An EFL club sacked a record-breaking manager eight days before the first game
York City have surprised their fans by announcing that Stuart Maynard has left the team a week before the start of the new season.
The 45-year-old manager guided York back to the EFL after a record-breaking 108-point run that culminated in the National League title.
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Maynard, who took over in August 2025, ended the Minstermen’s decade from relegation at the first time of asking.
York have now confirmed that ‘differences of opinion’ between Maynard and the board have seen him step down from his role as head coach.
York City part ways with manager
A statement read: “York City Football Club can confirm that Stuart Maynard will step down from his role as first team manager, with immediate effect.
“This was not an easy decision, and it is not one that the board took lightly. In the end, it came down to differences in approach and the vision of the football club.
“We realize that, from the outside, this may look like a strange decision or difficult to understand. But we believe that in the long run, the football club will be in a stronger position because of it, another step towards the vision that we, as the guardians of this club, believe will bring continued success.
“Like all of you, we love this football club, and we couldn’t have made a decision that we didn’t believe was in our best long-term interests.
“We hope that our track record of year-on-year improvement has earned us some degree of trust, and we understand that not everyone will agree with, or fully understand, this decision right away.
“We would like to thank Stuart for his contribution to York City FC and wish him all the best for the future.”
York’s announcement came two days after a 2-2 draw with Steven Gerrard’s Saudi Arabian side, Al-Ettifaq.
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The Minstermen have just one pre-season friendly, a home game against League One Peterborough United, on Tuesday.
York then start their season in the first round of the Carabao Cup against Crawley Town on Monday, August 3.
The management-less Yorkshire outfit are now one of four clubs taking part in an extra round of the EFL competition – as nine Premier League teams will compete in Europe this season.
Their League Two campaign then begins 12 days later on Saturday, August 15 at home to Bristol Rovers.
York have recently been told that their 8,500-capacity stadium, shared with rugby league club York Knights, is too small to accommodate the club’s ambitions.
Under Maynard, York secured promotion back to the EFL in one of the most dramatic final days of the season.
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Just one point separates York from rivals Rochdale ahead of the two sides going head-to-head in the title race.
Rochdale scored what they thought was a crucial goal in the fifth minute of stoppage time, only for their rivals to find an equalizer eight minutes later with Josh Stones sending them straight.
Dale went on to secure promotion and the play-offs, coming from two down to beat Boreham Wood on penalties.
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