A Game that Would Pay. A business history of professional football in Bradford

Notes:

Scholarly account of the football management industry in Bradford reaching through it broader observations for English football generally. Deals with the experiences of Bradford (Park Avenue) Association Football Club which was voted out of the Football League in 1970 and which closed soon after, and Bradford City Associates Football Club (1908) Ltd, particularly why neither club flourished on the field and financially relative to those of other cities and the reasons for this. Has sections: 'Before 1903 - the search for 'a game that would pay' - 'Bradford and the textile trade' / 'The growth of leisure' / 'The Northern Union Game' / 'The Association code' / 'The origins of Bradford City AFC' / 'Park Avenue as an elite rugby club'; 2] '1903-15 - early success' - 'The local economy' / 'The football business' / 'The rise of Bradford City' / 'Park Avenue turn to Association'; 3] 'The Great War' - 'Political pressures on professional sport' / 'City and Avenue in the Midland Section'; 4] 'Between the wars' - 'The decline begins'; 5] 'World War 11' - 'Wartime arrangements' / 'Improved finances at City and Avenue'; 6] '1946-58 - the postwar period' - 'Postwar prosperity' / 'Third division Bradford'; 7] '1958-1985 - the old order changes' - 'textiles in decline' / 'The Football League under strain'; 'Park Avenue - down and out' / 'Decline, recovery and tragedy at Valley Parade'. Appendices provide a] annual playing performance details; b] Annual financial results; c] Directors and managers details