Northampton are nicknamed the Cobblers, a reference to the town's historical shoe-making industry, and the team traditionally plays in claret and white kits.

Led by player-manager Herbert Chapman the club were champions of the Southern League in 1908–09 and played against Newcastle United in the Charity Shield match, losing 2–0 at The Oval.

1923–24 started with the club raising £5,000 to build a stand with a players' tunnel underneath and also improved terracing in the Hotel End.

[2] The source of the fire was thought to be in the away dressing room; the Cobblers had earlier entertained AFC Bournemouth reserves.

In 1932–33, the club created history when brothers Fred and Albert Dawes both scored in an 8–0 win over Newport County.

In the three seasons prior to the breakout of World War II, the Cobblers finished seventh, ninth and 17th respectively in Division Three (South).

In the final match prior to the war, they travelled to Dean Court and lost 10–0, the club's record league defeat.

During their top-flight season they earned a double against Aston Villa and victories at home over clubs including Leeds, Newcastle, West Ham, and Blackburn, the latter being the only team Northampton would finish above in the table.

Six of the goals conceded were scored by George Best, who received the match ball (signed by Northampton players) as a reward for his performance.

Important players such as Trevor Morley and Eddie McGoldrick were sold and the team fell back down to Division Four in the 1989–90 season.

These events sparked the formation of the Northampton Town Supporters' trust, which has a shareholding in the club and a representative on the board of directors.

[6] After two more seasons, in the club's centenary season 1996–97, Atkins lead the Cobblers to Wembley for the first time in 100 years, where they beat Swansea City 1–0 in the Third Division play-off final, John Frain scoring the winning goal from a twice-taken free kick deep into injury time.

Ian Atkins left the club in October following a poor start to the season; his assistant, Kevin Wilson and coach Kevan Broadhurst took joint charge for the rest of the month.

It was required after the collapse of ITV Digital and much-publicised takeover attempts by John Fashanu[12] and Giovanni Di Stefano[13] had failed and left the club with huge debts.

Martin Wilkinson, the new manager lasted little longer, being dismissed in October 2003 in favour of former Scotland and Tottenham Hotspur defender Colin Calderwood.

[14] Calderwood led Northampton to the play-offs in his first season, where they were knocked out in the semi-finals by Mansfield Town after a penalty shoot-out.

Following this, the manager made substantial changes to the squad, bringing in experienced players such as Ian Taylor and Eoin Jess, and they enjoyed a successful 2005–06 league season.

On 30 May 2006, Northampton announced that Calderwood was leaving to join Nottingham Forest as their new manager,[15] and he was replaced by John Gorman on 5 June.

On 20 December, Gorman resigned due to "personal issues" with the side 18th in the table, with Ian Sampson and Jim Barron briefly taking care of first team affairs.

[18] Ian Sampson was sacked as manager on 2 March 2011 after a poor run of form saw the Cobblers fail to win in eight games and sit in a disappointing 16th position in League Two.

Sampson's sacking brought to an end a 17-year association with Northampton, and his commitment to the club has guaranteed his status as a legend in fans' hearts.

[28] A draw at Exeter combined with Oxford United's defeat at home to Luton Town meant that they clinched the League Two championship a week later on 16 April.

On 4 September 2017, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink was appointed as manager on a three-year deal, replacing Justin Edinburgh who had been sacked after four losses from the start of the season.

[34] On 29 June 2020, the club were promoted to League One after beating Exeter City 4–0 in the play-off final, despite a delay in the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

[35] This was Northampton's fourth EFL play-off final and it ended in victory, 23 seasons after their only other Wembley win for promotion.

[38] In the 2021–22 season Northampton finished fourth, narrowly missing out on automatic promotion on the final day to Bristol Rovers.

Previous sponsors have included Chronicle & Echo (1985–86 and 1994–95), TNT (1986–88), Costain Homes (1988–91), Van Aid (1991–92), Carpet Supacentre (1992–94), Lotto (1995–97), EBS Mobile Phones (1997–98), Nationwide (1998–2003), Jackson Grundy (2007–13), Red Hot Buffet (2011–12), Gala Casinos (2012–13), and Opus Energy (2015–18)Northampton moved to the county ground in 1897,[42] sharing it with Northamptonshire County Cricket Club from 1905.

In 1965–66, the only time that Northampton Town were in the top flight of English football, the county ground saw its highest attendance 24,523 against Fulham on 23 April 1966.

[59] Jack English is the club's top goalscorer with 143 goals in competitive matches between 1947 and 1959, having surpassed Teddy Bowen's total of 120.

Bowen's record had stood since September 1931, when he overtook the total of 110 goals set by striker William Lockett in 1930.