Leeds United A.F.C.
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Leeds United Football Club is a professional
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
Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
,
West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
in
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The club competes in the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at
Elland Road Stadium Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the Home (sports), home of Premier League club Leeds United F.C., Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the ...
. The club has been a member of the Premier League for fifteen years of the competition's history, spending over fifty seasons in the top flight. The club has competed in the top two tiers of English football, with the exception of three seasons in the third tier, since its admission to the
Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
in 1920. Leeds have won three English league titles, one
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 ...
, one
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
, two FA Charity/Community Shields and two
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, sometimes referred to as the European Fairs Cup, Fairs Cities' Cup, or simply as the Fairs Cup, was a European Association football, football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecess ...
s. The club had their most successful period under the management of
Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
in the 1960s and 1970s, when they won the League title twice, the FA Cup once, the League Cup once and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup twice. They were also finalists in the
European Cup Winners Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...
in
1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...
and the
European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
in
1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
. Leeds later won another league title in
1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
under manager
Howard Wilkinson Howard Wilkinson (born 13 November 1943) is an English former footballer and manager. Despite having a low-profile playing career, Wilkinson embarked on a successful managerial career. He won the First Division championship in 1992 with Leeds ...
; this remains the club's most recent major honour. Leeds' main rivals are widely considered to be
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
. The team's traditional kit colours are white shirts, white shorts and white socks. Their badge features the
White Rose of York The White Rose of York (Latinised as ''rosa alba'', blazoned as ''a rose argent'') is a white heraldic rose which was adopted in the 14th century as a heraldic badge of the royal House of York. In modern times it is used more broadly as a sy ...
, which is a symbol of
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
. Before each home game, the team enters the field to " Marching on Together", which is also sung during games.


History


Pre-Leeds United

Leeds United's predecessor,
Leeds City Leeds City Football Club was the leading professional club in Leeds, England, before the First World War. It was dissolved in 1919 due to financial irregularities, after which Leeds United was established as a replacement. History The club was ...
, was formed in 1904 and elected to League membership in 1905. They drew bigger crowds to
Elland Road Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the home of Premier League club Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the 14th largest football stadium in England. The g ...
following
Herbert Chapman Herbert Chapman (19 January 1878 – 6 January 1934) was an English football player and manager. Though he had an undistinguished playing career, he went on to become one of the most influential and successful managers in the early 20th ...
's arrival. In 1914 Chapman declared; "This city is built to support top-flight football", but Leeds City were forcibly disbanded and forced to sell off all their players by
The Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
in 1919 in response to allegations of illegal payments to players during the First World War. At Salem Congregational Chapel, Leeds in 1919, Leeds United was formed, and they received an invitation to enter the
Midland League The Midland Football League is an English football league that was founded in 2014 by the merger of the former Midland Alliance and Midland Combination. The league has four divisions that sit at levels 9–12 of the football pyramid. History Th ...
, being voted into it on 31 October, taking the place vacated by Leeds City Reserves. Following Leeds City's disbanding, Yorkshire Amateurs bought their stadium Elland Road. Yorkshire Amateurs offered to make way for the new team under the management of former player
Dick Ray Richard Ray (4 February 1876 – 28 December 1952) was an English professional footballer and manager. A left-back, he played for Macclesfield, before starting his career in the Football League with Burslem Port Vale in 1894. He switched to ...
. The chairman of
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
,
Hilton Crowther John Hilton Crowther (1879–1957), known as J. Hilton Crowther, or more commonly simply as Hilton Crowther, was the chairman of Huddersfield Town and, subsequently, Leeds United football clubs. He was a wealthy woollen mill owner; along with ...
loaned Leeds United £, to be repaid when Leeds United won promotion to
Division One The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...
. He brought in
Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
's manager Arthur Fairclough and on 26 February 1920, Dick Ray stepped down to become Fairclough's assistant. Salem Chapel (14237008321).jpg, Salem Congregational Chapel, Leeds. Blue plaque, Salem Chapel, Leeds (19th July 2014).JPG, Blue plaque commemorating the foundation of Leeds United in 1919.


1920–1960

On 31 May 1920, Leeds United were elected to the Football League. Over the following years, they consolidated their position in the
Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
and in
1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hol ...
won the title and with it promotion to the First Division. They failed to establish themselves and were relegated in 1926–27. After their relegation, Fairclough resigned, which paved the way for Ray to return as manager. In the years up until the start of World War II Leeds were twice relegated; on both occasions they were re-promoted the following season. On 5 March 1935, Ray resigned and was replaced by
Billy Hampson Billy Hampson (26 August 1882 – 24 February 1966) was an English football player and manager. Hampson was born in Radcliffe, Lancashire and was the brother of footballers Tommy and Walker Hampson. He played for Rochdale, Bury and Norwic ...
, who remained in charge for 12 years. In the 1946–47 season after the war, Leeds were relegated again, with the worst league record in their history. After this season, Hampson resigned (he stayed with Leeds as their chief scout for eight months) and was replaced in April 1947 by
Willis Edwards Willis Edwards (28 April 1903 – 27 September 1988) was an English professional football player and manager. Biography Edwards was born in the mining village of Newton, North East Derbyshire, not far from Chesterfield and Alfreton. Like many b ...
. In 1948, Sam Bolton replaced Ernest Pullan as the chairman of Leeds United. Edwards was moved to assistant manager in April 1948 after just one year as manager. He was replaced by
Major Frank Buckley Franklin Charles Buckley (more commonly known as Major Frank Buckley) (3 October 1882 – 21 December 1964) was an English football player and, later, manager. He was the brother of Chris Buckley, who played for Aston Villa. Early life Buckle ...
. Leeds remained in the Second Division until 1955–56, when they once again won promotion to the First Division, inspired by
John Charles William John Charles (27 December 1931 – 21 February 2004) was a Welsh footballer who played as a centre-forward or as a centre-back. Best known for his first stint at Leeds United and Juventus, he was rated by many as the greatest all-round ...
. Charles was hungry for success at the highest level, and manager
Raich Carter Horatio Stratton "Raich" Carter (21 December 1913 – 9 October 1994) was an English sportsman who played football for Sunderland, Derby County and Hull City, as well as representing England on thirteen occasions. He also played first-class cri ...
was unable to convince him that Leeds could satisfy his ambitions. Charles was sold to
Juventus Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
for a then world record of £65,000. The loss of Charles resulted in Leeds being relegated to the Second Division in the 1959–60 season.


1961–1974: Don Revie era

In March 1961, the club appointed former player
Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
as manager, following the resignation of Jack Taylor. His stewardship began in adverse circumstances; the club was "in financial difficulty" and in 1961–62 only a win in the final game of the season saved the club from relegation to
Division Three The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 and again from 1958 until 1992. When the FA Premier League was formed, the division become the fourth tier level. In 2004, following the ...
. Revie implemented a youth policy and a change of kit colour to an all-white strip in the style of Real Madrid, and Leeds won promotion to the First Division in 1963–64. In the 1964–65 campaign, Leeds finished second to
rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
on goal average. They also reached
the final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
of 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 ...
, losing 2–1 to
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
at
Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...
after extra-time. In the 1965–66 campaign, Leeds again finished second in the league, whilst also reaching the semi-finals of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, losing on aggregate to Spanish side
Real Zaragoza Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. (), commonly referred to as Zaragoza, is a football club based in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, that currently competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system. Zaragoza holds its home games at La ...
despite manager Revie ordering the fire brigade to flood the pitch before the replay at Elland Road. The 1966–67 season saw Leeds finish 4th in the league, as well as reaching the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing 1–0 to
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
and
the final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, losing 2–0 to
GNK Dinamo Zagreb Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
. With Leeds failing to land a trophy, they nearly doubled their record transfer in 1967–68, buying
Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
centre-forward Mick Jones for £100,000. The season saw Leeds win their first major trophy, the
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
, with Terry Cooper scoring the only goal of a 1–0 victory against
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
in the final. Leeds finished fourth in the First Division and were beaten in the FA Cup semi-finals by Everton. They also reached a second successive Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
and this time won the trophy, beating Hungarian club Ferencvárosi over two legs; Leeds won the first leg 1–0, and a month later defended their lead with a 0–0 draw in
Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
. Having found success in both domestic and European cup competitions, manager Revie chose to focus on the league for the 1968–69 campaign. Leeds secured the title in April 1969 with a 0–0 draw with challengers Liverpool at
Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...
, whose supporters congratulated Leeds. Leeds set a number of records including most points (67), most wins (27), fewest defeats (2), and most home points (39); a still-unbroken club record is their 34 match unbeaten run that extended into the following season. Leeds reinforced their front line breaking the British transfer record by signing Allan Clarke from
Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
for £165,000. They targeted
the treble A treble in association football is achieved when a club team wins three trophies in a single season. A ''continental treble'' involves winning the club's national league competition, main national cup competition, and main continental trophy. A ...
in 1969–70 and came close to achieving this, only to fail on all three fronts in a congested close season, finishing second in the league to Everton, losing the
1970 FA Cup Final The 1970 FA Cup Final was contested by Chelsea and Leeds United. The match took place on 11 April 1970 at Wembley Stadium and ended 2–2, making it the first FA Cup final to require a replay since 1912. The replay was staged at Old Trafford an ...
to Chelsea (after a replay), and exiting the
European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
with a semi-final defeat to
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...
. Having rejected an offer to manage Birmingham City, Revie chose to remain at Leeds for the 1970–71 campaign. Leeds and Arsenal both challenged for the title that season, though it would be the Gunners who would claim the league title, finishing one point ahead of Leeds after the latter lost to
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
following a controversial "offside" goal. United were also knocked out of 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 ...
by
Fourth Division Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...
side
Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...
. Leeds again found success in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup though, beating Juventus in
the final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
on away goals. Leeds again finished as runners-up in the 1971–72 season, but United did reach the
1972 FA Cup Final The 1972 FA Cup Final took place on 6 May 1972 at Wembley Stadium. It was the centenary final (although only the 91st final due to the world wars) and the 44th to be played at Wembley. It was contested between cup holders Arsenal, who had won th ...
, lifting the trophy after a 1–0 victory over Arsenal in the final. In the 1972–73 season, the Whites again came close to a Treble, but they finished third in the league, losing the
1973 FA Cup Final The 1973 FA Cup Final was the 92nd final of the FA Cup. It took place on 5 May 1973 at Wembley Stadium and was contested between Leeds United, the previous season's winners and one of the dominant teams in English football at the time, and Sunde ...
to Second Division Sunderland 1–0 against all expectations, and reached
the final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
of the
European Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...
against Italian club
A.C. Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seasons ...
at the
Kaftanzoglio Stadium Kaftanzoglio Stadium ( el, Καυτανζόγλειο στάδιο) is a sports stadium in Thessaloniki, Greece. The stadium was built with money donated by the Kaftanzoglou Foundation, in honour of Lysandros Kaftanzoglou, hence its name. At th ...
, where they were beaten 1–0 following some controversial refereeing by
Christos Michas Christos Michas ( el, Χρήστος Μίχας; 1933 – 25 August 2010) was a Greek football referee who became the first Greek to officiate a European Cup final, the 1973 European Cup Winners' Cup Final. He belonged at the Athens association ...
who was later banned by UEFA for 'fixing' other matches. Revie was offered the managers role at Everton in the summer, but chose to remain at Leeds. The following season, they won the 1973–74 First Division with a five-point lead over second-placed Liverpool. Revie chose to take the job of England national team manager at the end of the 1973–74 season. In his 13 years in charge, Revie guided Leeds to two Football League First Division titles, one FA Cup, one League Cup, two Inter-Cities Fairs Cups, one Football League Second Division title and one Charity Shield. He also guided them to three more FA Cup Finals, two more FA Cup Semi-finals, one more Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Final and one Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Semi-final, one European Cup Winners' Cup Final and one European Cup Semi-final. The team also finished second in the Football League First Division five times, third once and fourth twice. In a survey of leading football writers, historians and academics by ''Total Sport'' magazine, Revie's Leeds United were voted as one of the 50 greatest football teams of all time.


1974–1988: Post-Revie and relegation

Following the 1973–74 season, Revie left Leeds and Elland Road to manage the England national team.
Brian Clough Brian Howard Clough ( ; 21 March 1935 – 20 September 2004) was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is one of four managers to have won the Englis ...
was appointed as Revie's successor. This was a surprise appointment, as Clough had been an outspoken critic of Revie and the team's tactics. Clough's tenure as manager started badly, with defeat in the Charity Shield against Liverpool in which
Billy Bremner William John Bremner (9 December 1942 – 7 December 1997) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager. Regarded as one of the game's great midfielders, he combined precision passing skills with tenacious tackling and physical stam ...
and
Kevin Keegan Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and ...
were sent off for fighting. Under Clough, the team performed poorly, and after only 44 days he was dismissed. Clough was replaced by former England captain
Jimmy Armfield James Christopher Armfield, (21 September 1935 – 22 January 2018) was an English professional football player and manager who latterly worked as a football pundit for BBC Radio Five Live. He played the whole of his Football League career at B ...
. Armfield took Revie's ageing team to the
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
of the 1974–75
European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
, in which they were defeated by
Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...
under controversial circumstances."Welcome To Elland Road", Les Rowley & James Brown (1999), IFG Publishing, Assisted by coach
Don Howe Donald Howe (12 October 1935 – 23 December 2015) was an English football player, coach, manager and pundit. As a right back Howe featured for clubs West Bromwich Albion and Arsenal together with the England national football team in his play ...
, Armfield rebuilt Revie's team, and though it no longer dominated English football, it remained in the top ten for subsequent seasons. However, the board became impatient for success and dismissed Armfield in 1978, replacing him with
Jock Stein John "Jock" Stein (5 October 1922 – 10 September 1985) was a Scottish football player and manager. He was the first manager of a British side to win the European Cup, with Celtic in 1967. Stein also guided Celtic to nine successive Scottish ...
, who also lasted just 44 days before leaving to manage
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. The board appointed
Jimmy Adamson James Adamson (4 April 1929 – 8 November 2011) was an English professional footballer and football manager. He was born in Ashington, Northumberland. He made 486 appearances for Burnley ranking him sixth in their all-time appearance lis ...
, but he was unable to stop the decline, and in 1980 Adamson resigned and was replaced by former player Allan Clarke. Despite spending freely on players, he was unable to stem the tide, and the club was relegated at the end of 1981–82. Clarke was replaced by former teammate Eddie Gray. With no money to spend on team building, Gray concentrated on youth development, but was unable to guide them to promotion from the Second Division. The board again became impatient and sacked Gray in 1985, replacing him with another Revie teammate,
Billy Bremner William John Bremner (9 December 1942 – 7 December 1997) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager. Regarded as one of the game's great midfielders, he combined precision passing skills with tenacious tackling and physical stam ...
. Bremner found it just as difficult to achieve promotion, although Leeds reached the 1987
play-off The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
final, but were defeated by
Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
. Leeds also endured a near miss 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 ...
, losing out to
Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...
in the semi-finals.


1988–1996: Howard Wilkinson era

In October 1988, with the team 21st in the Second Division, Bremner was fired to make way for
Howard Wilkinson Howard Wilkinson (born 13 November 1943) is an English former footballer and manager. Despite having a low-profile playing career, Wilkinson embarked on a successful managerial career. He won the First Division championship in 1992 with Leeds ...
. Leeds avoided relegation that season, and in March 1989 signed
Gordon Strachan Gordon David Strachan ( born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish former football coach and player. He played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Scotland national team. He has since managed Cove ...
from
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
for £300,000. The Scottish midfielder was named captain, and helped Leeds win the Second Division in 1989–90 and gain promotion back to the First Division. Leeds finished fourth in 1990–91, and in the 1991–92 season they became champions of England for the third time. During the close season Leeds were founder members of the new
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
, which became the top division of English football. However, the 1992–93 season saw Leeds exiting the Champions League in the early stages, and eventually finishing 17th in the league (having won no away matches in the league), narrowly avoiding relegation. Wilkinson's Leeds were unable to provide any consistent challenge for honours, and his position was not helped by a poor display in the 1996 League Cup final which Leeds lost to
Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
. Leeds could only finish 13th in 1995–96, and after a 4–0 home defeat by
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
early in 1996–97, Wilkinson had his contract terminated. One of the legacies of Wilkinson and youth coach
Paul Hart Paul Anthony Hart (born 4 May 1953) is an English association football, football manager, coach, and former professional player who made 567 appearances in the English Football League, Football League as a Defender (association football), def ...
was the development of Leeds United's youth academy, which has produced numerous talented footballers over the years.


1997–2001: Graham and O'Leary

Leeds appointed
George Graham George Graham (born 30 November 1944), nicknamed "Stroller", is a Scottish former football player and manager. In his successful playing career, he made 455 appearances in England's Football League as a midfielder or forward for Aston Villa, Ch ...
as Wilkinson's successor. This appointment was controversial as Graham had previously received a one-year ban from
The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the ...
for receiving illegal payments from a football agent. Graham made some astute purchases and also helped blood youngsters from Leeds' youth cup winning side. By the end of the 1997–98 season, Leeds had qualified for the following season's
UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
. In October 1998, Graham left to become manager of
Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
, and Leeds opted to replace him with assistant manager
David O'Leary David Anthony O'Leary (born 2 May 1958) is a football manager and former player. His managerial career began at Leeds United, subsequently managing Aston Villa. He most recently worked as the manager of Al-Ahli Dubai. The majority of his 20-yea ...
. Under O'Leary and assistant Eddie Gray, Leeds never finished outside the top five in the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
, and secured qualification for both the
UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
and the
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
, enjoying cup runs to the semi-finals of both competitions. However, during the same period, the team's image was tarnished when players
Jonathan Woodgate Jonathan Simon Woodgate (born 22 January 1980) is an English football manager and former player who is currently the First Team Coach at EFL Championship club, Middlesbrough. Woodgate began his career at Middlesbrough but moved to Leeds United ...
and
Lee Bowyer Lee David Bowyer (; born 3 January 1977) is an English football manager and former professional player. As a player, he was a midfielder who featured for Charlton Athletic, Leeds United, West Ham United (two spells), Newcastle United, Birmingha ...
were involved in an incident that left an Asian student in hospital with severe injuries. The resulting court case took nearly two years to resolve; Bowyer was cleared, but Woodgate convicted of
affray In many legal jurisdictions related to English common law, affray is a public order offence consisting of the fighting of one or more persons in a public place to the terror (in french: à l'effroi) of ordinary people. Depending on their act ...
and sentenced to community service. Additionally, in the UEFA Cup semi-final against
Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...
in
Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
, two Leeds fans were stabbed to death before the game.


2001–2007: Financial crisis and fall to League One

Under chairman
Peter Ridsdale Peter Ridsdale (born 11 March 1952) is an English businessman and advisor to the owner at Preston North End. He was until December 2011 the Chairman of Football Operations at Plymouth Argyle. Ridsdale was previously the chairman of Leeds United ...
, Leeds had taken out large loans against the prospect of the share of the TV rights and sponsorship revenues from
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
qualification and subsequent progress in the competition. However, Leeds narrowly failed to qualify for the Champions League in two successive seasons, and as a consequence did not receive enough income to repay the loans. The first indication that the club was in financial trouble was the sale of
Rio Ferdinand Rio Gavin Ferdinand (born 7 November 1978) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-back, and is now a television pundit for BT Sport. He played 81 times for the England national team between 1997 and 2011, and was ...
to
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
for approximately £30 million. Ridsdale and O'Leary publicly fell out over the sale, and O'Leary was sacked and replaced by former
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
manager
Terry Venables Terence Frederick Venables (born 6 January 1943), often referred to as El Tel, is an English former football player and manager, and an author. During the 1960s and '70s, he played for various clubs including Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Queen ...
. Leeds performed woefully under Venables, and other players were sold to repay the loans, including
Jonathan Woodgate Jonathan Simon Woodgate (born 22 January 1980) is an English football manager and former player who is currently the First Team Coach at EFL Championship club, Middlesbrough. Woodgate began his career at Middlesbrough but moved to Leeds United ...
, whom Ridsdale had promised Venables would not be sold. Tensions mounted between Ridsdale and Venables and, with the team underachieving, Venables was sacked and replaced by
Peter Reid Peter Reid (born 20 June 1956) is an English football manager, pundit and former player. A defensive midfielder in his playing days, Reid enjoyed a long and successful career. He built his reputation as one of England's brightest midfield tale ...
. Ridsdale resigned from the Leeds board and was replaced by existing non-executive director Professor John McKenzie. At this time Leeds were in danger of relegation, but managed to avoid the drop in the penultimate game of the season, beating
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
3–2 at
Highbury Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor house was situ ...
with a late strike by
Mark Viduka Mark Antony Viduka ( ; born 9 October 1975) is an Australian retired football player who played as a centre forward. He captained the Australia national team to the Round of 16 at the 2006 FIFA World Cup which remains their best ever performance ...
. Reid was given a permanent contract at Leeds the following summer and brought in several players on loan. An unsuccessful start to the 2003–04 season saw Reid dismissed, and Eddie Gray take over as
caretaker manager In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular Manager (association football), manager is dismissed or leaves for a ...
until the end of the season. An
insolvency In accounting, insolvency is the state of being unable to pay the debts, by a person or company ( debtor), at maturity; those in a state of insolvency are said to be ''insolvent''. There are two forms: cash-flow insolvency and balance-sheet i ...
specialist,
Gerald Krasner Gerald Maurice Krasner FCA, FABCA (born 1949) was a partner in Bartfields, a corporate recovery firm based in the United Kingdom. He is a former chairman of the West Yorkshire football club Leeds United F.C. Krasner, on behalf of Bartfields, was ...
, led a
consortium A consortium (plural: consortia) is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for ...
of local businessmen which took over Leeds and oversaw the sale of the club's assets, including senior and emerging youth players of any value. Leeds were relegated during the 2003–04 season. Following relegation to the
Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
, assistant manager
Kevin Blackwell Kevin Patrick Blackwell (born 21 December 1958) is an English former professional football goalkeeper who since retiring as a player has worked as a coach and a manager. He is currently the manager of Thai League 1 club Nakhon Ratchasima. Ea ...
was appointed manager. Most of the remaining players were sold or released on free transfers to further reduce the high wage bill; Blackwell was forced to rebuild almost the entire squad through free transfers, and Leeds were forced to sell both their training ground and stadium in the autumn of 2004. The board finally sold the club to
Ken Bates Kenneth William Bates (born 4 December 1931) is a British businessman, football executive and hotelier. He was involved in the development of Wembley Stadium and is the former owner and chairman of football clubs Chelsea and Leeds United. Bates ...
for £10 million. Under Blackwell, Leeds reached the
Championship play-off In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
final, which they lost to
Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...
. With the team performing poorly, Blackwell's contract was terminated, and Leeds hired John Carver as caretaker manager, but his spell was not a success and he was relieved of his duties, with
Dennis Wise Dennis Frank Wise (born 16 December 1966) is an English former professional football player and manager who played as a central midfielder. He is the president of Serie B side Como 1907. He is best known for having spent the majority of his c ...
eventually installed as his replacement. Wise was unable to lift the team out of the relegation zone for much of the season, despite bringing in a number of experienced loan players and free transfers on short-term deals. With relegation virtually assured, Leeds entered
administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
on 4 May 2007, thus incurring a league-imposed 10-point deduction that officially relegated the club to the third tier of English football; the club had previously never played any lower than the second tier. The players whom Wise had brought in were released; he was forced to build a squad almost from scratch, and because of administration Leeds were unable to sign any players until a few days before the opening game of the season.


2007–2010: League One

On 3 July 2007,
HM Revenue & Customs HM Revenue and Customs (His Majesty's Revenue and Customs, or HMRC) is a non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial Departments of the United Kingdom Government, department of the His Majesty's Government, UK Government responsible fo ...
lodged a legal challenge to Leeds' Creditors' Voluntary Agreement (CVA). Under league rules, if the club were still in administration at the start of the following season, Leeds would have been prevented from starting their campaign by the Football League. Following the challenge by HMRC, the club was put up for sale by
KPMG KPMG International Limited (or simply KPMG) is a multinational professional services network, and one of the Big Four accounting organizations. Headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, although incorporated in London, England, KPMG is a net ...
, and again
Ken Bates Kenneth William Bates (born 4 December 1931) is a British businessman, football executive and hotelier. He was involved in the development of Wembley Stadium and is the former owner and chairman of football clubs Chelsea and Leeds United. Bates ...
's bid was accepted. The League eventually sanctioned this under the "exceptional circumstances rule" but imposed a 15-point deduction due to the club failing to exit administration with a CVA, as the Football League rules required. On 31 August 2007, HMRC decided not to pursue its legal challenge any further. Despite the 15-point deduction, Wise and his assistant
Gus Poyet Gustavo Augusto Poyet Domínguez (; born 15 November 1967) is a Uruguayan professional football manager and former footballer. He is currently the head coach of the Greece national football team. Poyet played as a midfielder and began his caree ...
guided Leeds to a playoff position, only for Poyet to leave for Tottenham, and Wise quitting to take up a position at
Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
. Wise was replaced by former club captain
Gary McAllister Gary McAllister MBE (born 25 December 1964) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player. McAllister played primarily as a midfielder in a career spanning over nineteen years. He started his career at local side Motherwell b ...
. Leeds went on to secure a place in the play-off final, but were beaten by
Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...
. The following season saw a poor run of results, and McAllister was sacked after a run of five defeats in a row. He was replaced by
Simon Grayson Simon Nicholas Grayson (born 16 December 1969) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Indian Super League club Bengaluru. As a player, he was a right back, but he was also utilised in m ...
, who resigned from his post as manager of
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
to take the position. Under Grayson, Leeds made the play-offs once again, but were beaten over the two legs of the semi-finals by
Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
. In the 2009–10 season, the team secured the best start ever to a season by a Leeds side, and caused a major upset in the third round of the FA Cup by beating
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
at
Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
. After the impressive run in the FA Cup, Leeds' league form suffered, with the team taking just seven points from a possible 24. However, the team rallied and Leeds won their final game of the season to confirm promotion to
the Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the En ...
as runners-up to
Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...
.


2010–2014: Return to the Championship

Leeds spent much of the 2010–11 season in the playoff places, but eventually finished in seventh place, just missing out on the playoffs. In May 2011, it was announced that Leeds chairman
Ken Bates Kenneth William Bates (born 4 December 1931) is a British businessman, football executive and hotelier. He was involved in the development of Wembley Stadium and is the former owner and chairman of football clubs Chelsea and Leeds United. Bates ...
had bought the club and become the owner of Leeds. Before the match against Middlesbrough, about 300 Leeds fans protested about what they saw as a lack of investment in the playing side, to which Bates responded by calling the protesters "morons". Despite securing promotion to the Championship, Grayson was sacked after failing to mount a consistent challenge for promotion to the Premier League.
Neil Warnock Neil Warnock (born 1 December 1948) is an English former football manager and player. He is also a television and radio pundit. In a managerial career spanning five decades, Warnock has managed sixteen different clubs from the Premier League to ...
was appointed as the club's new manager on 18 February, with his initial contract lasting until the end of the 2012–13 season. On 21 November 2012, Middle East-based private equity group GFH Capital finalised a deal for a protracted takeover of Leeds, gaining a 100% shareholding in the club. It was also announced Ken Bates would remain as chairman until the end of the 2012–13 season and then become club president. The takeover was officially completed on 21 December 2012. Despite runs to the quarter-finals of the League Cup and the fifth round of the FA Cup (albeit with both runs ending in five-goal thrashings, by Chelsea and Manchester City respectively), Leeds's league form in the 2012–13 season was generally mediocre, with the club never making any real challenge for the play-off places. Warnock resigned with six games remaining, and Leeds just five points above the relegation zone. Brian McDermott replaced Warnock, and the club won three of their final five games of the season, enough to avoid relegation. That summer, Bates stepped down as chairman, and ultimately left the club altogether a few weeks later following a dispute over expenses. On 7 January 2014, Leeds United's managing director
David Haigh David Lawrence Haigh is a British human rights lawyer and international crisis and media manager. Haigh is the former managing director of Leeds United Football Club and Chairman of Leeds United Ladies Football Club, he was the first openly L ...
was involved in Sport Capital, a consortium involving the managing director of Leeds United's main sponsors, Enterprise Insurance, Andrew Flowers. Sports Capital came close to completing a transaction with GFH Capital that would have given them a 75% stake in the business. On 30 January, Sport Capital's takeover collapsed due to a lack of "financial backing". Haigh released a statement conceding that it was unable to complete a deal despite two months ago agreeing to purchase a 75% stake in the club from the owners Gulf Finance House. Haigh said he and Sport Capital had "injected substantial sums into the club to ensure its viability" but earlier in the week fellow consortium member Andrew Flowers, the managing director of Leeds's shirt sponsor Enterprise Insurance, stated that GFH had "breached their covenant with us" after inviting a rival bid from
Massimo Cellino Massimo Cellino (; born 28 July 1956) is an Italian entrepreneur and football club owner. Through his family trust Eleonora Sport Ltd he is the owner of Italian club Brescia Calcio, and is the former owner of italian club Cagliari, and English cl ...
, the president of the
Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...
club
Cagliari Calcio Cagliari Calcio, commonly referred to as Cagliari (), is an Italian football club based in Cagliari, Sardinia. In the 2022-23 season, they compete in Serie B. As of 2021–22, the team is temporarily playing their home games at the 16,416-seat ...
. Haigh's statement read: On 31 January 2014, under controversial circumstances, it was reported that manager Brian McDermott had been removed from his position as the club's manager following a string of poor results, while the controversy surrounding the club was resolved. New club captain
Ross McCormack Ross McCormack (born 18 August 1986) is a Scottish professional footballer who most recently played as a striker for Aldershot Town. McCormack started his career with Scottish Premier League club Rangers in 2002, where he made few appearance ...
expressed his support for the former manager. By 3 February the BBC was reporting that McDermott had been called by a lawyer representing Massimo Cellino "and told he had been relieved of his duties". However, Cellino still did not own the club, as the Football League had not yet approved his purchase, so neither he nor his lawyer could sack the manager. McDermott, therefore, remained in his post. After weeks of speculation regarding the purchase of Leeds United, on 7 February 2014, Leeds United had announced that they had exchanged contracts for the sale of Leeds to Cellino's family consortium Eleonora Sport Ltd. The deal saw the Cellino family acquire a 75% ownership of the club, subject to Football League Approval. At its meeting on 23 March 2014, the board of the Football League decided unanimously that Cellino's conviction by an Italian court meant that he did not meet its owners and directors test, so could not take over Leeds United. In the backdrop of Cellino's takeover, Leeds suffered an appalling second half of the season, dropping from the play-off places to the fringes of the relegation battle. In the end, the weak performances of the teams below Leeds meant that they were never in any real danger of going down, and a late run of wins put survival beyond doubt well before the end of the season. However, McDermott still resigned his position a few weeks after the season ended.


2014–2017: Cellino era

On 5 April, Cellino was successful in his appeal with independent QC Tim Kerr to take over the club. The takeover was completed on 10 April, with Cellino's company, Eleonora Sport Limited, buying 75% of the club's shares. Two months later, the inexperienced
Dave Hockaday David Hockaday (born 9 November 1957) is an English professional footballer who is currently Head of Male Football at South Gloucestershire and Stroud College. He has previously worked as a manager at Leeds United, Forest Green Rovers, Kidde ...
was surprisingly appointed head coach, with
Junior Lewis Carl Junior Lewis (born 9 October 1973) is a former footballer who was most recently assistant head coach at Barnet. During his playing career he played as a midfielder. He is currently assistant manager at National League South side Welling Un ...
hired as his assistant. After only 70 days, the pair were fired by Cellino.
Darko Milanič Darko Milanič (born 18 December 1967) is a Slovenian professional football manager and former player. As a player, Milanič represented both Yugoslavia and Slovenia at international level. He also captained Slovenia at UEFA Euro 2000. Club car ...
was given the head coach position in September 2014 becoming the club's first manager from outside the British isles and the first Slovene manager in English football, but left the club the following month. On 1 November 2014,
Neil Redfearn Neil David Redfearn (born 20 June 1965) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder, who was most recently head coach of Sheffield United Women. Redfearn played 790 matches in the Football League, the sixth highest ...
was confirmed as the new head coach. On 1 December 2014, Cellino was disqualified by the
Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
after it obtained documents from an Italian court, where he was found guilty of tax evasion. He was disqualified from running the club until 10 April 2015, and on 24 February 2015, Cellino announced he would not be returning to the club after his ban ended. Redfearn was replaced by former Man City Player
Uwe Rösler Uwe Rösler (; born 15 November 1968) is a German football manager and former professional footballer. As a player he was a centre forward, notably playing in the Premier League for Manchester City, where he was the leading goalscorer for three ...
as head coach in the summer of 2015, but Rosler was himself replaced by Steve Evans after only a few months in the role. On 30 October 2015, Cellino agreed a deal in principle with Leeds Fans Utd to sell a majority stake in the club. When asked to legally commit to an exclusivity period to allow
due diligence Due diligence is the investigation or exercise of care that a reasonable business or person is normally expected to take before entering into an agreement or contract with another party or an act with a certain standard of care. It can be a l ...
to commence, he reneged. On 2 June 2016
Garry Monk Garry Alan Monk (born 6 March 1979) is an English football manager and former professional player who played as a centre back, and was most recently the manager of Championship club Sheffield Wednesday. His managerial career includes spells at ...
was appointed as the new head coach, replacing Steve Evans. On 4 January 2017, Italian businessman
Andrea Radrizzani Andrea Radrizzani (born 10 September 1974) is an Italian businessman and the majority owner of Premier League football club Leeds United. He is also the chairman and founder of the sports broadcasting group Eleven Sports. Early life and educa ...
purchased a 50% stake in the club from Massimo Cellino. At the close of the 2016/17 season, Leeds narrowly missed out on the Playoffs. Leeds had been in the Playoff positions for the majority of the season before a poor run of form in the final games saw them drop into seventh place. This was compounded by being knocked out in the Fourth Round of the F.A. Cup by non-league side
Sutton United Sutton United Football Club is a professional football club in Sutton, South London, England, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They play home games at Gander Green Lane in Sutton about 11 miles sout ...
1–0, who, at the time, were 84 places and 3 divisions below Leeds United.


2017–present: Radrizzani takeover and Premier League return

On 23 May 2017, Radrizzani announced a 100% buyout of Leeds United, buying the remaining 50% shares from previous co-owner
Massimo Cellino Massimo Cellino (; born 28 July 1956) is an Italian entrepreneur and football club owner. Through his family trust Eleonora Sport Ltd he is the owner of Italian club Brescia Calcio, and is the former owner of italian club Cagliari, and English cl ...
, with Radrizzani taking full ownership of the club.
Garry Monk Garry Alan Monk (born 6 March 1979) is an English football manager and former professional player who played as a centre back, and was most recently the manager of Championship club Sheffield Wednesday. His managerial career includes spells at ...
resigned as head coach two days after the takeover, after one season at the club in which he guided them to seventh place. In June 2017, former
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
international
Thomas Christiansen Thomas Christiansen Tarín (born 11 March 1973) is a former Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker, currently the Manager (association football), manager of Panama national football team ...
was announced as the new head coach of Leeds, joining from
APOEL APOEL FC ( el, ΑΠΟΕΛ; short for Αθλητικός Ποδοσφαιρικός Όμιλος Ελλήνων Λευκωσίας, ''Athletikos Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias'', literally "Athletic Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia") ...
. This was followed by Radrizzani introducing
Leeds United Ladies Leeds United Women are an English women's football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. They are currently members of the . Club information The club play their home matches at Thorp Arch, the Leeds United F.C. training facility near Wetherby. ...
back to Leeds United ownership. Also in June, Radrizzani completed the purchase of
Elland Road Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the home of Premier League club Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the 14th largest football stadium in England. The g ...
from Jacob Adler's company, Teak Commercial Limited for £20 million, using his own company Greenfield Investment Pte Ltd. On 4 February 2018, Christiansen was sacked after a bad run of games (not a single win since Boxing Day 2017 across all competitions) leaving the team 10th in the Championship table. On 6 February,
Paul Heckingbottom Paul Heckingbottom (born 17 July 1977) is an English football coach and former player who is currently manager of Championship side Sheffield United. Heckingbottom played as a defender for several English clubs, including Sunderland, Scarboro ...
was confirmed as Christiansen's replacement, just four days after signing a new contract at
Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
. On 24 May 2018, Leeds announced that 49ers Enterprises had bought shares in the club to become a minority investor. The 49ers Enterprises is the business arm of the
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
side
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
, owned by
Denise DeBartolo York Marie Denise DeBartolo York (born 1950) is an American billionaire businesswoman, who is the owner and co-chair of the San Francisco 49ers American football team. She is the daughter of late construction magnate Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. and the l ...
,
Jed York John Edward "Jed" York (born March 9, 1981) is an American businessman who is the CEO of the San Francisco 49ers NFL franchise. York is the son of Denise DeBartolo York and John York, and nephew of former 49ers owner Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. Earl ...
and
John York John C. York (born April 18, 1949) is a retired American cancer research pathologist, married to Marie Denise DeBartolo York, and former co-owner and current co-chairman of the San Francisco 49ers. Heckingbottom was sacked by Leeds on 1 June 2018 after being at the club for just four months. Argentine manager
Marcelo Bielsa Marcelo Alberto Bielsa Caldera (, nicknamed ''El Loco Bielsa'' , meaning "The Crazy Bielsa"; born 21 July 1955) is an Argentine professional football manager who was most recently the head coach of Premier League club Leeds United. He is a forme ...
was named the club's new manager on 15 June, signing a two-year contract with an option of a third year. In doing so he became the highest-paid manager in Leeds United's history. Bielsa's first season in charge saw Leeds make an impressive start and Leeds remained in the top 2 with Norwich City for the majority of the season, on course for automatic promotion to the Premier League. However, a poor end to the season saw the team lose out on automatic promotion to
Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
. They entered the playoffs against
Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 1884 ...
, but despite winning 1–0 in the first leg, ultimately lost 4–3 on aggregate, consigning them to another season in the championship. On 17 July 2020, after 16 years out of the Premier League, Leeds were promoted back to the top flight following
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
's loss to
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
.
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
's defeat of
Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
the following day confirmed they would go up as winners of the Championship. Leeds had been in the top 2 for most of the season and had never dropped lower than 5th in the table, eventually going on to finish 10 points clear of West Brom in 2nd. Leeds' first season back in the Premier League produced a 9th-placed finish after gaining 59 points - the most by a newly promoted side since
Ipswich Town Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
in 2001. However, the following season was not as successful and following a series of poor results, Bielsa was sacked by the club in February 2022.
Jesse Marsch Jesse Alan Marsch (born November 8, 1973) is an American professional soccer coach and former player who is the current head coach of club Leeds United. Marsch played 14 seasons as a midfielder in Major League Soccer (MLS) with D.C. United, ...
was appointed as Bielsa's replacement, and he successfully led the club to avoid relegation on the final day of the season, finishing 17th.


Colours

In Leeds' first 15 years, the club kit was modelled on
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
's blue and white striped shirts, white shorts and dark blue socks with blue and white rings on the turnovers, because Huddersfield's chairman
Hilton Crowther John Hilton Crowther (1879–1957), known as J. Hilton Crowther, or more commonly simply as Hilton Crowther, was the chairman of Huddersfield Town and, subsequently, Leeds United football clubs. He was a wealthy woollen mill owner; along with ...
was attempting to merge the two clubs. He eventually left Huddersfield to take over at Leeds. In 1934, Leeds switched to blue and yellow halved shirts incorporating the city crest, white shorts and blue socks with yellow tops. The kit was worn for the first time on 22 September 1934. In 1950, Leeds switched to yellow shirts with blue sleeves and collars, white shorts and black, blue and gold hooped socks. In 1955, Leeds changed again to royal blue shirts with gold collars, white shorts, and blue and yellow hooped socks, thus echoing the original Leeds City strip. In 1961,
Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
introduced a plain white strip throughout.


Badge

Leeds United's first badge appeared in 1934. Like Leeds City before them, the club adopted the
Coat of arms of Leeds The Coat of arms of Leeds City Council derives its design from the seventeenth century. In 1662 the Borough of Leeds received a new charter which created the office of mayor, and the arms (the shield alone) seems to date from about this time as ...
, which remained on the kit in various guises until 1961. For a number of seasons after 1961–62, when the all-white strip replaced the blue and gold, the shirts sported no badge at all. A perching owl badge was added to the strip in 1964. The design was a surprise given Revie's superstition about the symbolism of birds. The owl derived from the three owls that feature on the city's coat of arms, which in turn were taken from the coat of arms of Sir John Savile, the first
alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...
of Leeds. The owl was usually navy blue, but was coloured gold for the
1968 Football League Cup Final The 1968 Football League Cup Final took place on 2 March 1968 at Wembley Stadium. It was the eighth final and the second to be played at Wembley. It was contested between Arsenal and Leeds United. Leeds had been Inter-Cities Fairs Cup finalists ...
. Between 1971 and 1973, Leeds used the "LUFC" script that runs down the centre of the current badge, albeit in a diagonal fashion rather than the present vertical. The script made a reappearance on the 'retro-look' Asics kit used during the 1995–96 season. In 1973 came the embodiment of 1970s imagery with the iconic "smiley" badge, made up of the letters L and U in bubble writing. Revie's predilection for gimmicks was years ahead of its time, and done with the explicit intention of gaining acceptance from a public outside West Yorkshire. In 1977, the smiley badge was rotated through 45° and the yellow and blue colours were reversed. The yellow smiley returned the following year, but was now enclosed in a circle surrounded by the words "LEEDS UNITED AFC". In the 1978–79 season, a new badge appeared that was similar to that of the previous season, except now the words "LEEDS UNITED AFC" enclosed a stylised peacock (a reference to the club's nickname, "The Peacocks") rather than the yellow smiley. In 1984, another badge was introduced which lasted until 1998, making it the longest lived of the modern era. The distinctive rose and ball badge used the traditional blue, gold and white colours, and incorporated the
White Rose of York The White Rose of York (Latinised as ''rosa alba'', blazoned as ''a rose argent'') is a white heraldic rose which was adopted in the 14th century as a heraldic badge of the royal House of York. In modern times it is used more broadly as a sy ...
, the club's name, and a
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 ...
(a
truncated icosahedron In geometry, the truncated icosahedron is an Archimedean solid, one of 13 convex isogonal nonprismatic solids whose 32 faces are two or more types of regular polygons. It is the only one of these shapes that does not contain triangles or squares. ...
similar to the
Adidas Telstar Telstar is a football made by Adidas. The iconic 32-panel alternating black-and-white design of the ball, based on the work of Eigil Nielsen, has since become a global standard design used to portray a football in different media. Ball The ba ...
, but in Leeds colours) in the core section. In the 1998–99 season, the club logo was replaced with a more "European" shield design. The shield retained the white rose, as well as the blue, gold and white colours, with "LUFC" reading vertically down the centre. In 1999, the badge was slightly amended in that the football from the 1984 badge was added to the centre of the white rose. On 20 February 2019, Leeds United revealed a predominantly gold coloured badge that would be worn on the players' kit during the club's centenary season. The badge retained the existing shield design, but replaced the "LUFC" script with the words "LEEDS UNITED" above and "100 YEARS" below the shield. The crest also carried the date "1919", the year that the club was founded, as well as the centenary year "2019".


Stadium

Leeds United have only ever used one stadium as their
home ground In sports, home is the place and venue identified with a team sport. Most professional teams are named for, and marketed to, particular metropolitan areas; amateur teams may be drawn from a particular region, or from institutions such as sch ...
,
Elland Road Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the home of Premier League club Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the 14th largest football stadium in England. The g ...
, where they have played at since their foundation in 1919. An
all-seater An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football and Ame ...
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 ...
stadium situated in
Beeston, Leeds Beeston is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England located on a hill about 2 miles (3 km) south of the city centre. The origins of Beeston can be traced back to the medieval period. It remained a small settlement until the latter part ...
, West Yorkshire, England, it is the 14th largest football stadium in England. Elland Road was previously occupied by their predecessors,
Leeds City Leeds City Football Club was the leading professional club in Leeds, England, before the First World War. It was dissolved in 1919 due to financial irregularities, after which Leeds United was established as a replacement. History The club was ...
before their disbanding. After their formation, the council allowed them to rent the stadium until they could afford to buy it. With the exception of periods from the 1960s until 1983, and from 1997 to 2004, the local council owned the stadium. However, it was sold by the club in October 2004, with a 25-year sale-
leaseback Leaseback, short for "sale-and-leaseback", is a financial transaction in which one sells an asset and leases it back for the long term; therefore, one continues to be able to use the asset but no longer owns it. The transaction is generally done f ...
deal being agreed, and a commercial buy-back clause also included for when the club's finances improve sufficiently. Initially, the ground was the home of the Holbeck Rugby Club, which played in the Northern Rugby Union, the forerunner of the Rugby Football League. One of Leeds' first nicknames'', 'The Peacocks, comes from the original name of Elland Road – 'The Old Peacock ground'. It was named by the original owners of the ground, Bentley's Brewery, after its pub The Old Peacock, which still faces the site. The newly formed Leeds City agreed to rent and later own Elland Road. After their disbandment, it was sold to Leeds United. The most recent stand at Elland Road is the East, or Family, Stand, a
cantilever A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is supported at only one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a canti ...
structure completed during the 1992–93 season that can hold 17,000 seated spectators. It is a two-tiered stand that continues around the corners and is the largest part of the stadium. ''The
Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
Stand'' was opened at the start of the 1994–95 season, and can hold just under 7,000 seated spectators. The roof of the West Stand holds a television commentary gantry and walkway for TV personnel. Elland Road was named in December 2009 as one of the contenders for the England 2018 World Cup bid. As a result of the bid, Leeds drew up plans to redevelop parts of Elland Road and increase the stadium's capacity.
Ken Bates Kenneth William Bates (born 4 December 1931) is a British businessman, football executive and hotelier. He was involved in the development of Wembley Stadium and is the former owner and chairman of football clubs Chelsea and Leeds United. Bates ...
also revealed plans to take out the executive boxes out of the South Stand to increase the starting capacity by a further 2,000–3,000. More executive boxes would be built in the east stand.
Alex Ferguson Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December 1941) is a Scottish former football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football managers of all time ...
has said that Elland Road has one of the most intimidating atmospheres in European football. A statue of legendary captain
Billy Bremner William John Bremner (9 December 1942 – 7 December 1997) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager. Regarded as one of the game's great midfielders, he combined precision passing skills with tenacious tackling and physical stam ...
was unveiled outside the stadium in 1999 in the area known as 'Bremner Square'. Then a bronze statue for Leeds' most successful manager
Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
was also unveiled in 2012, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the club winning 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 ...
. As part of the renovation of the Bremner statue in summer 2018, a 'Bremner Square XI' was announced. The XI featured ten further 'legendary Leeds players' who have engraved stones featuring their key stats and achievements during their careers with Leeds United. On 28 June 2017, new Leeds owner
Andrea Radrizzani Andrea Radrizzani (born 10 September 1974) is an Italian businessman and the majority owner of Premier League football club Leeds United. He is also the chairman and founder of the sports broadcasting group Eleven Sports. Early life and educa ...
completed the re-purchase of Elland Road, via his investment company, Greenfield Investment Pte Ltd, the company used to buy Leeds. Leeds will have a period of paying no rent and be able to invest in other areas of the club. In July 2018, Elland Road was voted 'Best Ground in the
Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
' by football supporters.


Supporters

In 2003,
Peter Reid Peter Reid (born 20 June 1956) is an English football manager, pundit and former player. A defensive midfielder in his playing days, Reid enjoyed a long and successful career. He built his reputation as one of England's brightest midfield tale ...
commented on the support at Elland Road after being relieved of his managerial duties, saying that "In 30 years I've never seen support like I did at the Leeds/Arsenal game a couple of weeks ago. The fans at Leeds are fantastic." Two other former Leeds managers have also spoken highly of the club's supporters;
Kevin Blackwell Kevin Patrick Blackwell (born 21 December 1958) is an English former professional football goalkeeper who since retiring as a player has worked as a coach and a manager. He is currently the manager of Thai League 1 club Nakhon Ratchasima. Ea ...
said "fans will follow them everywhere" and
David O'Leary David Anthony O'Leary (born 2 May 1958) is a football manager and former player. His managerial career began at Leeds United, subsequently managing Aston Villa. He most recently worked as the manager of Al-Ahli Dubai. The majority of his 20-yea ...
commented "There is an immense fan base and they are still with the club". Leeds supporters are renowned for singing the signature song " Marching on Together" before and during matches. Other notable songs Leeds fans sing during games include "We Are The Champions, Champions of Europe" (more commonly known as WACCOE) in reference to the
1975 European Cup Final The 1975 European Cup Final was a football match between Bayern Munich of West Germany and Leeds United of Yorkshire, England, played on 28 May 1975 at the Parc des Princes in Paris. It was the final match of the 1974–75 season of Europe's prem ...
which Leeds lost due to dubious refereeing decisions.
Riots A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targeted ...
by the Leeds fans during the match led to
UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
banning the club from European competition for four years, although this was reduced to two years on appeal. Famous Leeds supporters include: actors
Ralph Ineson Ralph Michael Ineson (; born 15 December 1969) is an English actor and narrator. Known for his deep, rumbling, Yorkshire-accented voice, his most notable roles include William in ''The Witch'', Dagmer Cleftjaw in '' Game of Thrones'', Amycus Ca ...
,
Russell Crowe Russell Ira Crowe (born 7 April 1964) is an actor. He was born in New Zealand, spent ten years of his childhood in Australia, and moved there permanently at age twenty one. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maxi ...
, Matthew Lewis,
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau Nikolaj William Coster-Waldau (; born 27 July 1970) is a Danish actor and producer. He graduated from the Danish National School of Performing Arts in Copenhagen in 1993, and had his breakthrough role in Denmark with the film '' Nightwatch'' (19 ...
; comedian
Jon Richardson Jon Joel Richardson (born 26 September 1982) is an English comedian. He is known for his appearances on ''8 Out of 10 Cats'' and ''8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown'' and his work as co-host with Russell Howard on BBC 6 Music. He is the presente ...
and boxer
Josh Warrington Josh Warrington (born 14 November 1990) is an English professional boxer. He is a two-time world featherweight champion, having held the IBF title between 2018 and 2022. At regional level, he held the British, Commonwealth, European and WBC I ...
. Leeds United supporters also have their own salute. Leeds are 10th in the all-time average attendance figures for the
Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
and
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
. They have the third most rivalries in the English League.
Sir Alex Ferguson Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December 1941) is a Scottish former football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football managers of all time ...
once said that Elland Road has one of the most intimidating atmospheres in European football. An
LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...
fans' group, ''Marching Out Together,'' was formed in 2017 and sits on the club's Supporters' Advisory Group. There is also a group for Sikh supporters, called Punjabi Whites. The Leeds United Disabled Organisation (LUDO) was founded in 1992. There is a well-known hooligan firm amongst the fans known as the
Leeds United Service Crew The Leeds United Service Crew are a football hooligan firm linked to the English Premier League team, Leeds United F.C. The Service Crew were formed in 1974 and are named after the ordinary public service trains that the hooligans would travel o ...
.


Rivalries

Leeds' main rivals are widely considered to be
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
. As the largest cities within the historic counties of
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
and
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, animosity between the regions date back to the
War of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the throne of England, English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These w ...
, although more recent tensions between the football clubs date back to the 1960s and the iconic managers of
Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
and
Matt Busby Sir Alexander Matthew Busby (26 May 1909 – 20 January 1994) was a Scottish association football, football player and manager, who managed Manchester United F.C., Manchester United between 1945 and 1969 and again for the second half of the 197 ...
. The rivalry has been described as one of the fiercest in world football, and the most intense and inexplicable in England.
Sir Alex Ferguson Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December 1941) is a Scottish former football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football managers of all time ...
has described Elland Road as ‘hostile’ and ‘frightening’, and stated that the ferocity of games between the two surpassed the ones with Liverpool. On the pitch, the clubs have competed for league titles and cups in the 1960s, 1970s, 1990s and early 2000s; while players such as
Johnny Giles Michael John Giles (born 6 November 1940) is an Irish former association football player and manager best remembered for his time as a midfielder with Leeds United in the 1960s and 1970s. After retiring from management in 1985, Giles served as t ...
,
Gordon Strachan Gordon David Strachan ( born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish former football coach and player. He played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Scotland national team. He has since managed Cove ...
and
Eric Cantona Eric Daniel Pierre Cantona (; ; born 24 May 1966) is a French actor, director, producer, and former professional footballer. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation, Cantona is credited as having made Manchester United a d ...
have been highly successful after moving between the clubs. Leeds’ relegation to the Football League in 2004 caused a long interval in games between the two, although promotion in 2020 restored their top flight status. Leeds' secondary rivals are generally regarded to be
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
, which largely stems from the
1970 FA Cup Final The 1970 FA Cup Final was contested by Chelsea and Leeds United. The match took place on 11 April 1970 at Wembley Stadium and ended 2–2, making it the first FA Cup final to require a replay since 1912. The replay was staged at Old Trafford an ...
. The clubs competed at the top end of the Premier League in the late 1990s and early 2000s and games were often bad-tempered. While the rivalry has subsided with Leeds’ relegation 2004, controversial figures such as
Ken Bates Kenneth William Bates (born 4 December 1931) is a British businessman, football executive and hotelier. He was involved in the development of Wembley Stadium and is the former owner and chairman of football clubs Chelsea and Leeds United. Bates ...
and
Dennis Wise Dennis Frank Wise (born 16 December 1966) is an English former professional football player and manager who played as a central midfielder. He is the president of Serie B side Como 1907. He is best known for having spent the majority of his c ...
— both of whom had long associations with Chelsea — presided over the club’s relegation to the third division in 2007 and subsequent administration, prolonging the enmity. Leeds also hold extreme bitterness towards the Turkish club
Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...
following the deaths of the two supporters the night before a UEFA Cup semi-final in Istanbul in April 2000. During the game, supporters of Galatasaray mocked the deaths, while their team refused to wear black armbands. The then Leeds Chairman
Peter Ridsdale Peter Ridsdale (born 11 March 1952) is an English businessman and advisor to the owner at Preston North End. He was until December 2011 the Chairman of Football Operations at Plymouth Argyle. Ridsdale was previously the chairman of Leeds United ...
accused the club of 'lacking common decency’. During their time outside of the Premier League between 2004 and 2020, Leeds had a number of transitory rivalries with divisional competitors such as
Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...
,
Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 1884 ...
and
Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
, as well as Yorkshire neighbours
Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...
and
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
.


Music

The single 'Leeds United' was released in April 1972 to coincide with the team reaching the
1972 FA Cup Final The 1972 FA Cup Final took place on 6 May 1972 at Wembley Stadium. It was the centenary final (although only the 91st final due to the world wars) and the 44th to be played at Wembley. It was contested between cup holders Arsenal, who had won th ...
, composed by Les Reed and
Barry Mason John Barry Mason (12 July 1935 – 16 April 2021) was an English singer and songwriter. A leading songwriter of the 1960s, he wrote the bulk of his most successful songs in partnership with Les Reed. Mason gained many gold and platinum awar ...
with the team providing the vocals. The record stayed in the
UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
for almost three months, peaking at number 10. The B-side 'Leeds! Leeds! Leeds!' (commonly known as ''Marching on Together'') has since become the club's anthem and is regularly sung by supporters.


Players


First-team squad


Out on loan


Reserves and academy


Management


First-team staff

{, class="wikitable" , - !Position !Staff , - , Head Coach, ,
Jesse Marsch Jesse Alan Marsch (born November 8, 1973) is an American professional soccer coach and former player who is the current head coach of club Leeds United. Marsch played 14 seasons as a midfielder in Major League Soccer (MLS) with D.C. United, ...
, - , Assistant Head Coach, ,
René Marić René Marić (born 4 September 1992) is an Austrian football coach. He serves as the assistant head coach at Premier League side Leeds United F.C., Leeds United. Career Early career Marić started his coaching career at his local side TSU Ha ...
, - , Assistant Coach, ,
Cameron Toshack Jon Cameron Toshack (born 7 March 1970) is a Welsh professional football coach and former player. Toshack currently serves as coaching assistant to Jesse Marsch at Leeds United. Toshack is the son of former Swansea City, Real Sociedad, Real Mad ...
, - , Assistant Coach, , Ewan Sharp , - , Goalkeeper Coach, ,
Marcos Abad Marcos Abad Peidro (born 12 September 1985) is a Spanish goalkeeper coach who works as first team goalkeeper coach at English club West Bromwich Albion, after previously holding the role of first team goalkeeper coach at Leeds United and former ...
, - , Fitness Coach, , Pierre Barrieu , - , Coaching Consultant, ,
Franz Schiemer Franz "Franky" Schiemer (born 21 March 1986, in Haag am Hausruck, Upper Austria) is a former Austrian footballer who played as a defender and was most recently assistant head coach of Leeds United. Career Club career He started his career in hi ...
, - , Loan Manager, ,
Andrew Taylor Andrew or Andy Taylor may refer to: Sport * Andrew Taylor (footballer, born 1986), English footballer * Andy Taylor (footballer, born 1986), English footballer * Andy Taylor (footballer, born 1988), English footballer * Andrew Taylor (Australian ...
, -


Medical, performance and analysis team

{, class="wikitable" , - !Position !Staff , - , Head of Medicine and Performance, , Rob Price , - , Head Physio, , Henry McStay , - , Head of Analysis, , Guillermo Alonso , - , Video Analyst, , Aaron Dagger , - , Rehab & Fitness Conditioning Coach, , Rubén Crespo , - , Sports Scientist, , Tom Robinson , - , Assistant Physio, , Daryl Carter , - , Assistant Physio, , Bill Atton , - , Assistant Physio, , William Franklin , - , Club Doctor, , Rishi Dhand , - , Performance Nutritionist, , Andy Jenkinson , -


Scouting team

{, class="wikitable" , - !Position !Staff , - , Head of European Recruitment, , Gaby Ruiz , - , Head of Football Development (Asia), ,
Toshiya Fujita Toshiya is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Toshiya can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *敏也, "agile, to be" *敏矢, "agile, arrow" *敏哉, "agile, how (interrogative par ...
, - , Head of Emerging Talent, ,
Craig Dean Craig Dean is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks'', played by Guy Burnet. The character was introduced as a youngest brother of established character Steph Dean (Carley Stenson). He made his first appearanc ...
, - , Scout, ,
Dani Salas Daniel "Dani" Salas Del Sar (born 23 February 1988) is a Spanish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Full-back, right back, and a Scout (sport), scout at English club Leeds United F ...
, - , Scout, , Paco Peral , - , Recruitment Analyst, , Alex Davies , - , Recruitment Analyst, , Andrea Iore


Owners and directors

Source:


Managers

The club's current manager
Jesse Marsch Jesse Alan Marsch (born November 8, 1973) is an American professional soccer coach and former player who is the current head coach of club Leeds United. Marsch played 14 seasons as a midfielder in Major League Soccer (MLS) with D.C. United, ...
, is the thirty-eighth permanent holder of the position since Leeds were founded in 1919. Leeds have also had nine caretaker managers, three of whom had previously occupied the role on a full-time basis, and one of whom occupied the role three times. The most successful manager of Leeds United is
Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
, who won two
League League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...
Championships In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
, two
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, sometimes referred to as the European Fairs Cup, Fairs Cities' Cup, or simply as the Fairs Cup, was a European Association football, football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecess ...
s, one Division Two
Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
, one
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 ...
, one
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
and one Charity Shield in his 13-year reign as manager. He is also the club's longest-serving manager, presiding over 740 games from 1961 to 1974.


Honours

Source:


Domestic


League

* First Division/Premier League * Winners (3): 1968–69, 1973–74, 1991–92 * Runners-up (5): 1964–65, 1965–66, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1971–72 * Second Division/Championship *Winners (4): 1923–24, 1963–64, 1989–90, 2019–20 * Runners-up (3): 1927–28, 1931–32, 1955–56 * Play-off runners-up (2): 1986–87, 2005–06 * Third Division/League One * Runners-up (1): 2009–10 * Play-off runners-up (1): 2007–08


Cups

*
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 ...
*Winners (1): 1971–72 * Runners-up (3): 1964–65, 1969–70, 1972–73 *
EFL Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
*Winners (1): 1967–68 * Runners-up (1): 1995–96 * FA Charity/Community Shield *Winners (2):
1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...
,
1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
* Runners-up (1):
1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...


European

* European Cup/UEFA Champions League * Runners-up (1): 1974–75 *
UEFA Cup Winners Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourna ...
* Runners-up (1): 1972–73 *
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, sometimes referred to as the European Fairs Cup, Fairs Cities' Cup, or simply as the Fairs Cup, was a European Association football, football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecess ...
*Winners (2): 1967–68, 1970–71 * Runners-up (1): 1966–67 * Trophy play-off runners-up (1): 1971–72


References


External links


Leeds United Official Website
*
Leeds United - Sky Sports
{{Authority control Football clubs in England Premier League clubs English Football League clubs Association football clubs established in 1919 Companies that have entered administration in the United Kingdom Football clubs in West Yorkshire FA Cup winners EFL Cup winners EFL Championship clubs 1919 establishments in England Sport in Leeds Phoenix clubs (association football) Former English Football League clubs Inter-Cities Fairs Cup winning clubs