The Bombers were founded in 1971 as members of the Northern League. In 1982 they became a founder member of the British Hockey League and changed their name to the Cleveland Bombers. Between 1991 and 1995 the team played under the name of the Teesside Bombers before reverting back to their original name. Between 1982 and 1986 and again between 1990 and 1994, the Bombers played in the Premier League, the top flight division of British ice hockey at the time.