The 2014–15 season was Port Vale's 103rd season of football in the Football League, and second successive season in League One. Before the season began the club were listed as third favourites to be relegated by the bookies.

A run of six defeats resulted in a surprise resignation from manager Micky Adams on 18 September, and his assistant Rob Page took his place in the hot-seat. Chairman Norman Smurthwaite then initiated his plan for the club to sign young players to develop and later sell for profit at a later date. Vale exited the cups in the early stages after coming up against tough opposition, exiting the FA Cup at the hands of Milton Keynes Dons, losing to Cardiff City in the League Cup and Preston North End in the League Trophy. They climbed up the league table under Page, reaching the outskirts of the play-offs by the end of February before a late season collapse saw them finish in 18th place.

Manager Micky Adams ended months of speculation surrounded his future when he signed a 12-month rolling contract the following in June 2014. His first signing of the season was versatile left-sided player Colin Daniel.Kaid Mohamed left the club on loan, after he agreed to spend the season playing for Northampton Town. Adams admitted he was finding it difficult to sign new players to take the club forward after losing out on numerous transfer targets to rival clubs. Chairman Norman Smurthwaite was criticised by fans for showing a lack of ambition, but Smurthwaite defended his record by pointing to falling season ticket sales and the high amount of time and money he had invested in the club without financial reward. The second signing of the season was 24-year-old full-back Ryan McGivern, who negotiated a release from relegated Scottish Premier League club Hibernian in order to sign a two-year contract with the Vale. The third arrival was winger Mark Marshall, who had spent the latter half of the previous campaign with Coventry City after serving a two-year ban for taking performance-enhancing drugs. His next signing was winger Byron Moore, who turned down a contract offer at nearby Crewe Alexandra to join the Vale. This capture raised the tensions between Vale and Crewe, particularly after Adams and Crewe boss Steve Davis had a spat over the departure of his son Joe Davis; his father claiming Vale's contract offer to Joe was "derisory". Adams looked at a number of players on trial over the summer, including: Michael O’Connor, Steve Jennings, Javan Vidal, and Sylvestre Guyonet. Adams completed his squad on 18 July with a triple signing, taking on a trio of experienced midfielders: Michael Brown, Steve Jennings, and Michael O'Connor. He took the squad on a pre-season tour of Cornwall, including a stay at HMS Raleigh. Adams added to the squad by taking in versatile right-back Freddie Veseli on a long-term loan from Ipswich Town.Carl Dickinson was appointed as club captain in August 2014, taking the armband from the departed Doug Loft.

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