Bristol City Football Club is an English association football club based in the city of Bristol. Founded in 1894 as Bristol South End, the team first entered the FA Cup in 1895–96, and played in the Western League in 1896–97. The club then turned professional, changed its name to Bristol City, and joined the Southern League. In 1900, City merged with another Southern League club, Bedminster, and the following season gained admission to the Football League, in which the first team have played ever since. They won the Second Division title in 1905–06, and followed up with a runners-up finish in the 1906–07 First Division, three points behind champions Newcastle United. That remains the club's best Football League placing, and two years later they set another record in the 1908–09 FA Cup. City entered the competition at the first-round stage and despite needing a replay in every round apart from the third, went on to reach the final, in which they lost 1–0 to league champions Manchester United. After five seasons in the top flight, City were relegated back to the second tier.
