Workington Association Football Club

What Workington Association Football Club does

Workington Association Football Club (Workington AFC, 'the Reds') is a semi-professional football club based in Workington, Cumbria, England, competing in the Northern Premier League Premier Division at Step 3 of the English football pyramid. Founded in 1937, the club played at Borough Park for 89 years before departing in April 2026 and entering a groundshare with Workington Town RLFC at the Fibrus Community Stadium (Derwent Park), with a longer-term stadium replacement planned under the Cumberland Sports Village project. The club operates a first team, an U23 development squad, an U18 youth team, and a community-focused affiliate (Reds in the Community CIC) that runs grassroots coaching and the Ability Counts disability football programme.

The club's revenue model combines matchday ticketing (via Fanbase App and turnstiles), commercial sponsorship packages (main sponsors, matchday sponsors, and player/staff sponsorships from £250), merchandise sales through the Hope and Glory Sportswear online store, and matchday hospitality (e.g., the Tom Mitchell Lounge at £29 per person). Named commercial sponsors are small, local Cumbrian businesses — MPL Motor Factors, Peter Tyson, Haven Tyres, and Phillip Carruthers — indicating a regionally concentrated but locally embedded sponsorship base. Digitally, the club operates an official Wix-hosted website (workingtonafc.com) with news, fixtures, a live scoreboard, and league tables, plus a YouTube channel 'Reds TV' for match highlights and accompanying profiles on Instagram, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.

Governance is led by Chairman Phil Norman, with first-team management held by Billy Barr, who was appointed in November and steered the team from nine points to NPL Premier Division survival (18th place, 43 points). The club reported four youth titles in a single 2025-26 season (U12, U16, U18 JPL West, U23 Lancashire League) and headline attendances of 2,387 at the Borough Park farewell against Leek Town and 1,357 at the inaugural Fibrus Community Stadium fixture against Carlisle United. The Reds population as a whole is small (11–50 employees), privately held, and dependent on local matchday, sponsorship, and community funding rather than external investment.

Name

Workington Association Football Club

Legal name

Workington Association Football Club

Website

https://www.workingtonafc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1921

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Workington AFC is a semi-professional football club in West Cumbria competing in the Northern Premier League Premier Division (Step 3), serving local supporters, businesses, and youth players through matchday, sponsorship, and community programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Workington

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Matchday Revenue: Revenue from ticket sales for home matches at Fibrus Community Stadium, including general admission and hospitality packages. Pre-season friendlies against clubs like Carlisle United also generate income.
2. Sponsorship: Local business sponsors including main sponsors, matchday sponsors, player sponsorships (from £250), and staff sponsorships. Sponsors include MPL Motor Factors, Peter Tyson, Haven Tyres, and Phillip Carruthers.
3. Merchandise: Online store through Hope and Glory Sportswear for club merchandise including kits and accessories.
4. Hospitality: Matchday hospitality packages including Tom Mitchell Lounge with pre-match meal, meet the manager session, and half-time refreshments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Workington AFC is a semi-professional football club competing in the Northern Premier League Premier Division, fielding a first team plus U23 and U18 squads. It sells matchday experiences (general admission tickets and hospitality packages at £29 per person), commercial sponsorship packages to local businesses (player/staff sponsorships from £250 per season), club merchandise through an online store, and community coaching programmes via its Reds in the Community CIC.

Product overview

Workington AFC operates as a football club competing in the Northern Premier League, offering multiple team levels (Men's First Team, U23 Development, U18). The club's primary digital offering is its official website, which serves as a hub for match centre features including live scoreboards, league tables, and fixture tracking. Additional services include Reds TV (YouTube channel), ticketing via Fanbase Club, commercial sponsorship packages, and community engagement through the Reds in the Community programme. Merchandise is available through the H&G Official Store.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,387 attendance at final Borough Park match
• +3 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• MPL Motor FactorsminorOthersLocal automotive parts supplier sponsoring Workington AFC, logo displayed on official website as one of the club's sponsors. Partnership provides brand visibility on club's digital platforms and matchday presence.
• Peter TysonminorOthersLocal business sponsor displayed on club website. Partnership offers marketing exposure through association with the football club and its supporter base in West Cumbria.
• Haven TyresminorOthersLocal tyre supplier sponsoring the club with advertising logo placement on official website and matchday materials. Provides financial support in exchange for brand visibility.
• Phillip CarruthersminorOthersLocal business/individual sponsor featuring logo on club website. Partnership contributes to club funding while gaining local brand recognition through football community engagement.
• Workington Town RLFCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGroundshare partnership with rugby league club at Fibrus Community Stadium (Derwent Park). Both clubs share facilities enabling football club to maintain professional operations during transition period after Borough Park demolition. Collaborative arrangement supporting mutual community sports objectives.
• Cumberland Sports VillagecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development project for new sports facilities in Workington. Plans approved and underway, marking key milestone for club's future stadium plans. Partnership involves new facility development to replace Borough Park.
• British Polio AssociationminorOthersCharity partnership through annual Shaun Hocking Memorial Trophy fixture against Whitehaven AFC. Match raises funds for British Polio Association with £537 raised at 2026 event. Supports community charitable causes through football.
• Fanbase AppcoreTechnology or IntegrationDigital ticketing and membership platform provider used by the club for ticket sales, membership management, and commercial transactions. Technology integration enabling modern supporter engagement and payment processing.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Marine FC: Marine FC competes in the Northern Premier League Premier Division (Step 3) and is a comparable semi-professional English football club with a similar fan-owned/community orientation and Northern England catchment.
• Stafford Rangers: Long-established NPL Premier Division side at Step 3 of the English football pyramid, comparable in scale, revenue mix, and geographic profile to Workington AFC.
• Lancaster City: Lancashire-based NPL Premier Division club (Step 3) competing in the same division as Workington AFC's U23 side and drawing from a similar small-city support base.
• Matlock Town: Derbyshire-based NPL Premier Division club at Step 3 with a small-town catchment and semi-professional operations analogous to Workington AFC.
• Nantwich Town: NPL Premier Division (Step 3) club in Cheshire with a similar small-town supporter base, semi-professional scale, and community-driven model.
• FC United of Manchester: Fan-owned semi-professional English football club built on community ownership and grassroots engagement — closely comparable to Workington AFC's Reds CIC-driven structure and Cumbrian community focus.
• Whitby Town: NPL Premier Division (Step 3) club in North Yorkshire with a small coastal-town catchment and semi-professional operating model similar to Workington AFC.
• Scarborough Athletic: NPL Premier Division (Step 3) club in a seaside community, with comparable matchday/stadium economics and a recent phoenix-club history akin to Workington's Borough Park transition.
• Hyde United: Step 3/4 Northern Premier League club in Greater Manchester with a similar scale of operations, semi-professional squad, and small-town identity to Workington AFC.
• Witton Albion: NPL Premier Division (Step 3) club in Northwich, Cheshire — a long-established semi-professional outfit with a comparable supporter base and community orientation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/workingtonAFC
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCwB5JIq4mOIT8mqI5H9EInA
• Facebookfacebook.com/WorkingtonRedsAFC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/workington-afc
• Instagraminstagram.com/workington_afc_official

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Workington Association Football Club