The club was founded in 1921 and refounded in 1937, 1945, 1988 and 2009; having last been in Serie A in 1981.
U.S. Pistoiese
Pistoiese achieved prominence by rising to Serie B in the late 1970s with promotion to Serie A following in 1980. Under the presidency of Marcello Melani, who chose veterans like Marcello Lippi and Mario Frustalupi and promising young talents such as Paolo Benedetti, Pistoiese reached Serie A in just 6 years and made a reasonable start, reaching as high as 6th after a win at Fiorentina in Round 13. But a dismal freefall resulted in a last-place finish and relegation. Since 1980, the club has only managed two stretches in Serie B. Melani left his post in 1980, followed by Lippi in 1981.
A.C. Nuova Pistoiese 1988
In the 2005–06 Serie C1/B campaign, Pistoiese battled against relegation from Serie C1 with goals proving hard to come by, yet having one of the best defensive records in the division. A good end to the season brought the team to a 9th-place finish in Group A, which was three points ahead the relegation playoff. Pistoiese finished 14th in Group B in the 2007–2008 season and competed in a relegation play-off against Sangiovannese. They won by 4–0 aggregate and remained in Lega Pro Prima Divisione. The Tuscan club started the 2008–09 season with Roberto Miggiano as head coach, but disappointing results and a last-place position in the Lega ProPrima Divisione table led the club to replace him with Salvatore Polverino later in October. However, results did not improve under new boss Polverino, prompting him to tender his resignation in February 2009. He was replaced by former Juventus star Moreno Torricelli, in his first stint as a professional head coach; under Torricelli's reign, Pistoiese managed to improve results and escape immediate relegation ending in 16th place. Nevertheless, Pistoiese lost a play-off against Foligno and was relegated to Lega Pro Seconda Divisione. In the summer of 2009, Pistoiese was not permitted enrollment in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione due to inadequate finances.
Unione Sportiva Pistoiese 1921
On 13 August 2009 Unione Sportiva Pistoiese 1921 was created by Pistoia's mayor, Berti. The club was admitted to Tuscany's Eccellenza league and managed an excellent inaugural year, reaching the play-off for promotion, where it eventually lost to Mosciano. In the 2010–11 season, it won Eccellenza Tuscany group A and was thus promoted to Serie D. Pistoiese managed to reacquire professional status after winning the Girone E of 2013–14 Serie D, thus ensuring a spot in the 2014–15 Lega Pro.
