Hull City Association Football Club are an English football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, founded in 1904. In 2007–08 they achieved promotion to the top flight of English football for the first time in their history, by winning the Championship play-off final at Wembley Stadium. They finished the 2008–09 season 17th in the Premier League table, successfully avoiding relegation by one point. The previous highest position Hull City had finished in the English Football League was third in the old second division in 1909–10, which they matched in 2007–08 when they gained promotion. Their greatest achievement in cup competitions came in 1930, when the team reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
The club play their home games at the KC Stadium in Hull. They previously played at Boothferry Park, but moved to their current home in 2002, with Boothferry Park set for demolition. They traditionally play in black and amber, often with a striped shirt design, hence their nickname The Tigers. The club's mascot is Roary the Tiger.
Hull City Association Football Club was founded in June 1904. For some years prior to this, attempts were made to found a football club, but this proved difficult in a city then dominated by respectable rugby league teams such as Hull FC and Hull KR and their dedicated fans.[2]
Hull City's first season as a professional football club consisted only of friendly matches, as due to the time of founding, Hull were unable to apply for membership to The Football League for the 1904–05 season.[3] These early matches were played at The Boulevard, the old home of rugby league side Hull FC.[4] On 1 September 1904, Hull's debut match took place against Notts County; with 6000 in attendance at The Boulevard, Hull notched up an impressive start, holding the more experienced County to a 2–2 draw.
Hull's first competitive football game was in the FA Cup, but they were eliminated, after a replay, in the preliminary round against Stockton, the score was 7–4 on aggregate. After disputes with landlords at The Boulevard, Hull City moved to Anlaby Road Cricket Ground.[2] After having played 44 friendly fixtures the previous season, Hull City were finally entered into the Football League Second Division for the 1905–06 season.[5] Other teams competing in the league that season included the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea, as well as Yorkshire rivals Leeds City, Bradford City and Barnsley. Hull faced Barnsley in their first game, a fixture which Hull won 4–1.[6] Eventually, Hull would finish the season in fifth place.[5]
The following season a new ground was built for Hull City across the road from the cricket ground. Still under the managership of Ambrose Langley, Hull continued to finish consistently in the top half of the table. They came agonisingly close to promotion in the 1909–10 season, recording what would be their highest ever finish in their history. Hull finished third, level on points with second placed Oldham Athletic, missing promotion on goal average by the slim margin of 0.29 of a goal.[5]
The club's greatest achievement in cup competitions was in 1930, when they reached the FA Cup semi-final.[7] The cup run saw Hull knocking out the eventual Champions of the Second and Third Division; Blackpool and Plymouth Argyle respectively. They then knocked out Manchester City, to meet Newcastle United in the FA Cup quarter finals. The first leg at St James' Park finished as a 1–1 draw, but in the replay Hull beat Newcastle 1–0. The semi-final match against Arsenal took place at Elland Road in Leeds, the game ended 2–2, and was taken to a replay. Arsenal knocked Hull out at Aston Villa's home ground, the game ending 1–0.[5]
In the 1948–49 season, managed by former England international Raich Carter, Hull won the Third Division (North),[8] and their newly built Boothferry Park ground saw a crowd approaching 50,000 for the Christmas Day game against Rotherham United, and exceeded by that for the FA Cup 6th round tie with Manchester United; the attendance of 55,019 still remains a record today.[9]
'Yo-yoing' between the second and third tiers of English football, Hull City had promotion seasons from the Third to the Second Division again in 1959 and 1966, winning the Third Division in the latter season.[10][11] Hull became the first team in the world to go out of a cup competition on penalties, which came against Manchester United in the semi-final of the Watney Mann Invitation Cup on 1 August 1970.[12] By the early 1980s, Hull City were down in the Fourth Division, and financial collapse lead to receivership.
The low ebb saw the arrival of unlikely looking saviours in the form of a chairman (Don Robinson) and manager (Colin Appleton) from the footballing outpost of Scarborough F.C. Promotion to Division Three followed in 1983, with a young team featuring the likes of future England international Brian Marwood, future England manager Steve McClaren, fearsome centre-forward Billy Whitehurst, and the prolific goal-scorer Les Mutrie. When Hull City missed out on promotion by one goal the following season, Appleton left to manage Swansea City.
Hull City, along with Grimsby Town were the only two professional teams which had official permission to play league football on Christmas Day because of the demands of the fish trade. That tradition has now disappeared following the dramatic reduction of their trawler fleets in recent years.[13]
Hull reached the Second Division in 1986 under player-manager Brian Horton. They defied the odds to stay there for the next five years before finally going down in 1991, by which time the club's manager was Terry Dolan. Hull finished 14th in the Third Division in the 1991–92 season,[14] meaning that they would be competing in the new Football League Division Two the following season. In their first season in the rebranded division, Hull narrowly avoided another relegation, but the board kept faith in Dolan and over the next two seasons they achieved secure mid table finishes. Financial difficulties hampered City's progress, as key players such as Dean Windass and Andy Payton had to be sold to fend off winding-up orders.[15] Terrible form in the 1995–96 season condemned Hull to relegation to Division Three.[4][16]
In 1997 the club was purchased by former tennis player David Lloyd, who sacked Dolan as manager and replaced him with Mark Hateley after Hull could only finish in 17th place in the table.[17][18] Hull's league form was steadily deteriorating to the point that relegation to the Conference was looking a real possibility. Lloyd sold the club in November 1998 to a South Yorkshire based consortium, but retained ownership of Boothferry Park.[17] Hateley departed in November 1998, with the club anchored to the foot of the table. He was replaced by 34-year-old veteran player Warren Joyce, who steered the club to safety with games to spare. Hull City fans refer to this season as "The Great Escape".[19] After this feat, Joyce was perhaps unlucky to be replaced in April 2000 by the experienced Brian Little.[4]
Little breathed new life into Hull and managed to get good results out of the players, despite briefly being locked out of Boothferry Park by the bailiffs and with liquidation looking a real possibility.[15] Hull qualified for the Division Three playoffs in the 2000–01 season, losing in the semi-finals. A boardroom takeover by former Leeds United commercial director Adam Pearson had eased the club's precarious financial situation and all fears of closure were banished.[4]
The new chairman ploughed funds into the club, allowing Little to rebuild the team. Hull occupied the Division Three promotion and playoff places for much of the 2001–02 season, but Little departed two months before the end of the season and Hull slipped to 11th under his successor Jan Mølby.[4]
Hull began the 2002–03 season with a terrible start, which saw relegation look more likely than promotion, and Mølby was sacked in October as Hull languished fifth from bottom in the league. Peter Taylor was named as Hull's new manager and in December 2002, just two months his appointment, Hull relocated to the impressive new 25,400-seater Kingston Communications Stadium after 56 years at Boothferry Park.[4]. At the end of the season Hull finished 13th.
The two seasons which followed the opening of the new stadium were hugely successful. Hull were Division Three runners-up in 2003–04 and League One runners-up in 2004–05. These back-to-back promotions took them into the Championship, the second tier of English football.[20][21] The 2005–06 season, the club's first back in the second tier, saw Hull finish in 18th place, a comfortable 10 points clear of relegation and their highest league finish for 16 years.[4][22]
However, Taylor left the club on 13 June 2006 to take up the manager's job at Crystal Palace.[4] Phil Parkinson was confirmed as his replacement on 29 June 2006,[23] but was sacked on 4 December 2006 with Hull in the relegation zone,[24] despite having spent over £2 million on players. Phil Brown took over as caretaker manager,[24] and took over permanently in January 2007, having taken Hull out of the relegation zone.[25] Brown brought veteran striker Dean Windass back to his hometown club on loan from Bradford City,[26] and his eight goals helped secure Hull's Championship status as they finished in 21st place.[27] At the end of the season, another familiar face, former manager Brian Horton, rejoined the club as Phil Brown's assistant.[28]
Adam Pearson sold the club to a consortium led by Paul Duffen in June 2007, stating that he "had taken the club as far as I could", and would have to relinquish control in order to attract "really significant finance into the club".[29] He resigned from the board on 31 July 2007, thus severing all ties with the club.[30]
Under Paul Duffen and manager Phil Brown Hull City improved greatly on their relegation battle of 2006–07 and qualified for the play-offs after finishing the season in third place. They beat Watford 6–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals and played Bristol City in the final on 24 May 2008, which Hull won 1–0 at Wembley Stadium, with Hull native Dean Windass scoring the winning goal.[31][32] Their ascent from the bottom division of the English football league to the top in just five seasons is the third fastest ever.[33]
Despite being one of the favourites for relegation, they began life in the Premier League in great form, beating Fulham 2–1 on the opening day in their first ever top flight fixture. With only one defeat in their opening nine games, Hull City found themselves (temporarily) joint top of the table, third on goal difference, following a 3–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion[34] - ten years previously they had been bottom of tier four of the league. Hull City's form never replicated the highs of the early autumn, winning only two more games over the remainder of the season.[35] Despite the drop in form and slow slide down the table, Hull City went into the final game of the season in 17th place and above the drop zone. They ultimately lost the game against Manchester United 0–1, however Newcastle United and Middlesbrough also lost their games against Aston Villa and West Ham respectively, thus securing a second Premier League season for Hull City.
On 10 June 2009, Hull City were officially announced as part of the Barclays Asia Trophy 2009.[36] In this 4-team tournament Hull City will be competing against two English sides, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United, as well local side Beijing Guoan, whom they will play in their semi-final.
Throughout the majority of the history of the club, Hull have worn black and amber shirts with black shorts. These black and amber colours are where Hull's nickname, The Tigers, originated from.[4] However, in the club's first match against Notts County in 1904, white shirts were worn, with black shorts and black socks. During their first season in the League, Hull wore black and amber striped shirts and black shorts, which they continued to wear until the Second World War with the exception of one season, in which they wore sky blue shirts.[37] Following the end of the Second World War, Hull spent another season wearing sky blue, but changed to plain amber shirts, which they wore until the early 1960s, when they swapped back to stripes.[38]
During the mid 1970s and early 1980s, the strip was constantly changing between the two versions of plain shirts and stripes. During the late 1980s, red was added to the kits but its duration went no further than this.[39] The early 1990s featured two 'tiger skin' designs, which have since featured in a number of 'worst ever football kit' articles. The 1998–99 season introduced a kit with cross-fading amber and white stripes; another experimentation which proved unpopular.[40] After the turn of the century, the club wore plain amber shirts until 2004, when the club celebrated its centenary by wearing a kit similar to the design of the one worn 100 years ago.[41]
Hull City did not wear a crest on their team shirt until 1947. This crest depicted a tiger's head in a yellow-shaded badge, which was worn up until 1955, when it was changed to just the tiger's head. This was worn for four years, when the shirt again featured no emblem. Then, in 1971, the club returned to showing the tiger's head on the shirt. This was used for four years, until the club initials 'HCAFC' were shown for five years. After this, a logo with the tiger's head with the clubs name underneath was used from 1980 until 1998. The next logo, which is currently used by the club, features the tiger's head in an amber shield which shows the clubs name, along with the club's nickname, The Tigers.[42]
Between 1904 and 1905, Hull City played their home games at The Boulevard.[43] This ground was used by Hull on a contract, where they would be allowed to use it when not used for Rugby League, costing £100 per annum.[44] Hull built their own ground, Anlaby Road, which was opened in 1906.[45] With the threat of the rerouting of the railway line through the Anlaby Road ground, the club was convinced it needed to secure its future by owning its own ground.[9] They negotiated the deal for land between Boothferry Road and North Road in 1929, which was financed by a £3,000 loan from The FA.[46]
During World War II, Anlaby Road was damaged by the Blitz, with repairs costing in the region of £1,000. The Cricket Club had served notice to quit at the same time and in 1943, the tenancy was officially ended.[45] Hull were forced to return to the Boulevard Ground from 1944 until 1945 due to the destruction of Anlaby Road by the German bombing, and the poor condition of the planned stadium at Boothferry Road.[44]
Hull decided to continue with the development of the stadium at Boothferry Road and plans were commissioned. The work did not commence until 1932 because of financial problems, after only the terracing was started and the pitch was laid out. Due to a proposal to build a multi-purpose sports stadium on the site, the plans were temporarily thrown into doubt. However, as a reasonable price was not offered for the site, Hull decided to continue with the plans and development restarted in 1939. The ground was opened under the name of Boothferry Park on 31 August 1946. The attendance of 55,019, which saw Manchester United F.C. play Hull at Boothferry Park in 1949, is the grounds record attendance.[9]
Hull City, along with one of the city's rugby league sides, Hull F.C., moved into the newly-built KC Stadium in 2002.[9] The KC Stadium was named 'Best Ground' at the 2006 Football League Awards.[47]
Andy Davidson holds the record for Hull City league appearances, having played 520 matches. George Maddison comes second, having played 430 matches.[48] Chris Chilton is the club's top goalscorer with 222 goals in all competitions. Chilton also holds the club record for goals scored in the League (193), FA Cup (16) and League Cup (10).[49]
The club's widest victory margin in the league was their 11–1 win against Carlisle United in Division Three in 1939. Their heaviest defeat in the league was 8–0 against Wolves in 1911.[50]
Hull City's record home attendance is 55,019, for a match against Manchester United on 26 February 1949 at Boothferry Park,[9] with their highest attendance at their current stadium, the KC Stadium, 24,945 on 24 May 2009, also against Manchester United.[51]
The highest transfer fee received for a Hull City player is £1.25 million, from Crystal Palace for Leon Cort in June 2006.[4] The highest transfer fee paid for a player is £5 million, for Jimmy Bullard from Fulham in January 2009.[52]
The club play their home games at the KC Stadium in Hull. They previously played at Boothferry Park, but moved to their current home in 2002, with Boothferry Park set for demolition. They traditionally play in black and amber, often with a striped shirt design, hence their nickname The Tigers. The club's mascot is Roary the Tiger.
Hull City Association Football Club was founded in June 1904. For some years prior to this, attempts were made to found a football club, but this proved difficult in a city then dominated by respectable rugby league teams such as Hull FC and Hull KR and their dedicated fans.[2]
Hull City's first season as a professional football club consisted only of friendly matches, as due to the time of founding, Hull were unable to apply for membership to The Football League for the 1904–05 season.[3] These early matches were played at The Boulevard, the old home of rugby league side Hull FC.[4] On 1 September 1904, Hull's debut match took place against Notts County; with 6000 in attendance at The Boulevard, Hull notched up an impressive start, holding the more experienced County to a 2–2 draw.
Hull's first competitive football game was in the FA Cup, but they were eliminated, after a replay, in the preliminary round against Stockton, the score was 7–4 on aggregate. After disputes with landlords at The Boulevard, Hull City moved to Anlaby Road Cricket Ground.[2] After having played 44 friendly fixtures the previous season, Hull City were finally entered into the Football League Second Division for the 1905–06 season.[5] Other teams competing in the league that season included the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea, as well as Yorkshire rivals Leeds City, Bradford City and Barnsley. Hull faced Barnsley in their first game, a fixture which Hull won 4–1.[6] Eventually, Hull would finish the season in fifth place.[5]
The following season a new ground was built for Hull City across the road from the cricket ground. Still under the managership of Ambrose Langley, Hull continued to finish consistently in the top half of the table. They came agonisingly close to promotion in the 1909–10 season, recording what would be their highest ever finish in their history. Hull finished third, level on points with second placed Oldham Athletic, missing promotion on goal average by the slim margin of 0.29 of a goal.[5]
The club's greatest achievement in cup competitions was in 1930, when they reached the FA Cup semi-final.[7] The cup run saw Hull knocking out the eventual Champions of the Second and Third Division; Blackpool and Plymouth Argyle respectively. They then knocked out Manchester City, to meet Newcastle United in the FA Cup quarter finals. The first leg at St James' Park finished as a 1–1 draw, but in the replay Hull beat Newcastle 1–0. The semi-final match against Arsenal took place at Elland Road in Leeds, the game ended 2–2, and was taken to a replay. Arsenal knocked Hull out at Aston Villa's home ground, the game ending 1–0.[5]
In the 1948–49 season, managed by former England international Raich Carter, Hull won the Third Division (North),[8] and their newly built Boothferry Park ground saw a crowd approaching 50,000 for the Christmas Day game against Rotherham United, and exceeded by that for the FA Cup 6th round tie with Manchester United; the attendance of 55,019 still remains a record today.[9]
'Yo-yoing' between the second and third tiers of English football, Hull City had promotion seasons from the Third to the Second Division again in 1959 and 1966, winning the Third Division in the latter season.[10][11] Hull became the first team in the world to go out of a cup competition on penalties, which came against Manchester United in the semi-final of the Watney Mann Invitation Cup on 1 August 1970.[12] By the early 1980s, Hull City were down in the Fourth Division, and financial collapse lead to receivership.
The low ebb saw the arrival of unlikely looking saviours in the form of a chairman (Don Robinson) and manager (Colin Appleton) from the footballing outpost of Scarborough F.C. Promotion to Division Three followed in 1983, with a young team featuring the likes of future England international Brian Marwood, future England manager Steve McClaren, fearsome centre-forward Billy Whitehurst, and the prolific goal-scorer Les Mutrie. When Hull City missed out on promotion by one goal the following season, Appleton left to manage Swansea City.
Hull City, along with Grimsby Town were the only two professional teams which had official permission to play league football on Christmas Day because of the demands of the fish trade. That tradition has now disappeared following the dramatic reduction of their trawler fleets in recent years.[13]
Hull reached the Second Division in 1986 under player-manager Brian Horton. They defied the odds to stay there for the next five years before finally going down in 1991, by which time the club's manager was Terry Dolan. Hull finished 14th in the Third Division in the 1991–92 season,[14] meaning that they would be competing in the new Football League Division Two the following season. In their first season in the rebranded division, Hull narrowly avoided another relegation, but the board kept faith in Dolan and over the next two seasons they achieved secure mid table finishes. Financial difficulties hampered City's progress, as key players such as Dean Windass and Andy Payton had to be sold to fend off winding-up orders.[15] Terrible form in the 1995–96 season condemned Hull to relegation to Division Three.[4][16]
In 1997 the club was purchased by former tennis player David Lloyd, who sacked Dolan as manager and replaced him with Mark Hateley after Hull could only finish in 17th place in the table.[17][18] Hull's league form was steadily deteriorating to the point that relegation to the Conference was looking a real possibility. Lloyd sold the club in November 1998 to a South Yorkshire based consortium, but retained ownership of Boothferry Park.[17] Hateley departed in November 1998, with the club anchored to the foot of the table. He was replaced by 34-year-old veteran player Warren Joyce, who steered the club to safety with games to spare. Hull City fans refer to this season as "The Great Escape".[19] After this feat, Joyce was perhaps unlucky to be replaced in April 2000 by the experienced Brian Little.[4]
Little breathed new life into Hull and managed to get good results out of the players, despite briefly being locked out of Boothferry Park by the bailiffs and with liquidation looking a real possibility.[15] Hull qualified for the Division Three playoffs in the 2000–01 season, losing in the semi-finals. A boardroom takeover by former Leeds United commercial director Adam Pearson had eased the club's precarious financial situation and all fears of closure were banished.[4]
The new chairman ploughed funds into the club, allowing Little to rebuild the team. Hull occupied the Division Three promotion and playoff places for much of the 2001–02 season, but Little departed two months before the end of the season and Hull slipped to 11th under his successor Jan Mølby.[4]
Hull began the 2002–03 season with a terrible start, which saw relegation look more likely than promotion, and Mølby was sacked in October as Hull languished fifth from bottom in the league. Peter Taylor was named as Hull's new manager and in December 2002, just two months his appointment, Hull relocated to the impressive new 25,400-seater Kingston Communications Stadium after 56 years at Boothferry Park.[4]. At the end of the season Hull finished 13th.
The two seasons which followed the opening of the new stadium were hugely successful. Hull were Division Three runners-up in 2003–04 and League One runners-up in 2004–05. These back-to-back promotions took them into the Championship, the second tier of English football.[20][21] The 2005–06 season, the club's first back in the second tier, saw Hull finish in 18th place, a comfortable 10 points clear of relegation and their highest league finish for 16 years.[4][22]
However, Taylor left the club on 13 June 2006 to take up the manager's job at Crystal Palace.[4] Phil Parkinson was confirmed as his replacement on 29 June 2006,[23] but was sacked on 4 December 2006 with Hull in the relegation zone,[24] despite having spent over £2 million on players. Phil Brown took over as caretaker manager,[24] and took over permanently in January 2007, having taken Hull out of the relegation zone.[25] Brown brought veteran striker Dean Windass back to his hometown club on loan from Bradford City,[26] and his eight goals helped secure Hull's Championship status as they finished in 21st place.[27] At the end of the season, another familiar face, former manager Brian Horton, rejoined the club as Phil Brown's assistant.[28]
Adam Pearson sold the club to a consortium led by Paul Duffen in June 2007, stating that he "had taken the club as far as I could", and would have to relinquish control in order to attract "really significant finance into the club".[29] He resigned from the board on 31 July 2007, thus severing all ties with the club.[30]
Under Paul Duffen and manager Phil Brown Hull City improved greatly on their relegation battle of 2006–07 and qualified for the play-offs after finishing the season in third place. They beat Watford 6–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals and played Bristol City in the final on 24 May 2008, which Hull won 1–0 at Wembley Stadium, with Hull native Dean Windass scoring the winning goal.[31][32] Their ascent from the bottom division of the English football league to the top in just five seasons is the third fastest ever.[33]
Despite being one of the favourites for relegation, they began life in the Premier League in great form, beating Fulham 2–1 on the opening day in their first ever top flight fixture. With only one defeat in their opening nine games, Hull City found themselves (temporarily) joint top of the table, third on goal difference, following a 3–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion[34] - ten years previously they had been bottom of tier four of the league. Hull City's form never replicated the highs of the early autumn, winning only two more games over the remainder of the season.[35] Despite the drop in form and slow slide down the table, Hull City went into the final game of the season in 17th place and above the drop zone. They ultimately lost the game against Manchester United 0–1, however Newcastle United and Middlesbrough also lost their games against Aston Villa and West Ham respectively, thus securing a second Premier League season for Hull City.
On 10 June 2009, Hull City were officially announced as part of the Barclays Asia Trophy 2009.[36] In this 4-team tournament Hull City will be competing against two English sides, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United, as well local side Beijing Guoan, whom they will play in their semi-final.
Throughout the majority of the history of the club, Hull have worn black and amber shirts with black shorts. These black and amber colours are where Hull's nickname, The Tigers, originated from.[4] However, in the club's first match against Notts County in 1904, white shirts were worn, with black shorts and black socks. During their first season in the League, Hull wore black and amber striped shirts and black shorts, which they continued to wear until the Second World War with the exception of one season, in which they wore sky blue shirts.[37] Following the end of the Second World War, Hull spent another season wearing sky blue, but changed to plain amber shirts, which they wore until the early 1960s, when they swapped back to stripes.[38]
During the mid 1970s and early 1980s, the strip was constantly changing between the two versions of plain shirts and stripes. During the late 1980s, red was added to the kits but its duration went no further than this.[39] The early 1990s featured two 'tiger skin' designs, which have since featured in a number of 'worst ever football kit' articles. The 1998–99 season introduced a kit with cross-fading amber and white stripes; another experimentation which proved unpopular.[40] After the turn of the century, the club wore plain amber shirts until 2004, when the club celebrated its centenary by wearing a kit similar to the design of the one worn 100 years ago.[41]
Hull City did not wear a crest on their team shirt until 1947. This crest depicted a tiger's head in a yellow-shaded badge, which was worn up until 1955, when it was changed to just the tiger's head. This was worn for four years, when the shirt again featured no emblem. Then, in 1971, the club returned to showing the tiger's head on the shirt. This was used for four years, until the club initials 'HCAFC' were shown for five years. After this, a logo with the tiger's head with the clubs name underneath was used from 1980 until 1998. The next logo, which is currently used by the club, features the tiger's head in an amber shield which shows the clubs name, along with the club's nickname, The Tigers.[42]
Between 1904 and 1905, Hull City played their home games at The Boulevard.[43] This ground was used by Hull on a contract, where they would be allowed to use it when not used for Rugby League, costing £100 per annum.[44] Hull built their own ground, Anlaby Road, which was opened in 1906.[45] With the threat of the rerouting of the railway line through the Anlaby Road ground, the club was convinced it needed to secure its future by owning its own ground.[9] They negotiated the deal for land between Boothferry Road and North Road in 1929, which was financed by a £3,000 loan from The FA.[46]
During World War II, Anlaby Road was damaged by the Blitz, with repairs costing in the region of £1,000. The Cricket Club had served notice to quit at the same time and in 1943, the tenancy was officially ended.[45] Hull were forced to return to the Boulevard Ground from 1944 until 1945 due to the destruction of Anlaby Road by the German bombing, and the poor condition of the planned stadium at Boothferry Road.[44]
Hull decided to continue with the development of the stadium at Boothferry Road and plans were commissioned. The work did not commence until 1932 because of financial problems, after only the terracing was started and the pitch was laid out. Due to a proposal to build a multi-purpose sports stadium on the site, the plans were temporarily thrown into doubt. However, as a reasonable price was not offered for the site, Hull decided to continue with the plans and development restarted in 1939. The ground was opened under the name of Boothferry Park on 31 August 1946. The attendance of 55,019, which saw Manchester United F.C. play Hull at Boothferry Park in 1949, is the grounds record attendance.[9]
Hull City, along with one of the city's rugby league sides, Hull F.C., moved into the newly-built KC Stadium in 2002.[9] The KC Stadium was named 'Best Ground' at the 2006 Football League Awards.[47]
Andy Davidson holds the record for Hull City league appearances, having played 520 matches. George Maddison comes second, having played 430 matches.[48] Chris Chilton is the club's top goalscorer with 222 goals in all competitions. Chilton also holds the club record for goals scored in the League (193), FA Cup (16) and League Cup (10).[49]
The club's widest victory margin in the league was their 11–1 win against Carlisle United in Division Three in 1939. Their heaviest defeat in the league was 8–0 against Wolves in 1911.[50]
Hull City's record home attendance is 55,019, for a match against Manchester United on 26 February 1949 at Boothferry Park,[9] with their highest attendance at their current stadium, the KC Stadium, 24,945 on 24 May 2009, also against Manchester United.[51]
The highest transfer fee received for a Hull City player is £1.25 million, from Crystal Palace for Leon Cort in June 2006.[4] The highest transfer fee paid for a player is £5 million, for Jimmy Bullard from Fulham in January 2009.[52]
