The club was founded on 16 April 1912 as Anarch, but has had several names like Borac, Jug, HAŠK, Dalmatinac, and Arsenal since then.

During the Spanish Civil War, RNK Split organized an unsuccessful expedition of his volunteers for the fight on the side of the anti-fascist coalition against Francisco Franco's forces.

In the 2014–15 season, the club managed to reach the Europa League playoff round after defeating Mika, Hapoel Be'er Sheva and Chornomorets Odesa, but lost 1–0 on aggregate to Italian Serie A side Torino.

HRŠD stood for Hrvatsko radničko športsko društvo (Croatian Workingmen's Sports Society).

During SFR Yugoslavia RNK Split played in the top football division four times, but did not win a Championship or Cup title.