Cambridge United

Not much, honestly. They were formed in 1912 but didn’t turn professional until 1949. They made the Football League in 1970 and hired an Oxford man (gasp) named Ron Atkinson as their manager. He led them to the Second Division (now called the Championship) in eight years and then left to manage West Brom, Manchester United, Atletico Madrid, and others.

They finished as high as eighth place in the second tier before bottoming out once again and spending four seasons in the Fourth Division. They made another run up the ladder in the early ’90s, making the quarterfinals of the FA Cup and League Cup in that decade and making the playoffs in 1992. Had they won that, they would have been founder members of the Premier League.

Instead, they plummeted again, actually going out of the Football League entirely in 2005. This led to financial problems, but in 2014 they beat Gateshead at Wembley to get back into the Football League. In 2021, they finished second for automatic promotion to League One, where they finished as high as 14th before dropping back down to League Two for this season.

What they are best known for is holding Manchester United to a 0-0 draw in a home FA Cup tie and then taking 6,600 fans to the replay at Old Trafford. They lost, 3-0, but are estimated to have earned £1 million from the contest.

2024-25 SEASON: 23rd in League One (relegated), 2nd Round FA Cup, 1st Round League Cup

2025–26 SEASON: League Two (relegated in 2025)

The biggest rival used to be Cambridge City, but United have left that non-league club behind. Now it’s Peterborough, an hour north. Lesser rivals are Northampton Town, Colchester United, and Luton Town. But not Oxford, which we think both clubs need to work out. Somebody pick a literary fight at least!

Cambridge United Women FC play in the Women’s National League, Division One South East–tier six of the pyramid. Their home games are at St Neots Town.

Nothing out of the ordinary, except they do the same “Yel-lows” that you hear at Oxford United. And yet they are not rivals!

The Abbey Stadium, especially since it’s in historic and beautiful Cambridge, sounds much nicer than it is. It is not, in other words, next to some glorious old stone abbey. It’s a couple of miles out from the town center, next to a shopping center. It holds 8,127, roughly half of which are seated. The club sold the ground during a difficult financial period in 2004, and they only bought it back in 2022. There are also vague plans to redevelop or replace it.

The away fans will be in the seated South Stand and the hometown rowdies on the North Terrace. If you want to be on the side, you can sit in the Main Stand or stand on the Habbin Terrace, behind which is a somewhat sad beer garden.

TOURS: No tours are available at this stadium.

GETTING THERE: Take Citibus 3 (St. Andrews Christ College) from the town center. It’s about a 20-minute trip from near the train station and costs £2.80.

PUBS: The club has a friendly little pub on the premises, and just down the main (Newmarket) road is a pub called The Wrestlers that, oddly, serves Thai food. Otherwise, hit one of many amazing pubs in town. The Tram Depot offers high-quality basic pub fare, but the real gems in town are the old places. For example, The Eagle is where Watson and Crick announced their discovery of DNA.

GRUB: Nothing special at the ground

AROUND TOWN: Start with a walking tour that includes college visits if they are open and a punting (pole boat) trip on the River Cam. After that, just wander around and get some lunch—perhaps at The Eagle, though it is generally mobbed—before heading out to the game. There is also a nice little market in town on Saturdays, which is when most games are.