championship in 1923–24 with 54 points. The championship winning team was a strong one, with Jim Baker, Bert Duffield and Ernie Hart featuring prominently.
Leeds struggled during their First Division debut season in 1924–25 and finished in 18th place. The following 1925–26 season was even more of a struggle, and the club only just avoided relegation. The 1926–27 season finally saw Leeds relegated to Second Division, and Fairclough resigned as manager. His replacement was his former assistant Dick Ray, who had left Elland Road in 1923 to manage Doncaster Rovers.
In 1927–28, Ray's first season, Leeds were promoted back to the First Division, finishing as runners-up to Manchester City. The team did well on its return to the First Division, eventually finishing 13th in 1928–29.
The following season, 1929–30, Leeds finished 5th – the club's best position before the arrival of Don Revie. The half-back line of George Reed, Willis Edwards and Ernie Hart provided a strong defensive backbone to an attacking side spearheaded by Tom Jennings. The side was further enhanced by Wilf Copping, who joined in the close season.
1930s
Leeds were inconsistent; after their best ever finish, the club were relegated in the following 1930–31 season. The following 1931–32 season saw Leeds promoted back to the First Division, finishing runners-up to Wolverhampton Wanderers. On their return to the First Division, Leeds managed to finish 8th in the 1932–33 season, and 9th in 1933–34.