Radcliffe FC was founded on 24th May 1949 (as Radcliffe Borough FC) at the Old Tower Inn in Radcliffe by Jack Pickford and a committee of seventeen, the fledgling club then became a member of the South East Lancashire Football League. After a short period in that division, the club joined the Manchester League before gaining access to the Lancashire Football Combination in 1963. In 1970, Radcliffe won the League Cup and finished third in the league. By the summer of 1971, the Boro was accepted into the Cheshire County League, which subsequently became the North West Counties League.

The first season at the level brought success again when Radcliffe secured the Second Division Championship in front of a record Stainton Park crowd of 1,468. After one season in the First Division, Radcliffe lifted the First Division Championship in 1985 and made the step up into the newly formed Northern Premier League First Division in 1987. After many years of consolidation in the league, and at times, fighting against relegation, the 1995/96 season saw an upturn in the club’s fortunes, both on and off the pitch. The club, for the first time in its history, reached the last 16 of the FA Trophy, narrowly losing to Football Conference side Gateshead by two goals to one.

Radcliffe achieved its highest honour, at the time, in the 1996/97 campaign, winning the Northern Premier League First Division title by two points ahead of local rivals Leigh RMI. The club’s stay in the ‘top flight’ lasted only one season, however. For the first time in its history, the Boro reached the First Round of the FA Cup in 2000, losing 4-1 to York City in a match played at Gigg Lane, the home of Bury, in front of a crowd of 2,495.

In the 2002/03 season, the Boro missed out on the championship by two points to Alfreton Town, and reached the Fourth Qualifying Round of the FA Cup, losing to Chester City in front of 1,138 at Stainton Park. Promotion was finally won thanks to the play-offs by beating North Ferriby United in the semi-final, and Chorley in the final, winning 4–2 via penalties on home soil after Chorley converted twice in the final ten minutes to take the game to extra time. Radcliffe’s Jody Banim wrote headlines that season by scoring 46 goals in an unbelievable campaign for the frontman.

By November in their new division, Boro were as high as sixth thanks to 22 goals from Jody Banim who set an English record by scoring in 14 consecutive games. The club sold Banim to Conference promotion chasers Shrewsbury Town for a record fee of £20,000 in December 2003, and without his goals, Radcliffe steadily declined down the table eventually finishing 19th and into the relegation play-offs beating Whitby Town on penalties 8–7 in the Quarter-Finals, before bowing out to Burscough in the Semi-Finals at home. In the 2004/05 season, the club finished 9th in the Northern Premier League and continued to be near the play-offs and solid mid-table finishes followed, but after four seasons, Radcliffe were relegated back to the First Division in 2007 where the club remained until 2019. Mid-table finishes and the occasional battle against relegation was the order of the next decade, after a previous 10 years of success and occasional cup runs.

In 2016, a new Chairman and Manager took the reins which signalled a new era for the club. Off-field investment was given to the ground, a new stand at the Pilkington Road end of the stadium, a covered turnstile block, TV Gantry, Boardroom, Club Shop, Sponsors Lounge and a new Social Club. Most notably, a new Press Box and Director’s Area in the main stand which was destroyed by a fire in December of that year, a devastating blow. The club changed its name in May 2017, officially dropping the ‘Borough’ and simply shortening it to ‘Boro’ which then became the club’s nickname, another significant step towards a fresh start for Radcliffe. The following October, Jon Macken was appointed at the helm with Frank Sinclair as his assistant, bringing positive results towards the end of 2017/18 season, helping the club survive. The future looked bright and the hard work and investment on and off the pitch paid off as the club was promoted via the play-offs back to the Northern Premier League in 2019, after a 2-1 victory in the final at the Neuven Stadium against Leek Town.

The 2023/24 season saw Radcliffe crowned Champions of the Northern Premier League Premier Division with local non-league legends Anthony Johnson and Bernard Morley in charge, earning promotion to the National League North for the first time in the club’s history. The Boro secured survival after finishing one place above the relegation zone after a challenging season on and off the pitch which saw the sudden death of Chairman Paul Hilton send a shockwave through the community, but the spirit of the club and its town came together to honour his legacy, and confirmed safety with two games to play.