It's not always been easy being a Stockport County fan. Some still remember the 'terrible' 1970s followed by the 'grim' 1980s.

In the 1990s, things then 'took off and it was absolutely brilliant', with Stockport finishing second in the Second Division and reaching the semi-finals of the League Cup. They even beat Manchester City in one match.

Those 'stratospheric' highs came to an end in the late 2000s. In 2009, the club was placed into administration owing around £300,000 to one creditor and a tax bill of £250,000. Two years later, the club was relegated to non-league football for the first time in its history.

Tim Oudas remembers those days well, telling the LDRS 'there were times [he] didn't think we would ever get out'.

Get out they did and climbing the ranks, the club later won its first league title in 2019 in 52 years.

A fan for 60 years, Tim said: "That felt amazing after so long of just going down and down", adding: "When Mark Stott came in, it became turbocharged as far as I was concerned. Everything since, I am so grateful for what's happening."

In January 2020, British entrepreneur Mark Stott used the success of his companies Selected Property Group and Vita Group to buy Stockport County FC as a platform to invest in the community he grew up in. He promised to build up the club with Championship ambitions.

A year later, the club topped the National League and was promoted back to the English Football League after an 11-year absence. Two years later, it was promoted to League One and come close since to fighting to get into the Championship.

Such is the transformation, the club's upward trajectory has been dubbed 'one of the most remarkable comeback stories in football history'. Fans told the LDRS they now feel 'electric'.

In Edgeley, more are filling up the pubs after matches and even if people were not a fan themselves, there was some link to the so-called 'people's club' – one that was in touch with its fan base and the community around it.

Tim said: "It's had its ups and it's had its downs. We've had some real downs but sometimes the downs make the ups so much more exciting.

"I still pinch myself compared to where we were seven to eight years ago even if last year felt like levelling off. I stop to think to myself I am getting spoiled by all the success."

He added: "I think in the last few years even if people aren't County fans, they're taking a lot more notice of what's happening here. You see it on the streets.

"More kids in the colours whereas one time it would all be City and United. You see so many kids in County colours nowadays. We've got a marked presence in the town where we didn't before."

As well as success on the pitch, the club's revenue is up by the millions with £11.5m brought in in 2025 and match attendance records broken. Though there have been huge financial losses too, the club has acquired sites like Stockport Sports Village as huge long term investments to expand training and education opportunities.

At the same time, the club's community trust has engaged with over 10,000 people and claims to generate £6 in social benefit for every £1 it invests. Over 3,000 PE kits were also donated through the Kits By County scheme helping tackle deprivation across the borough.

More than six years after he bought the club, Mark Stott tells the LDRS in a rare interview County has changed him.

He said: "I've become a proper fan so it's really hard if we lose to hide my emotions […] I'm properly a County fan now. I am not saying Man City are dead to me but I am fully entrenched.

"I've always loved football. I grew up a Man City fan. I couldn't afford Man City. Stockport is very interesting as a club and it's had an incredibly resilient fan base despite what has been thrown at it over the last couple of decades."

Now, he said: "I'm totally sucked in and I've probably never enjoyed it as much. Even though the losses last year were eye-watering, we are reducing them this year.

"Then next year I think we will halve them from where we were last year, I can see a line of sight on viability. I've never been as excited as I am."

He added: "Everything just feels really good at the moment and I've never felt as positive about it all. We just need to translate that onto the pitch.

"Fill the stadium and sell another 17,000 shirts. When we bought the club, we sold 1,200. Everything's going in the right direction and there's a great positivity."

When Mark bought the club, players were part time and it had six full time employees. Players are now full time; the squad's estimated market value has more than doubled year-on-year; and nearly 500 people are employed.

Average attendance is now over 9,500 and the club's academy supported 143 players in 2025. The club also agreed a 250-year lease on its Edgeley Park stadium in 2022.

The club is looking to grow the fanbase, too – engaging with schools across the borough in order to get new bums on seats. Off the pitch, there's an aim to have 1,000 people in full time education giving people more opportunities through the club.

Xavier Jones, a pupil at Stockport Sports Village, became a County fan ten years ago at the age of six.

He said: "I knew I was never going to be a footballer but I wanted to do something football-related. I thought where do I go from here?

"I saw Stockport County at Woodley Sports Village with all sorts. Not just playing – coaching, physios, everything. I think this is the chance and for a club I love, I feel proud to wear the badge."

In the long-term, there are plans to expand the stadium's capacity investing at least £47m into Edgeley Park. The plan, which has been approved by Stockport council, would bring the stadium's capacity up to 18,000.

Edgeley Park's potential expansion comes at a time where town hall bosses are driving over £1bn of investment into Stockport town centre making it a go-to destination outside Manchester. For both the council and the club, success goes hand in hand.

Last year, Stockport council leader Coun Mark Roberts said the club would play its part in reviving the town, telling the LDRS: "To see how far both our town and our club has grown over the past few years is both astounding and a source for huge optimism and pride."

However getting the stadium revamp off the ground is going to take a lot of money. The LDRS was told building even just one stand could cost around £25m, though further pitch success could unlock millions more in cash.

Mark Stott said: "The success of the club is only going to benefit the town. Ideally we'd have some way of unlocking some funding to develop the stadium quicker but we've just got to bide our time, have success, and we'll eventually get there."

Success has brought about some issues with complaints on social media about parking problems with photos of cars on grass verges and away fans blamed. However Edgeley councillor Asa Caton argued it is for Stockport council to address this and in the long term, there will be funding as part of the stadium revamp to tackle the issue.

Coun Caton said: "County is a big part of Edgeley. I always say when Stockport County does well, Edgeley does well. We have said that right from the start but that comes with challenges.

"Parking is one of them but our engagement with County has never been anything other than positive."

Launched in 2020, a seven-year plan aimed to get County into the Championship and bosses are keeping their fingers crossed this season. After that, there's a five year plan from 2027 looking to cement the club's place, balance the books, and go even further.

If the club gets into Championship and stays there, Mark Stott said he would be setting his sights on the Premier League, something never achieved in the club's history.

He told the LDRS: "Why can't we do a Luton town or a Norwich or a Hull or any of those? Why can't we do that?

"Premier League would be ideal. Eighth in the Championship is the best finish. I've always thought I can't sell, I can't leave and hand over the reins to somebody else until I have finished above that.

"Now down to eighth place in the Championship gets you in the playoffs so if we finish ahead of that in the next few years, we are in the playoffs and we've got our hat in the ring for the Premier League."

While he would love to see it, he said: "Going toe to toe with Man City and Man United is not on the next five year plan or probably even the five after that but I think we can be competitive in the Championship.

"Literally that would be a mic drop moment if we got to the Premier League. I feel I would have fulfilled everything at that point from a football perspective."