The club was formed in summer 1990, being the brainchild of David Brown, John Harrison, David Law, and Bill Whitten. Under the name North Trafford FC we shared Shawe View with Trafford Borough Rugby League Club. After initially being denied entrance, a late withdrawal resulted in the club being invited to join Division 2 of the Mid-Cheshire League for 1990/91 season. The first game at competitive level versus Macclesfield College was won 3-1 with the honours of scoring in our first ever game falling to Gerard Farrell, Andy Green and Anthony Jones. Jones finished the season as top scorer with 33 whilst Green followed him on 24. Under the Managership of Dave Law the club finished in second place, winning promotion to Division One. As a bonus the club obtained sole tenancy of Shawe View via a 30-year lease, and substantial ground improvements were undertaken.

1991/92 season saw progress continue on the field as 4th place in the Mid-Cheshire was achieved. Steve Espley top scored with 23 goals in all competitions, and the club achieved it's (so far) highest score in a competitive game winning a cup tie away v. Haslingden St Marys 10-0. At the end of the season, North Trafford FC were admitted to Division 2 of the North West Counties League.

In 1992/93 the club had another good season of progress, ending it in 7th place in the NWCL Division 2. Jock Russell scored 21 goals throughout the season including 4 in one game against Mossley in the Manchester Premier Cup. Steve Espley continued to score goals for the club with 16 this season.

1993/94 saw a magnificent second half of the season in which 20 out of 22 games were won, resulting in 2nd place and promotion to Division One of the NWCL. Additionally the club’s first trophy was won via a 3-1 victory over Maghull in the NWCL 2nd Division Trophy (The Lamot Pils Trophy). Colin Small hit 20 goals in the season, aided by Paul Wilson (17) and Garry Vaughan (16)

Moving up to the NWCL Division 1 was dependent on further ground improvements resulting in the erection of floodlights and the South Stand at Shawe View. For the 1994/95 season, the club adopted its present name Trafford FC and finished the season 4th in the North West Counties Division 1. We also reached two cup finals but sadly lost both – The Manchester FA Premier Cup (1-2 v Hyde United at Boundary Park) and the NWC League Cup (0-1 v Nantwich Town at Gigg Lane). Colin Small top scored again with 29 goals, attacking midfielder Garry Vaughan weighing in with 20.

1995/96 saw Trafford FC play an incredible 65 games throughout the season, including 23 cup ties - half a League season! It was another satisfying campaign with the club finishing 3rd in the NWCL Division 1 and reaching the last 16 of the FA Vase losing 0-1 away to the eventual winners, Brigg Town. Colin Small was again a goal threat - 20 in all competitions, but he was pipped by Malcolm Wagstaffe who scored 22.

1996/97 was undoubtedly our most successful season to that point, becoming North West Counties League Champions and thus gaining promotion to the Northern Premier League. We also reached the finals of the Manchester Premier Cup (losing on penalties to Glossop North End at Old Trafford) and the also NWC League Cup (losing 1-2 to Newcastle Town). Striker Mike Turner scored 40 goals; Goalkeeper Stuart Coburn played in every one of our 58 league & cup games while defender Jay McComb started all but 1. David Law, who had managed the club since its inception, was named NWCL Manager of the Year, and our 2nd Team also won the NWCL Reserve Division, Reserve league Cup, and the Manchester Amateur Cup.

1997/98 saw Trafford at the highest level they’d reached so far, playing in the Northern Premier League (then known as the Unibond League) 1st Division. The team had a topsy-turvey season but eventually finished a respectable 12th, and a further trophy was won when we defeated Lincoln United 3-1 in the NPL 1st Division Cup final, Garry Vaughan, Chris Patterson and Tom Murray scoring the goals. Striker Murray was joint top scorer with 12 goals throughout the season, shared with right back Chris Simms!

The 1998/99 season started with the appointment of Mark Molyneaux as assistant manager to David Law. “Lawman” stepped down in December 1998 after 8½ years at the helm during which time he’d led the club to three promotions (including 1 League Title), 2 cup wins (plus a further 4 finals) and a North West Counties League Manager of the Year award. “Molly” took over the reins in the December and guided us to a final place of 14th in the NPL 1st Division. Garry Vaughan was top scorer with 10 in all competitions closely followed by goalscoring right back Chris Simms with 9.

1999/2000 saw manager Mark Molyneaux along with his assistant Wayne Goodison guiding Trafford to victory in the NPL President’s Cup over Whitby Town. The 2-legged final produced a 2-1 win at Shawe View in the first leg, followed by a thrilling 3-4 defeat in Whitby. The 5-5 result meant the tie went to a penalty shoot-out which Trafford won 4-2. In the NPL Division 1 the club finished 18th in the table, 3 places and 15 points clear of the relegation zone. Garry Vaughan was again our top scorer this season with 18 goals in all competitions.

In 2000/01 a much improved Trafford finished the season with a thirteen-game unbeaten run, placing them 5th in the NPL 1st Division – at that time the highest ever league position in the club’s history. Darren Emmett was top scorer with 26 in all competitions

2001/02 saw Manager/Goalkeeper Mark Molyneaux leave Trafford to take over at fellow NPL First Division side Chorley. Trafford ultimately finished in 15th place in NPL1. Darren Emmett was again leading goalscorer with 15, closely followed by Peter Weston on 13. Joey Dunn was appointed as the club’s new manager.

2002/03 was a tough season for Trafford. The results didn’t come our way and at one point the team suffered 14 defeats in a row. At Christmas the club decided to change the manager and Joey Dunn was replaced by the vastly experienced Mike McKenzie who has won so many honours as a manager in the Northern Premier League. Sadly results still didn’t come and Trafford were relegated to the North West Counties League. With just 8 goals, Dave Collins was our top scorer in what was a difficult season for the club.

2003/04 By October Trafford were struggling in 19th position in the NWCL Division One, so the club decided to part-company with Mike McKenzie. In November 2003 Trafford appointed 28-year-old former Leigh R.M.I. Reserve Team Manager Danny Johnson as the new manager. Results started to improve and by the end of season Johnson’s entertaining young side had finished in 16th position with 50 points. Leading the Trafford goalscoring charts were Mike Turner who scored 11 from 25 appearances in the first half of the season, and Andy Lundy who joined the club in November and finished the season with 11 from 22.

2004/05 was a season of consolidation under Danny Johnson. Trafford didn’t have much joy in any of the cup competitions but finished in an improved 12th position in NWCL Division 1 on 56 points. Graham Vaughan scored 15 goals in the season having played in every single one of our 49 league and cup games. Meanwhile, the Reserve Team won their third County Cup in four seasons by winning the Manchester FA Trophy.

2005/06 saw Trafford get off to a flying start in the North West Counties League 1st Division and have a good run in the FA Vase getting through four rounds including qualifying. We also made it through 3 rounds of qualifying for the FA Cup. Sadly the good form could not be maintained throughout the season, and despite some good performances and encouraging results on occasions, the team finished in 14th position.

2006/07 saw Trafford’s best campaign for some time, finishing in 5th place in the NWCL Division One behind Salford City, Nantwich Town, Curzon Ashton and champions FC United. The season included a good run in the FA Cup where Danny Johnson’s team successfully negotiated two preliminary rounds then reached the 3rd qualifying round – just two games short of the 1st Round proper. In the NW Counties League, two Trafford players were amongst the top goalscorers (Glyn Barker in 6th place with 34 goals & Troy Hayder 16th with 20). The end-of-season run of 17 games unbeaten rounded off a marvellous campaign. At the end of the season however, manager Danny Johnson decided to move up to the Northern Premier League with Ashton United. Trafford player Ged Kielty was to became our new Player-Manager, assisted by senior players Lee Southwood & Tony Coyne.

2007/08 With the new look management team in place, Trafford had one of their most successful campaigns winning the North West Counties (Vodkat) League Championship by an 11-point margin with a club record of 95 points. This was our second NWCL title having previously won the League in 1996-97. With this came promotion back to the Northern Premier League for a second time after being relegated five years previously. From September 2007 the team went on a 29-league game unbeaten run including 18 straight wins, a League record. Manager Ged Kielty was voted NWCL Manager of the Year; Centre forward Andy Lundy ended the season with 34 goals in all competitions, 28 of which made him the League’s top scorer. His ‘sidekick’ Scott Barlow came close behind in fourth overall place with 29 goals. To cap it all, the club won Programme of the Year.

2008/09 saw Trafford back in the Northern Premier League 1st Division (N) after an absence of five seasons. We finished in a respectable 15th place in the Division, and manager Ged Kielty led the team to our second NPL President’s Cup win beating Quorn FC 2-0 on their ground in the final. (We previously won the President’s Cup in 1999-2000). Striker Scott Barlow finished runner-up as the First Division North Overall Leading Goalscoring charts with 40 goals. His strike partner Andy Lundy scored 20, whilst Trafford’s young Skipper Harry Winter weighed in with 11 from midfield.

In the summer of 2009 Ged Kielty decided to step down as manager, so for 2009/10 season former Trafford playing stalwart Garry Vaughan took over in the ‘hot-seat’. During seven seasons in the 90’s Garry played a then-record 305 games for Trafford and became the club’s leading goalscorer with 89 in all competitions. In his first season as a manager at NPL level Garry and his Assistant Loz Greenhalgh guided the club to a creditable 12th place in the NPL First Division North and were finalists in the Manchester FA Premier Cup, losing 2-0 to Droylsden at Hyde United’s stadium. During the season striker Scott Barlow scored 21 goals to go level with his manager at the top of the Trafford goalscoring charts with 89 goals.

The first half of the 2010/11 season was a struggle for Trafford, so manager Garry Vaughan made a number of personnel changes including bringing back former Assistant Manager Wayne Goodison. The club’s fortunes changed and we finished in a respectable 14th place in NPL Division One North. Joe Shaw was our top goalscorer with 12 to his name, while Scott Barlow added another 10 to his account to take him to 99 goals overall in his Trafford career.

In 2011/12 season Trafford didn’t have much luck in any of the cup competitions going out in the early rounds of the FA Cup, NPL Cup, Manchester Premier Cup and the FA Trophy. The league season in NPL Division 1 North was a rollercoaster ride with the team finishing in 12th place. Strikers Michael Oates and Joe Shaw scored 20 and 18 respectively during the season, while Scott Barlow notched his 100th for the club before moving on to Chester FC. At the back, Nia Bayunu started every single one of Trafford’s 47 games throughout the season.

2012/13 was Garry Vaughan’s fourth season as Manager. With his assistant Wayne Goodison, everything clicked into place and the duo led Trafford to promotion to the NPL (Evo-Stik) Premier Division for the first time in the club's history. After beating New Mills at their ground in the Play-offs semi Final, Trafford won a nerve-wracking, nail-biting Play-Off final against Cammell Laird at their ground on the Wirral. The match ended 0-0 and Trafford prevailed 4-2 on penalties to reach the highest level of football in the club’s history. Michael Oates scored an impressive 41 goals this season, followed by jet-heeled attacker Shelton Payne on 16.

2013/14 season saw Trafford playing at a level higher than they’d ever played before – Northern Premier League (Evo-Stik) Premier Division, just three steps below the Football League. The club had a great season finishing in a very impressive 10th place, and won the Manchester Premier Cup via another penalty shoot-out, this time against National League side Hyde United. The game at Bury FC’s Gigg Lane stadium finished 2-2 with Trafford winning the trophy 4-2 on penalties. Michael Oates and Shelton Payne swapped positions in the goalscoring charts with “Shelts” bagging 34, and “Oatesy” scoring 16 this time. Also notable this season was 22 appearances by Manchester United youth goalkeeper Kieran O’Hara on loan. Kieran later appeared on the 1st team bench for United and became a full Republic of Ireland international.

2014/15 saw a difficult start to our second season in the NPL Premier Division and in the January, manager Garry Vaughan and his Assistant Wayne Goodison left the club. Former Altrincham Manager Graham Heathcote took charge along with his Assistant Chris Adams, but they were unable to prevent the slide and at the end of the season Trafford were relegated back to the NPL First Division North whereupon Graham Heathcote retired from Football management.

A new era began for the 2015-16 season with the appointment of 30-year-old former FC Halifax & Chorley Captain Tom Baker as the club’s new Manager. Tom had to retire from playing due to injury, and this was his first managerial job. After a mixed first half to the season, from mid-December Trafford’s form turned for the better with only five defeats in their remaining 22 games finishing the season in a creditable 8th place in the NPL.

2016-17: After an impressive first ever season as manager, Tom Baker along with his assistant Chris Shuker, led Trafford to an improved sixth place in the NPL First Division North missing out on a Promotion Play-off place by just two points.

2017-18: Trafford had another successful campaign finishing the NPL 1st Division North season in 6th place for the second consecutive year, which this time qualified us for the play-offs. Sadly we were defeated in the Semi-final by Prescott Cables. The team also reached the Manchester FA Premier Cup final, losing to FC United on penalties.

2018-19: In his fourth season at the helm, Trafford manager Tom Baker crowned an excellent campaign by winning the Integro Northern Premier League Cup for the first time in the club’s history beating League Champions Farsley Celtic 2-1 in the final.

The 2019-20 season was curtailed due to the coronavirus in March 2020. At that point Trafford were in ninth place in the Northern Premier League North West Division and had reached the final of the Manchester Premier Cup. On June 12th manager Tom Baker resigned after five years in charge and his assistant Danny Caldecott was promoted to manager.