Bristol City FC was formed in 1897 when Bristol South End turned professional and changed its name to Bristol City.

Bristol City joined the Football League in 1901 and were the only non-London League football club south of Birmingham until 1920.

Bristol City FC first entered the top flight in 1906 as Second Division champions. In 1907 the football club finished second in - their highest final position - and in 1909 Bristol City reached the FA Cup Final where they were beaten by Manchester United.

However, by 1911 Bristol City was back in the Second Division and has never since recaptured the glory of the 1906-1909 era. It was 65 years before the Robins flew up to the top tier again.

From 1911 to the Second World War, Bristol City spent time in the Second and Third Divisions, while the late 1950s brought the football club a five-year spell in the Second Division.

Bristol City's fortunes began to improve by the mid-1960s, with a return to the top tier in 1976. However, the football club's second stint at the top was less successful than its first, with 13th position in 1979 being their highest finish.

Relegation arrived in 1980 and Bristol City FC entered a period beset by financial problems, the saviour only arriving in 1982 when a new football club was formed - Bristol City FC (1982) Limited - as the Robins narrowly avoided closure.

The same year, Bristol City became the first English football team to suffer three successive relegations, but by 1990 they were back in Division Two.

Another relegation followed in 1995, when Bristol City finished second from bottom in the new Second Division, but most of the seasons between 1999 and 2006 were spent challenging for promotion in the upper half of the division.

Bristol City were eventually promoted to the Championship in 2007 as runners-up in League One, but the football club just failed to clinch a second consecutive promotion after being beaten by Hull City in the Championship play-off final of 2008.