Middlesbrough and Ironopolis Football and Athletic Club was a short lived football club based in the town of

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, England. Middlesbrough Ironopolis Football Club formed as a split from

Middlesbrough Football Club Middlesbrough Football Club ( ) is a professional football club in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England, which competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium ...

in 1889, and both teams made the move from amateur to professional football within a week of each other in December 1889. However, both teams came to realise their only real chance of gaining promotion 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 ...

was through a reunion of the two teams. On 7 May 1892, after a meeting between the two clubs, an application to join the Football League was made under the name Middlesbrough and Ironopolis Football Club. The club received only one vote in its application, possible reasons being the long travelling distances and allegations of poaching of players from League teams. The club decided not to apply for membership of the

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third t ...

. After failing to enter the League, and disagreements between the two original clubs on the make up and ground of the new club, the clubs reverted to playing individually.

Sources

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History of Middlesbrough FC
Middlesbrough F.C. Association football clubs established in 1892 Association football clubs disestablished in 1892 Defunct football clubs in North Yorkshire 1892 establishments in England 1892 disestablishments in England {{England-footyclub-defunct-stub