 | ||||
| Full name | Crawley Town Football Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | The Red Devils[1] | |||
| Founded | 1896; 130 years ago (1896) | |||
| Ground | Broadfield Stadium | |||
| Capacity | 5,567 | |||
| Coordinates | 51°05′59″N0°11′41″W / 51.0997°N 0.1948°W /51.0997; -0.1948 | |||
| Owner(s) | KB Sports and Leisure Ltd | |||
| Chairman | Raphael Khalili. Board: Daniel Khalili, Ryan Gilbert, Maxwell Strowman. | |||
| Manager | Scott Lindsey | |||
| League | EFL League Two | |||
| 2024–25 | EFL League One, 21st of 24 (relegated) | |||
| Website | www | |||
 Current season | ||||
Crawley Town Football Club is a professionalassociation football club based in the town ofCrawley, West Sussex, England. The team currently competes inEFL League Two, the fourth level of theEnglish football league system.
Founded in 1896 as Crawley Football Club, helped to found theWest Sussex League later that year before transferring to theMid-Sussex League. The club disbanded in 1935, but were re-established in theBrighton, Hove & District League three years later. The club switched to theSussex County League in 1951 and then moved on to theMetropolitan League five years later. In 1958, the club changed its name to Crawley Town Football Club. The club moved from amateur to semi-professional status in 1962 and were accepted into theSouthern League the following year. They secured promotion out of Division One in 1968–69, only to suffer relegation the next season.
Crawley were promoted out of the Southern League Southern Section 1983–84 and spent the next 21 seasons in the Premier Division, before winning promotion into theConference as champions of the Southern League in 2003–04. The club turned fully professional in 2005 but faced immediate financial difficulties and entered administration the following year. The club survived and appointedSteve Evans as a manager in May 2007. Evans led them into theFootball League as champions of the Conference in 2010–11 and then secured promotion in their first season inLeague Two. Crawley spent three seasons inLeague One before relegation in 2015. After nine seasons in League Two, Crawley won the League Two play-offs in 2024 to earn promotion back to League One, before being immediately relegated to League Two again the following season. The club has played home games atBroadfield Stadium since 1997 and are nicknamed the "Reds" or "Town" due to the colour of their kit.
Having played friendly matches from 1890, with the club's first match played on 22 November 1890 at home toLingfield,[2] Crawley Town were formed in 1896, and became founding members of theWest Sussex Football League that year, joining the Junior Division.[3] They remained in the West Sussex league for five years before transferring to theMid-Sussex League, winning the League in only their second season. After disbanding at the end of the 1934–35 season, the club reformed in 1938 and joined Division Two of theBrighton, Hove & District League.[4] They played in the Sussex County Emergency League in 1945–45, before returning to the Brighton, Hove & District League in 1946–47, becoming members of Division One.[5]
They stayed at this level until they entered theSussex County League in 1951 before switching again five years later to theMetropolitan League, which was a competition for both professional and amateur sides. In 1958, Crawley changed their name to Crawley Town.[6] Town retained their amateur status and went on to win the Metropolitan League Challenge Cup in 1959.[7]
Crawley turned semi-professional in 1962 and the following year they joined Division One of theSouthern League. In 1969 they were promoted to Premier Division of the Southern League but the joy was short-lived as the following season they were relegated back to the first division where they remained until the 1983–84 season when they were promoted as runners-up.[8]
Crawley's most successful cup run at the time was in the 1991–92 season when they reached theFA Cup third round proper and played localBrighton & Hove Albion, losing 5–0 in front of 18,301 at theGoldstone Ground.[9]
In 1999, the club entered administration with debts estimated to be around £400,000.[10] In October 1999, the club was bought by John Duly after a period of two months in administration, with Billy Smith appointed as manager.[11] At the time, the Reds were second-bottom, but the club went on to finish in 12th place, six points above the relegation zone, at the end of this season various players from the first and reserve teams were released to try and free up finances, including John Sawyer, Jason Davy, Daniel Cullingham, Alex Barber and Jimmy Drew who all were part of a promising reserve team at the time finishing runner-up in the reserve league to Crystal Palace reserves.[12] Whilst the 2000–01 season saw Town finish 11th, Crawley were much improved in a 2001–02 campaign which saw them finish fourth. This season saw the return of some of the previously released players as the administrators had now found new owners.[12] Whilst Crawley finished seventh in 2002–03, the Reds found success in the 2003–04 season, when they ended their 20-season stay in the Premier Division of the Southern League by winning the division with 84 points, 12 points clear of second-placedWeymouth, and winning theSouthern League Cup for the second successive season. The title was secured with four matches remaining with a 3–0 victory atWelling United, sparking celebrations from a large travelling contingent.[13] Crawley would now be playing in theFootball Conference, the highest level of non-League football, for the first time in their history.
A final position of 12th in their first season in the National Division was considered an impressive achievement for the club who finished as the highest-ranked part-time team in the country. Crawley also retained the Sussex Senior Cup by defeating Ringmer.
In 2005, the SA Group bought the club and made the decision to go full-time for the first time in the club's history.[14] Although this was necessary in order to allow them to compete in the division,[15] it led to the departure of several key players, including fans' favouriteCharlie MacDonald and goalkeeper Andy Little, who were unable to give up their day jobs to play full-time.
The 2005–06 season didn't start well for Crawley as the club found themselves third from bottom and out of the FA Cup after a shock defeat toBraintree Town. Francis Vines was subsequently sacked and replaced by formerChelsea FC manager and playerJohn Hollins and his assistant Alan Lewer.[16] Things got worse for Crawley and as attendances dropped, so too did the club's income; the club's owners were forced to slash the players' and staff wages by 50% due to lack of funds.[17] Several key players left the club, including captainIan Simpemba,Simon Wormull and record signingDaryl Clare; it looked certain that relegation was on the cards.[17] However five straight wins through March and April saw the club climb the table to 17th place and beat the drop by 10 points. The club was docked three points at the end of the season for breaching the annual playing budget but this had no effect on the final standings and Crawley's league status was safe. However, they later went intoadministration, with insolvency specialistsBegbies Traynor placed in control of the club.[18]
Although Crawley Town F.C. had been in administration in the late 1990s,[10] trouble began in March 2006 when the club's players and staff were made to take a 50% pay cut and the entire squad was put up for sale; Crawley went into administration in June of that year.[17] It was revealed by local newspaperthe Argus several days later that the chairman Chas Majeed was an undischarged bankrupt and therefore banned from holding a high position within the club.[19] Majeed later resigned from his post but remained involved.
The fans started a "Red Card" campaign in order to remove Chas Majeed and his brother Azwar Majeed (Crawley Town's owner) from the club, with fans waving red cards at the Majeeds and forming a supporters' trust.[20] It was revealed that the club was around £1.1million in debt with nearly £400,000 due toHM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), and the Majeeds claimed they were owed £700,000 by the club. By July of that year, the debts were closer to £1.4 million, including money owed to current and former staff, and an offer of 25p in the pound was rejected by the creditors. With HMRC unwilling to move on its demand and being the biggest creditor (the Majeeds were unable to vote on the matter despite being owed money), it looked unlikely that the club would be saved.
By August 2006, only one bid had come in for the club which was from the current owners; it was rejected by three to one; the administrators were therefore obliged to liquidate the club and it was announced that the club would fold later that day.[21] However, a couple of days later, in one final attempt to rescue the club, the creditors met again to decide on a final offer. The creditors were split and so the administrator voted in Crawley Town's favour, allowing them to start the new season. The creditors would meet 14 days later to decide on an offer of 50p in the pound. The club was told that if the offer was rejected then the club would fold there and then, and there would be no going back.[21][22] By September 2006 the club's debt was at £1.8 million making former/current players and staff the biggest creditors and giving hope that a rescue bid would be accepted. The offer of 50p in the pound was later accepted and Crawley Town was able to continue playing for the time being, though this didn't stop HMRC from trying to wind up the SAGroup (Majeed's company) over unpaid taxes.[23] Azwar Majeed was later jailed for tax fraud relating to his various other businesses.[24]
Crawley started the 2006–07 season by winning their opening three games and all but wiped out their 10-point deduction. The following month, however, the club's form dipped and this led to John Hollins and Alan Lewer losing their jobs. The news did not go down well with the fans as the pair had stuck with Crawley when others decided to leave and they had managed to lift the club off the bottom despite a 10-point deduction. They were replaced by players Ben Judge andDavid Woozley with the help ofJohn Yems, the formerFulham FC andMillwall FC coach.[25] Life started well for the trio who picked up 10 points from a possible 12. Crawley finished 18th in the division and managed to beat the drop after securing the point they needed on the final day of the season.
In May 2007, it was confirmed that all of Crawley Town's debts had been cleared.[26] However, complications arose and as a result Crawley were given a six-point penalty for the new season and a transfer embargo was put in place because of financial irregularities.[27] It is believed that Crawley failed to confirm to the league that the debts had been paid. For the start of the 2007–08 season, a new regime was put into place which included Victor Marley as club Chairman andSteve Evans as manager, with Paul Raynor as an assistant. Crawley finished the season in a respectable 15th place, and were runners-up in the Sussex Senior Cup, despite the club's financial position and points deduction.
In April 2008 Prospect Estate Holdings Limited took control of Crawley after buying it from the SA Group in conjunction with former owner John Duly.[28][29] The club's financial worries were over and the club could look to build again and start the 2008–09 season on a level playing field.
After a short period of stability, Crawley Town ended up in the High Court in London to face a winding-up order on 17 February 2010; again this was because of money being owed to HMRC. The hearing was adjourned until 17 March 2010.[30] The latest setback appeared to be the end of Crawley Town, as the club had very few assets to sell in order to satisfy the debt. However, the case was later dismissed by the High Court as the club proved the debt had been paid.[31]
In a move that showed confidence in the new management, on 29 March 2010 Crawley Borough Council agreed to lease the Broadfield Stadium to Crawley Town F.C. and to help secure the long-term sustainability of the club.[32]
In 2010, Bruce Winfield announced that he and Susan Carter had become majority shareholders and had attracted new investment for the club, some of which came from overseas.[33] The investment allowed manager Steve Evans to start rebuilding the squad, which saw 23 players signed over a six-month period includingMatt Tubbs, for £70,000,[34]Sergio Torres for a record £100,000,[35] andRichard Brodie for an undisclosed fee,[36] which was estimated to be a new Conference record of £275,000.[37]
The investment paid off as Crawley were challenging for promotion to the Football League and embarked on a remarkableFA Cup run. Victories overNewport County,[38]Guiseley[39] andSwindon Town[40] saw the club progress to a third round tie at home toChampionship sideDerby County.[41] They won 2–1,[42] and followed it up with a 1–0 win atLeague Two sideTorquay United in the fourth round.[43] The fifth round draw saw Crawley face away tie with thenPremier League leadersManchester United, with manager Steve Evans admitting it was 'the tie of his dreams'.[44][45] Crawley lost the fifth round tie 1–0 in front of 9,000 Crawley fans, though were denied a draw when Richard Brodie's header hit the bar in the 93rd minute.[46]
In March 2011, club owner Bruce Winfield died from cancer, aged 61.[47] Despite their cup run and Winfield's death, Crawley didn't halt their progress in the league as just 19 days after Winfield's death, Crawley secured the2010–11 Football Conference title by beatingTamworth 3–0 and reaching the Football League for the first time in the club's history.[48]
In the2011–12 season, they once again enjoyed success in theFA Cup, beatingChampionship clubsBristol City andHull City both 1–0 home and away respectively.[49][50] They suffered a 2–0 defeat againstStoke City in the fifth round. This was Crawley's first match against Premier League opposition at theBroadfield Stadium.
Crawley finished 2011 at the top of League Two; a positive start to their first campaign in league football. However, despite continued success in the FA Cup, form slipped. Between 17 December 2011, and 13 March 2012, Crawley won just two league games out of a possible 14. Many argued the sales ofMatt Tubbs andTyrone Barnett for £800,000[51] and £1,100,000[52] respectively, as well as failing to reach a deal overAndy Drury[53] contributed to their dip in form. Three Crawley players were involved in a post-match brawl[54] againstBradford City, including former club captainPablo Mills (suspended for six matches) and fellow defenderClaude Davis (suspended for four matches). Five players from both clubs were suspended in total[55] equalling the record for the most dismissals in an English game. Consequently, Crawley were fined £18,000.[56] Following an FA inquiry into the events that took place,Kyle McFadzean[57] was handed a four-game suspension after being found guilty of violent conduct. All three players released apology statements, and were all fined two weeks' wages.[58] Despite apologising,[59] Mills was stripped of his captaincy for behaviour not befitting the role of a club captain.[60] He was released by the club at the conclusion of the 2011/12 season.[61]
On 9 April, it was announced thatSteve Evans had left Crawley to take up a post atRotherham United.[62] Evans revealed "In my opinion, how far can I take Crawley Town? League One certainly, but beyond that I was not so sure".[62] Evans had previously admitted frustration over the departures of Matt Tubbs and Tyrone Barnett. Assistant managerPaul Raynor also left the club with immediate effect, with coachCraig Brewster taking over as manager for the remainder of the season.[63]Steve Coppell was appointed as director of football with immediate effect.[28]
On Saturday 5 May Crawley securedLeague One promotion, courtesy of a 67th minute Scott Neilson strike againstAccrington Stanley.[64]
It was announced on 12 May, that Crawley were in talks to appointSean O'Driscoll as their new manager. Under a tight budget atDoncaster Rovers he achieved promotion to theFootball League Championship in his first full season. He was appointed as manager four days later.[65] Despite Crawley chief executive Alan Williams being convinced they had made 'the perfect appointment', he left on 12 July, to become the new manager ofNottingham Forest, meaning that he did not take charge of Crawley for a single game.[66]
On 7 August 2012, Crawley appointed Bury F.C. managerRichie Barker as their new manager.[67] Under him, the club had a successful debut season in League One, challenging for the play-offs for much of the campaign and finishing comfortably in tenth place. The club caused controversy, however, by banning a reporter fromCrawley News because the club's management disliked two of his paper's headlines.[68] The club were condemned for this in a motion signed by 23 MPs on 10 December 2013.[20] Barker was sacked early in the following season[69] for speaking to League Two sidePortsmouth about their manager's job.[citation needed] He was replaced byJohn Gregory, who steered the club to another mid-table finish despite a poor late run.[70]
The 2014–15 season saw Crawley struggle for form, and Gregory resigned for health reasons near the end of 2014, with the club in the relegation zone.[71]Dean Saunders was appointed to replace him on an interim basis,[72] and despite an upturn in form, was unable to get the club out of trouble. On Sunday 3 May 2015, Crawley were relegated to League Two, following a 1–2 defeat at home to Coventry City. Saunders' short-term deal was not renewed after the season ended, and he was replaced byMark Yates.[73]
While Crawley were among the pre-season promotion favourites,[citation needed] one win in their first 10 games quickly put paid to any such hopes. Their form improved as the season progressed, and they were 12th by 26 December.[74] In March 2016, the club was purchased by Turkish businessman Ziya Eren, who set a target for the club to be playing in theChampionship within 8–10 years.[75][76][77] Following a run of six consecutive defeats, Yates was sacked just before the season ended,[78] withDermot Drummy appointed as his successor.[79]
The 2016–17 season started strongly for the Reds. However, after drawing 3–3 at home to Carlisle United thanks to captainJimmy Smith's late goal, Crawley only narrowly survived in League Two.[80] On 4 May, the club sacked Drummy after a year in charge.[81] On 27 November 2017, Drummy was found dead near theA414 inHoddesdon, with the cause of death later confirmed to be suicide.[82]
On 23 May 2017, formerLeeds United wingerHarry Kewell was appointed as head coach.[83] Kewell led Crawley to a 14th-placed finish - their best finish since relegation from League One.[84] Kewell left the club shortly into the 2018–19 season, to manage fellowLeague Two clubNotts County.[85]Gabriele Cioffi was appointed as his successor a week later[86] and led the club to finish 19th that season.
Despite the club reaching the fourth round of theEFL Cup in the2019–20 season,[87] their best performance in the competition,[88] managerGabriele Cioffi left the club by mutual consent on 2 December 2019, with the club having won just once in 11 matches leaving the club 17th in League Two.[89] Cioffi was replaced by former managerJohn Yems three days later on a deal until the end of the season.[90] Following an upturn in the club's form, with Crawley losing just two of 11 matches, Yems' contract was extended until the end of the 2022–23 season in late January 2020.[91] However, in March 2020, the League Two season was suspended due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, with Crawley still to play a further nine games.[92] The season was later terminated, with Crawley finishing 13th after clubs agreed to base the final table onpoints per game.[93][94] Thefollowing season, Crawley improved one place to 12th. In the FA Cup, they reached the fourth round of the FA Cup after beating Premier LeagueLeeds United 3–0.[95]
On 7 April 2022, it was announced that the club had been acquired by Wagmi United LLC, a group of UScryptocurrency investors.[96] The "crypto bro" new owners promised a new approach to football club ownership, talking of building a "tight-knit community" of fans "stretching from West Sussex to anywhere in the world with an internet connection", but they quickly encountered controversy. Manager John Yems left the club in May 2022 after allegations of racist behaviour[97] and was later banned from football until January 2026 after being found guilty of 12 charges of racist abuse towards his players.[98][99] He was replaced byKevin Betsy.[100] After a disastrous start to the2022–23 league season, Betsy left the club on 9 October 2022 following a 3–0 defeat toGrimsby Town which left the club bottom of the league.[101] The reign of the next manager was even shorter;Matthew Etherington resigned in December 2022 after just 34 days in charge.[102] Amid whatThe Guardian called "reckless leadership" and a "shambles", caretaker managerDarren Byfield was joined in the dugout at the 3–1 defeat toStevenage by co-chairman Preston Johnson,[103] who was ridiculed online by Stevenage staff for his lack of understanding of substitution rules. After Crawley fans requested a meeting with the owners, Johnson delayed, saying the club needed to get to "the bottom of sensitive legal issues".[104]Scott Lindsey was appointed as the club's new manager on 11 January 2023.[105] A vital 2–0 win at direct rivalsHartlepool United all but secured survival,[106] confirmed the following week after a 0–0 draw at home toWalsall in the penultimate match of the season.[107] The following campaign saw Crawley Town finish 7th, reaching the play-offs for the first time,[108] where they thrashedMK Dons 8–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals, an EFL record.[109]
In their first visit toWembley, Crawley Town defeatedCrewe Alexandra 2−0 in theLeague Two play-off final and were promoted to League One.[110] On 30 May 2024, Preston Johnson announced he was standing down as co-chairman but would remain a co-owner.[111] In the following transfer window 8 out of the 11 starters from the play-off final would depart the club. On 25 September, Lindsey joinedMK Dons as manager,[112] and was replaced byRob Elliot,[113] but after Elliot was sacked in March 2025 with the club 12 points from safety,[114] Lindsey was re-appointed as manager on a contract until 2028.[115] Crawley Town were relegated from League One on 29 April 2025 after finishing in 21st place.[116]
On 1 August 2025, a new investor syndicate led by Raphael Khalili acquired full ownership of the club. While the investors in this syndicate were prior investors in the WAGMI United syndicate they represent a new smaller and united group which includes US Fintech VC investor Ryan Gilbert.[117]
Crawley Town FC spent 48 years at their Town Mead home until the land was sold to developers in 1997. The club then moved to theBroadfield Stadium, about two miles across town. The stadium has a capacity of 5,996 people, and is owned byCrawley Borough Council.
In January 2012 the application for the new 2,000-seater East Stand and facilities including new turnstiles andPremier League standard floodlights was accepted byCrawley Borough Council.[118] The upgrade was required to meet the league rules which require a minimum 5,000 capacity stadium. After just one week of construction, the new East Stand was completed on 2 April 2012, bringing the total capacity of the Broadfield Stadium to 5,500. Upon completion, Crawley's first game with the new stand was against League Two side Crewe Alexandra on 6 April. The match ended in a 1–1 draw, with a new record crowd of 4,723, the previous best being 4,522.[119][120]
The record attendance reached 5,880 on 5 January 2013 when Crawley Town hosted Reading in the FA Cup.[121]
Between 2013 and 2018, the stadium was called The Checkatrade.com Stadium as part of a sponsorship deal with the online trades comparison companyCheckatrade.[122]
Crawley Town supporters viewAFC Wimbledon as their biggest rivals, according to a 2012 survey, with Swindon Town seen as their second[123] The AFC Wimbledon rivalry is primarily due to their reasonably close geographical proximity. As of April 2024, the sides have played each other 17 times since 2009; both teams have won seven games each, with three draws.[124]
Also due to close proximity, a rivalry with South London sideSutton United has become the club's most recent, following crowd trouble after a tie in October 2021 which saw a late Sutton goal win the game. The teams last met in April 2024, with play-off chasing Crawley scoring a 90th minute equaliser to all but confirm Sutton’s relegation to the National League.[citation needed]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Scott Lindsey |
| Assistant Manager | Neil Smith |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Kris Dixon |
| Analyst | Jake Fearney |
| Head of Performance | Ricky McFarlane |
| Physio | Tom Dudeney |
| Kit Manager | Alan Denman |
| Name | From | To | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Maggs | 1978 | 1990 | [126] |
| Brian Sparrow | 1990 | 1992 | [126] |
| Steve Wicks | 1992 | 1993 | [126] |
| Ted Shepherd | 1993 | 1995 | [126] |
| Colin Pates | 1995 | 1996 | [126] |
| Billy Smith | 1997 | 1999 | [126] |
| Cliff Cant | 1999 | 2000 | [126] |
| Billy Smith | 2000 | 2003 | [126] |
| Francis Vines | 2003 | 2005 | [126] |
| John Hollins | 2005 | 2006 | [126] |
| David Woozley, Ben Judge andJohn Yems(joint caretaker) | 2006 | 2007 | [126] |
| Steve Evans | 28 May 2007 | 9 April 2012 | [127][62] |
| Craig Brewster(caretaker) | 9 April 2012 | 16 May 2012 | [63][65] |
| Sean O'Driscoll | 16 May 2012 | 19 July 2012 | [65][66] |
| Richie Barker | 7 August 2012 | 27 November 2013 | [67][69] |
| John Gregory | 3 December 2013 | 27 December 2014 | [70][128] |
| Dean Saunders(caretaker) | 27 December 2014 | 13 May 2015 | [128][129] |
| Mark Yates | 19 May 2015 | 25 April 2016 | [73][78] |
| Dermot Drummy | 27 April 2016 | 4 May 2017 | [79][81] |
| Harry Kewell | 23 May 2017 | 31 August 2018 | [83][85] |
| Gabriele Cioffi | 7 September 2018 | 2 December 2019 | [86][89] |
| John Yems | 5 December 2019 | 23 April 2022[a] | [90] |
| Lewis Young(caretaker) | 23 April 2022 | 6 June 2022 | [132][133] |
| Kevin Betsy | 6 June 2022 | 9 October 2022 | [133][101] |
| Lewis Young(caretaker) | 9 October 2022 | 27 November 2022 | [101][134] |
| Matthew Etherington | 27 November 2022 | 29 December 2022 | [134][102] |
| Darren Byfield(caretaker) | 30 December 2022 | 11 January 2023 | [135] |
| Scott Lindsey | 11 January 2023 | 25 September 2024 | [105][112] |
| Ben Gladwin(caretaker) | 26 September 2024 | 1 October 2024 | [136][113] |
| Rob Elliot | 1 October 2024 | 19 March 2025 | [113][114] |
| Scott Lindsey | 21 March 2025 | present | [115] |
League
Cup
