History of Blackpool F.C. (1962–present)
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The history of Blackpool Football Club between 1962 and the present day covers the periods of relative decline after their successful first half of the 20th century.
- This is a history of Blackpool Football Club from 1962 to the present. For their history between 1887 and 1962, see History of Blackpool F.C. (1887–1962). For the club's season-by-season stats, see Blackpool F.C. seasons.
Blackpool spent the years between 1962 and 1967 in Division One, before being relegated to the second tier of English football for the first time since 1936–37. After three seasons in Division Two, the club returned to the top flight, but only for one season. In the decade between 1972 and 1982, Blackpool dropped down two more divisions, to Division Four, and in 1982–83 hit their lowest finishing point: 89th out of the total 92 League clubs.
In the years since Blackpool managed to climb into the upper reaches of the pyramid again. After five promotions and one relegation, the club reached the Premier League, the top tier of English football, in 2010–11; from 2013 to 2014 onwards, however, another decline occurred. As of the end of the 2014–15 season, the club had won just 15 league games out of the last 92 (or two full league seasons). This equates to 45 points out of a possible 276. They also failed to win in the first five league fixtures of the 2015–16 campaign, under new manager Neil McDonald.
Under Gary Bowyer's stewardship, Blackpool returned to the third tier at the end of the 2016–17 season. They remained there for four more seasons, before climbing into the second tier in 2020–21. Both of these promotions were again done via the play-offs — the club's sixth success in play-off finals in eight appearances.