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Wigan Athletic

Wigan Athletic were founded in 1932 as the fifth football club in the town - Wigan County, Wigan United, Wigan Town and Wigan Borough had all previously folded. Forty-six years later, after 34 unsuccessful attempts, Wigan were elected to the Football League, ousting Southport by 29 votes to 20. Their first match as a league club ended in a 0-0 draw against Hereford at Edgar Street.

Promotion to the old Third Division followed four years later, the Springfield Park outfit finishing third behind Sheffield United and Bradford City after a 21-match unbeaten run. In 1985 they beat Brentford 3-1 at Wembley to win the Freight Rover Trophy and two years later they reached the FA Cup sixth round for the only time in their history, eventually losing 2-0 to Leeds United. Wigan suffered relegation to the new Third Division in 1993, the year the Premiership came into being, and fortunes did not change until local businessman Dave Whelan bought the club in 1995. The 1997 campaign was to be the start of Wigan's rise to the top, as they won promotion to the Second Division, clinching the title on goals scored from Fulham after a 2-0 home win over Mansfield. That season also saw a 7-1 win over Scarborough, the biggest league triumph in the club's history.

A move to the JJB Stadium and an Auto Windscreens Shield triumph followed in 1999, but it was not until 2003 that the Latics, under Paul Jewell, achieved promotion from the Second Division. And it was not long before Whelan's dream was realised as Wigan finished second in the Championship in 2005 and were promoted to the Premiership for the first time.

While Manchester United were winning the inaugural competition in 1993, Wigan were being relegated to the new Third Division, and the following year they finished 19th, their lowest ever league position. But everything changed when JJB Sports supremo Whelan took over in 1995. The former Blackburn Rovers player immediately signalled his intent by signing the so-called 'Three Amigos' - Isidro Diaz, Jesus Seba and Roberto Martinez. Under former Norwich City manager John Deehan they won promotion to the Second Division in 1997, clinching the title on goals scored from Fulham, and in 1999 they left Springfield Park for their impressive new home, the JJB Stadium. A dramatic play-off final defeat followed the next season, as Gillingham scored twice in the final seven minutes to snatch a 3-2 win.

In 2001, goalkeeper Roy Carroll signed for Manchester United and manager Steve Bruce left to join Crystal Palace after just six weeks in charge. Former player Paul Jewell was installed as his replacement. Nathan Ellington joined from Bristol Rovers for a club record fee in 2002, and Wigan stormed to the Second Division title in 2003 by 14 points, amassing 100 points in the process. After just missing out on the play-offs in 2004, Wigan completed their astonishing climb to the top flight in 2005, securing promotion from the Championship with a 3-1 win over Reading in the final game. Strike duo Ellington and Jason Roberts, who were both named in the Championship Team of the Season, scored 45 goals between them as the Latics finished second behind Sunderland. In their maiden top-flight season, Jewell's men defied many pre-season relegation predictions by finishing 10th, as well as reaching the League Cup final, in which they were beaten by Manchester United.