Bristol Aeroplane Company F.C. was an English

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club based in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, and was the works football team of the

Bristol Aeroplane Company The Bristol Aeroplane Company, originally the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, was both one of the first and one of the most important British aviation companies, designing and manufacturing both airframes and aircraft engines. Notable a ...

. The team played in the Western Football League before and after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, but left in 1950.Robinson, Michael (ed.), Non-League Football Tables 1889–2006, Soccer Books, 2006 They also participated in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

League history

Joining the Western League in time for the final season of football before World War II, Bristol Aeroplane Company F.C. had a successful season, finishing as runners-up to champions Trowbridge Town. After the war they fared less well, gradually dropping down the top division before finishing bottom and being relegated to Division Two in 1947–48. Life in Division Two was equally tough, with the club finishing third bottom and second bottom in the final two seasons before leaving the league at the end of the 1949–50 season. The club fielded a reserve side in Division Two of the Western League for two seasons, the second season being particularly unsuccessful. When the first team was relegated, the reserves were dropped. Bristol Aeroplane Company F.C.'s six seasons of Western League football are listed below.

Reserves

FA Cup history

Bristol Aeroplane Company F.C. entered the FA Cup for three consecutive seasons during the late 1940s, without scoring any goals. In their first Cup tie in 1947–48 they were defeated in the preliminary round 2–0 at Western League rivals Soundwell. They lost to local rivals again the following season, 1948–49, this time 4–0 at home to Hoffman Athletic in the Extra Preliminary Round. Their final attempt in 1949–50 resulted in a 3–0 Preliminary Round defeat at

Troedyrhiw Troed-y-rhiw (, translation: foot of the slope) is a large community village in the county borough of Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. Its population at the 2011 census was 5,296. It features the Troed-y-rhiw railway station. Governance The community sh ...

of the

Welsh League The Welsh League was the first club rugby league competition in Wales.Lush (1998), pg. 19 Its inaugural season was in 1908/09 when four additional teams were formed to join Ebbw Vale RLFC and Merthyr Tydfil RLFC, which allowed a league tournamen ...

. Bristol Aeroplane Company F.C. won the Gloucestershire Senior Amateur Challenge Cup (South) in 1937–38 and 1942–43.

References

{{reflist Defunct football clubs in England Western Football League Defunct football clubs in Bristol Association football clubs established in the 20th century Association football clubs disestablished in the 20th century Works association football teams in England