Renton FC was a Scottish football club which was a prominent member of the League until 1897. The club was based in the village of Renton, West Dunbartonshire.  Renton joined the Scottish Football Association in 1873  in time to enter the inaugural (1873–74) Scottish Cup tournament. The following season they reached the final, but lost to Queen's Park, by 3–0.  During the 1880s Renton were amongst the most powerful clubs in the country. They lifted the Scottish Cup for the first time in 1885, beating local rivals Vale of Leven in the final. The 1886 final once again ended in defeat against Queen's Park, but Renton lifted the trophy for a second time in 1888 with an emphatic 6–1 win over Cambuslang, a winning margin that has never been exceeded in a Scottish Cup Final. Three months after their second Scottish Cup triumph, Renton returned to Hampden Park in Glasgow, to defeat FA Cup holders West Bromwich Albion in a challenge match billed as being for the "Championship of the United Kingdom and the World". The club's first experience of League competition was to be cut short a month into the 1890–91 season, however, when they were suspended from all football by the SFA for playing a friendly against a team billed as "Edinburgh Saints". This was in reality St Bernard's, who had themselves been suspended following allegations of professionalism. Renton successfully sued the SFA to have their suspension lifted and subsequently resumed their place in the Scottish League for 1891–92.  At the end of the 1893–94 season — the first following the legalisation of professionalism — Renton were relegated to the League's Division Two, never to return to the top level. The club did reach one more Scottish Cup final in 1894-95 losing 2–1 to St Bernard’s. Financial hardship began to hit deeply for a club only ever capable of drawing a few hundred spectators to home matches. Their League career ended four games into the 1897–98 season when, unable to meet their financial guarantees, they tendered their resignation. This was accepted, with Hamilton Academical taking on Renton's remaining fixtures - less than a decade after Renton's "world championship".