The club contests numerous local rivalries, most notably with Rochdale, Bolton Wanderers and Huddersfield Town, the latter of which is known as the Roses Derby.

In spite of reaching a more respectable 6th place under his successor Billy Wooton in 1949, it wasn't until the appointment of George Hardwick as player-manager in November 1950 that the club found any real form.

Home gates stayed high, with an amazing 33,450 watching a 1–0 win over local rivals Stockport County in March 1952, after a January game in the snow had established a new club scoring record when Chester were beaten 11–2.

Ken Bates entered the picture at Oldham Athletic in the early 1960s (where he was chairman for 5 years), and along with the appointment of manager Jack Rowley, the club's fortunes turned for the better.

Royle's Latics reached Wembley Stadium in the 1990 Football League Cup final versus Nottingham Forest, where they lost 1–0.

In 1994 they were less than a minute away from winning 1–0 in extra time when a Mark Hughes equaliser for Manchester United saw the game at Wembley Stadium end in a 1–1 draw, and Oldham were beaten 4–1 in the replay at Maine Road.

[10] Oldham failed to win any of their seven remaining league games following the semi-final and were relegated on the final day of the season after a 1–1 draw at Norwich City.

Veteran striker Andy Ritchie took over as player-manager, but he too failed to mount a promotion challenge and was sacked in October 2001 to be succeeded by Mick Wadsworth.

[citation needed] In 2001, Oxford-based businessman Chris Moore purchased Oldham Athletic, vowing to take the club back to Premier League football within five years.

Wadsworth quit as manager in the summer of 2002 to make way for Iain Dowie, who transformed Oldham's fortunes on the pitch as they made their first serious challenge for promotion in Division Two.

[11] After being offered the job on a permanent basis,[12] Royle rejected the proposal and announced that he would be leaving the club after the final game of the season.

The move faced a significant public backlash, including from politicians, while a petition against the signing gained 60,000 signatures and Verlin Rainwater Solutions withdrew club sponsorship.

[20] In January 2018, Moroccan football agent Abdallah Lemsagam agreed a deal with the club's majority shareholder Corney, ending his 14-year association with Oldham.

In the two years prior to the Lemsagam deal, Oldham had faced a number of winding-up orders for non-payment of its tax bills, and saw its ground raided by HMRC in November 2017.

[26] One-time Watford owner Laurence Bassini was reported to be interested in buying the club,[27] but this was labelled as "false" during the 6 March hearing.

[26] Former Australia international Harry Kewell took over as Oldham manager in August,[28] at the start of the 2020–21 season and recorded 11 wins, six draws and 15 defeats before he was sacked by the club in March 2021.

Keith Curle stepped in as temporary head coach, and made the move permanent in May 2021,[30] but his efforts to build a stronger squad were hampered by an EFL transfer embargo,[31] COVID-19 illness,[32] and fans protests against the club's owner.

In December 2021 Lemsagam announced he was willing to sell the club amid accusations of late payment of salaries, threats of player strikes, and concerns about administration.

With two games still to play, Oldham were relegated from the English Football League following a 2–1 home defeat by Salford City on 23 April, a match interrupted by an on-pitch protest by fans against the club's owner.

[37] On 30 June 2022, after Lemsagam and the Boundary Park owner agreed to a sale, it was reported Oldham Athletic could be sold within the next month to an unnamed local business.

Latics originally started out playing in red and white hooped shirts with blue shorts, bearing strong similarities to the Oldham Rugby League Club colours.

The badge contains the traditional blue and white colours, however, there is no longer any red visible; there is still an image of an owl, yet it remains on top of a football.

Table of kit suppliers and shirt sponsors appear below:[46] After playing at what was originally called Athletic Ground, Boundary Park was opened for Oldham's first football club—Oldham County F.C.

On 5 September 2008, Simon Blitz announced on World Soccer Daily podcast that due to the economic problems in England, the development of the stadium was placed on hold temporarily.

[53] The newly named Joe Royle Stand partially opened against Sheffield United on 17 October 2015, with maximum capacity operation and corporate facilities in use on 26 December 2015 vs. Doncaster Rovers.

Notable Oldham Athletic fans include comedy duo Cannon and Ball,[54] professor and former musician Brian Cox,[55] ex-Manchester United footballer Paul Scholes,[56] ex-Leeds Rhinos and England rugby captain Kevin Sinfield, The Courteeners rhythm guitarist Danny Moores,[57] glamour model Michelle Marsh,[58] Hollyoaks actor Alex Carter and comedian Eric Sykes.

[citation needed] Boundary Park is less than 10 miles (16 km) from the nearby Football League stadiums of Rochdale, Manchester City, Salford City and Manchester United, with the stadiums of Stockport County, Huddersfield Town, Burnley, Bolton Wanderers, Accrington Stanley and Blackburn Rovers all within a 20-mile (32 km) radius.

Traditional local rivals over the years include Bolton Wanderers,[59][60] Bury,[61] Huddersfield Town,[62][63] Rochdale[64][65] and Stockport County,[66] although many of these clubs are no longer a regular opponent.

[citation needed] A survey conducted in August 2019 by GiveMeSport.com revealed that Latics fans consider Rochdale to be the club's main rival with 82% of votes, followed by Bolton Wanderers (74%), Huddersfield Town (67%), Blackburn Rovers (58%) and Manchester United (52%).

Meanwhile, at the end of World War 1, Ashworth emerged as manager of Liverpool, guiding them to the League Championship in 1921–22, after they had finished fourth in his previous two seasons.