Hull CityHull City were founded on 28 June 1904, in a city where rugby league, not football, was the dominant sport, and the club spent its early seasons playing on borrowed rugby and cricket grounds before joining the Football League in 1905. For most of the twentieth century Hull remained a lower-division side, their best league finish long standing at third place in the old Second Division, achieved in 1909-10.
That changed in 2008, when Hull won promotion to the Premier League for the first time in their history, beating Bristol City in the Championship play-off final at Wembley. Survival looked unlikely, but under manager Phil Brown the club stayed up on the final day of the 2008-09 season with a dramatic draw against Manchester United, finishing 17th.
The club's most celebrated moment in cup competitions came in 2014, when Hull, managed by Steve Bruce, reached their first-ever FA Cup final. Facing Arsenal at Wembley, the Tigers raced into a 2-0 lead inside the opening ten minutes, only for Arsenal to fight back and win 3-2 after extra time, a result still remembered as one of the most dramatic finals of the era.
Hull's Premier League history since has been marked by repeated promotions and relegations, going up and down in 2008-09, 2013-14 through 2014-15, and 2016-17. After a spell as low as League One, the club won the third-tier title in 2020-21, and in 2026 secured a return to the Premier League by beating Middlesbrough in the Championship play-off final.
Nicknamed the Tigers for their black-and-amber colours, Hull City have played at the ground now known as the MKM Stadium since 2002, following more than half a century at Boothferry Park. The stadium has carried several sponsor names since opening, though its role as the home of Hull football has remained constant throughout the club's recent swings between English football's top two divisions.