Football in Scotland

Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in Scotland and is the country's national sport. There is a long tradition of football games in Orkney and southern Scotland, especially the Scottish borders. The modern sport was formulated and codified in England, but the "Combination Game" that was the predecessor of modern passing football is believed by some to have been innovated in Scotland.

Early history

The first official football international, Scotland versus England. Once kept by the Rugby Football Union as an early example of rugby football.

The earliest historical reference to the game in Scotland was in 1424 when King James I outlawed the playing of "fute-ball". This was because of the disruption football was having on military training as well as its often violent nature. Subsequent kings issued very similar decrees, suggesting that the bans were unsuccessful. Certainly king James the VI of Scotland was well aware of the violent nature of football, stating in his personal publication of 1603 a debar from commendable exercise "all rough and violent exercises, as the foot-ball". There were, however, times when royal prohibitions seem to have been relaxed, if not officially. In 1497, for example, the accounts of the Lord High Treasurer include the purchase of footballs for the King. It is not known if he himself ever actually played the game himself. There is also a tradition that King James V crossed over from Melrose to Jedburgh to participate in the Jedburgh ball game. There is, however, no documented evidence to corroborate this belief and the earliest contemporary account of the game at Jedburgh comes much later at the beginning of the eighteenth century.

The origin of football in Scotland is uncertain. The Highlanders apparently never playedsuch a game (unlike other celtic regions, such as Cornwall, Wales and Brittany. It has therefore been suggested that football reached Scotland from England or France

Violence in early Scottish football games was certainly an important reason for these royal decrees and further evidence comes from sixteenth century Scottish literature, for example in the following poems.

Between 1501 and 1512 Gavin Douglas states:

"This broken shin that swells and will not be relieved, Take it to him; he broke it at ball, And tell him it will be his reward. Take the whole of this bruised arm to him"

Sir Richard Maitland expresses his pleasure in a late sixteenth century poem at being too old for the rough game:

"Quhen zoung men cummis fra the gren, Playand at the futball had bein, with broken spauld, I thank my god I want ein, I am so auld".

In modern English this is translated as:

"When young men come from the green Had been playing football With broken shoulder, I thank my God that I lack eyesight: Iam so old"

The violence of early football in Scotland is also described vividly by another sixteenth century description, this time anonymous. It is entitled "The Beauties of Foot-ball":

"Brissit, brawnis and broken banis, Stryf, discorde and waistie wanis, Cruikit in eild syn halt withall, Thir are the bewties of the fute ball".

This in modern English is translated as:

"Bruised muscles and broken bones Discordant strife and futile blows Lamed in old age, then cripled withal These are the beauties of football"

It was not just the Scottish monarchy and local municipalities that wished to crack down on the playing of football. In 1546 the Company of Hammermen (i.e. smiths) of Perth issued a decree that "neither servants nor apprentices" play football "under penalty of a pound of wax". Presumably this was a in order to prevent work absences and injuries to employees. There are other accounts of employers actively participating in attempts to outlaw football in Scotland during the following centuries.

Football in the sixteenth century is also documented as being a pretext for raids across the border against the English. Likewise it also erupted at times in to extreme violent outbursts and feuds, including the use of firearms. For example, in 1606 at Lochtoun during a "fute-ball" match some players "fell in contentioun and controversie, ilk anie with otheris, and schot and dilaschit pistolettis and hacquebuttis" It was clearly a passionate and dangerous pastime.

Scottish football came under Puritan attack in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and is documented many times as being an offence on a Sunday, presumably because of its violent nature. For example the youth of Aberdeen are accused in 1607 of conducting themselves profanely on the Sabbath: "drinking, playing football... and roving from parish to parish" . Further references to the offence in Scotland of playing football on Sunday come at the end of the sixteenth century and the first half of the seventeenth. In 1656 the Scottish Parliament passed an act outlawing all boisterous games on the Lord's day. Nevertheless, the puritan attack on football was not as severe in Scotland as in England and in both countries the game undoubtedly continued to be played enthusiastically.

There is evidence for schoolboys playing a football ball game in Aberdeen in 1633 (some references cite 1636) which is notable as an early allusion to what may be passing the ball. Forward passing, however, is not specified and the word "passing" is not used explicitly: the original latin states "huc percute" (strike it here) and "repercute pilam" (strike it again - or back). The most recent translation has employed terminology from modern Soccer, although the sentences are applicable to almost any team ball game (kicking is implied in the original latin rather than specified). The original word translated as "goal" is "metum", literally meaning the "pillar at each end of the circus course" in a Roman chariot race. There is a reference to "get hold of the ball before [another player] does" (Praeripe illi pilam si possis agere) suggesting that handling of the ball was allowed. One sentence states in the original 1930 translation "Throw yourself against him" (Age, objice te illi). It is clear that the game was rough and tackles allowed included the "charging" and pushing/holding of opposing players ("drive that man back" in the original translation, "repelle eum" in original Latin). This game, therefore, differed considerably from the modern soccer. There is no reference to game rules, marking players, team formation or the english word "football". This text was described in 2006 as "an amazing new discovery" but has actually been well documented in football history literature since the early twentieth century and available on the internet since at least 2000. .

Excessive violence continued to be a regular complaint about Scottish football games for many centuries. For example, in Jedburgh the ball game was outlawed by the town council in 1704 stating that "sometimes both old and young near lost their lives thereby". As a result it was decided to "discharge the game now and all time coming". This attempt was initially unsuccessful as in 1706 even local trades at Jedburgh were cooperating to try to suppress the game, as shown by the Fleshers' Corporation's fining of some members for "rastling at the football".. Similarly at Duns in 1724 a complaint reads "football... did always end and determine in the effusion of blood among the inhabitants". Likewise the game in Hawick was described even as late as 1825 as "a species of war or fighting". Sir Walter Scott described football as "his favourite border sport". He too, however, talks about the rough nature of nineteenth century Scottish football in his text the Lay: "In riot, revelry, and rout, Pursued the football, play". . Scott also states that in the "foot-ball": "The victory is contested with the utmost fury, and very serious accidents have sometimes taken place in the struggle".

As a result of the level of violence often seen in early Scottish football games, a lot of traditional ball games were modified or died out in the nineteenth century. Examples still exist today, however, of traditional Scottish football, in particular the Ba game.

The earliest evidence of the use of codified rules of any type of football in Scotland came in 1851 when rugby football was adopted by the Edinburgh Academy, in order to be able to play with other schools. The Edinburgh Academical Football Club, is the oldest football club of any code in Scotland (rugby football).

Reports that a "John Hope Football Club" was founded in Edinburgh in 1824 appear to be erroneous as soccer was first codified in 1863. An Association football (soccer) club was founded in Edinburgh by a John Hope in 1874 [http://www2.umist.ac.uk/sport/SPORTS%20HISTORY/BSSH/The%20Sports%20Historian/TSH%2021-1/21

Modern history (post-1863)

Scotland was one of the earliest modern footballing nations. Its game closely followed the first ever rules of soccer developed in London in 1863 by the Football Association. Queen's Park was one of the Scotland's first football clubs and is probably the oldest existing soccer club outside England. In its very early years it played in the English FA Cup, reaching the final twice.

Scotland was the host of the world's first official football international. (A series of football games with representatives from England and Scotland had previously been played at The Oval, London). This game was the brainchild of C. W. Alcock and it was noted in the FA's minutes of October 3 1872: 'In order to further the interests of the Association in Scotland, it was decided that during the current season, a team should be sent to Glasgow to play a match v Scotland'. The world's first international match would take place between Scotland and England on November 30 1872. Over the following decades soccer became the most popular sport in scotland.

There was a clash of styles in 1872 when Scotland played England in the first official international as a result of the teams adopting different ways of exploiting the Off-side rule. This had been introduced in the 1866 revision of the rules by the Football Association. This rule stated that: "If the ball has passed a player and has come from the direction of his own goal, he may not touch it till the other side have kicked it, unless there are more than three of the other side before him. No player is allowed to loiter between the ball and the adversaries' goal." [1]. This rule had been part of the 1856 Cambridge Rules, but had been not included in the 1863 Football Association rules. At the match England played a a 1-2-7 formation [2] and favoured dribbling the ball at the opponents and passing the ball up field ("passing on") before being tackled. One of the seven forwards, following behind, would chase the ball. Scotland played a slightly more defensive 2-2-6 formation, with three banks of forwards divided into pairs. Each pair of players - in defence, midfield and attack - knew who their partner was and their role was to pass to them when possible. This tactic of 'passing and running' was known as the "combination game". Critics of the theory of Scotland as the origin of the passing game note that there were many Scottish people living and playing football throughout Britain in the 1860s (i.e. prior to the first official international match) and given this it is unlikely that such a technique would evolve in isolation. Despite the clash of tactics the game still resulted in a 0-0 draw, suggesting that the benefit of the scottish style was minimal. Certainly the defensive, passing game continued to undergo much development in later years, as is shown by typical modern football formations of 4-4-2. There are, however, other claimants for the innovation of the combination game.

A significant number of Scottish players participated in early English football clubs and some earned the epithet "Scotch Professors". English football teams with Scottish players included Preston North End which fielded eight Scots in one team and Liverpool Football Club, founded in 1892 with eleven Scots.

Association football quickly became the most popular sport in Scotland, particularly in Glasgow and the west. The Scottish Football Association was formed in 1873 and is the second oldest in the world.

William McGregor who grew up in Perthshire and lived most of his life in Birmingham is credited with the establishment in 1888 of the English Football League, which is the world's oldest and richest soccer league.

In 1894 soccer was taken to Brazil by Charles William Miller, who was of combined Scottish-English descent. He had not lived in Scotland and learned to play football whilst at Banister Court School in Southampton, England.

Scottish Football Association

The Scottish Football Association (SFA) is the principal organising body for Scottish football.

League

League football in Scotland is split between the Scottish Premier League and the Scottish Football Leagues. Beneath these leagues is a system of regional semi-professional and amateur leagues.

Scottish Premier League

The Scottish Premier League (SPL) is the top league in Scotland, and consists of a single division of 12 teams. It has existed since 1998 (before then the top league was the Premier Division of the Scottish Football League). This league has one of the world's most famous football rivalries; between Rangers F.C and Celtic F.C. Together the two clubs are known as the 'Old Firm' by virtue of the profitability of their rivalry. Both teams have won more awards than other teams such as Real Madrid and AC Milan who struggle to keep up with the Old Firm with League Wins (Rangers have 51 league championships and Celtic have 40. Rangers have won more league championships than any other club in the world and are second only to Linfield from Northern Ireland in terms of trophies won.

Scottish Football League

The Scottish Football League resides below the SPL, and consists of three divisions, each of 10 teams.

Teams are relegated and promoted between the divisions, but relegation from the Third Division does not occur. The top team in the First Division is eligible for promotion to the SPL, but in the past some teams have been unable to do so due to not meeting the stadium requirements. Previously, requirements were that clubs had to have 10,000 seats in their ground, but this was changed to 6,000. Clubs must also have undersoil heating systems to prevent cancellation of matches caused by frozen pitches.

Senior non-league level

Outwith the SFL are a series of regionalised leagues. This level is referred to as 'non-league' and these three leagues are known as 'senior' non-league.

• Highland Football League, covering the north, north east and north west of Scotland, not just the Highlands. This has been hard hit by a number of 'defections' to the Scottish Football League, though the Highland League has compensated by admitting new teams to its league in a similar way. Recent examples include Inverurie Loco Works F.C..
• East of Scotland Football League
• South of Scotland Football League

Clubs at this level are entitled to participate in qualifying tournaments for the Scottish Cup, provided their ground meets certain requirements. Clubs qualify by participation in either the Scottish Qualifying Cup (North), which is for Highland League clubs and Golspie Sutherland F.C., an amateur team playing in the North Caledonian Football League or in the Scottish Qualifying Cup (South), for East of Scotland and South of Scotland clubs, as well as Burntisland Shipyard Amateur F.C., Glasgow University F.C. and Girvan F.C..

Junior football

Outwith the three 'senior' leagues in the non-league grade, are the 'junior' leagues. Although called junior, this refers to the level of football played, not the age of the participants. The junior leagues are organised by the Scottish Junior Football Association and are regionalised into three areas, North, East and West. There is a Scottish Junior Cup which all members of the association participate in, having done so since the Nineteenth Century.

Junior clubs, unlike those in the senior non-league level, are not eligible to participate in the Scottish Cup, although there are suggestions that this should change. There is one exception to this rule, and that is Girvan F.C. who do participate in the Scottish Qualifying Cup (South), but this is by virtue of the fact that they opted to switch from the senior level to the junior level, but still retaining this right to attempt to qualify.

Kilbirnie Ladeside[[3]]

Amateur football

There are a vast number of amateur footballers in Scotland. They play in leagues across the country of varying standard, usually confined to a specific localised geographic area. Many amateur clubs run teams in more than one of the amateur leagues. Some of the teams are well known with a history of success and producing players who go on to a higher level, such as Drumchapel Amateur F.C.. The activities of clubs at the amateur level are co-ordinated by the Scottish Amateur Football Association.

Oban Saints[[4]]

Cup competitions

Scottish Cup

The Scottish Cup is one of the world's oldest national cup competitions, first contested in 1873. It is open to any club affiliated with the SFA, and is a pure knockout tournament with single matches; replays are held if the first match is a tie. The final is played at Hampden Park.

Scottish League Cup

The Scottish League Cup is open to members of the SPL and SFL, and has been contested since 1947.

Scottish League Challenge Cup

The Scottish League Challenge Cup is open to members of the SFL, and has been contested since 1990.

National team

The Scotland national team hosted the first international match in football history against England, a 0-0 draw in 1872, with whom they have since enjoyed a long-standing rivalry. For many years Scotland met England annually in the British Home Championship, which Scotland won 41 times (24 outright), but since the demise of the tournament in 1984 (it was briefly replaced by the Rous Cup until 1989), the two have only met in 1996 (Euro 96 match), and twice in 1999 (Euro 2000 qualifying play-off).

Scotland have qualified for 8 World Cups and 2 European Championships, but have never progressed beyond the first round. The national team's supporters, dubbed the Tartan Army are well-known for their vocal but also good-natured behaviour.

See List of Scotland national football team results.

Clubs

See List of football clubs in Scotland.

Seasons in Scottish football

The following articles detail the major results and events in each season since 1890-91, when the Scottish Football league was formed.

Wartime seasons, when only unofficial competitions took place, are shown in a darker grey.

1890s:		1890-91	1891-92	1892-93	1893-94	1894-95	1895-96	1896-97	1897-98	1898-99
1900s:	1899-00	1900-01	1901-02	1902-03	1903-04	1904-05	1905-06	1906-07	1907-08	1908-09
1910s:	1909-10	1910-11	1911-12	1912-13	1913-14	1914-15	1915-16	1916-17	1917-18	1918-19
1920s:	1919-20	1920-21	1921-22	1922-23	1923-24	1924-25	1925-26	1926-27	1927-28	1928-29
1930s:	1929-30	1930-31	1931-32	1932-33	1933-34	1934-35	1935-36	1936-37	1937-38	1938-39
1940s:	1939-40	1940-41	1941-42	1942-43	1943-44	1944-45	1945-46	1946-47	1947-48	1948-49
1950s:	1949-50	1950-51	1951-52	1952-53	1953-54	1954-55	1955-56	1956-57	1957-58	1958-59
1960s:	1959-60	1960-61	1961-62	1962-63	1963-64	1964-65	1965-66	1966-67	1967-68	1968-69
1970s:	1969-70	1970-71	1971-72	1972-73	1973-74	1974-75	1975-76	1976-77	1977-78	1978-79
1980s:	1979-80	1980-81	1981-82	1982-83	1983-84	1984-85	1985-86	1986-87	1987-88	1988-89
1990s:	1989-90	1990-91	1991-92	1992-93	1993-94	1994-95	1995-96	1996-97	1997-98	1998-99
2000s:	1999-00	2000-01	2001-02	2002-03	2003-04	2004-05	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09

See also

• List of Scotland national football team results
• Scottish football champions
• Scottish Football (Defunct Leagues)
• Sport in Scotland