They are traditionally the strongest team from the city, and played in the top flight of New Zealand football in both league and cup competitions.

The team was founded in 1929 as Wanganui East Athletic, but briefly changed their name to Wanganui FC between 1974 and 1976 before reverting to their original name before dropping the East to just become Wanganui Athletic, changing to Whanganui Athletic when their home city was officially re-named.

Athletic played in the 1993, 1994, and 1995 regional superclub championships, reaching the national league stage in 1993, where they finished seventh.

In 2009 the team entered a partnership with local rivals Wanganui City to form a top-level team, Wanganui United, with both clubs feeding the squad.

The idea was short-lived; after the 2010 season Wanganui United disbanded, with the players released back to their respective clubs.