History of Manchester United F.C. (1878–1945) History of Manchester United F.C. (1878–1945) Manchester United Football Club was formed in 1878 as Newton Heath LYR Football Club by the Carriage and Wagon department of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway depot at Newton Heath. The team initially played games against other departments and rail companies at their home ground at North Road, but by 1888 the club had become a founding member of The Combination, a regional football league. However, following the league's dissolution before the end of its first season, Newton Heath joined the newly formed Football Alliance, which ran for three seasons before being merged with
Manchester United F.C. in European football in the Premier League in 2013–14 under David Moyes, United missed out on European football in 2014–15 for the first time in 25 years, but returned to European action the following season after Moyes' replacement Louis van Gaal guided the club to fourth in the league and a place in the Champions League play-off round. It was the first time that Manchester United had played in the qualifying phase of the Champions League since beating Hungarian side Debrecen in the 2005–06 competition. By virtue of winning the 2015–16 FA Cup (compounded by a 5th-place finish in the Premier League that