Everything about The Scotland National Football Team totally explained
The
Scotland national football team represents
Scotland in international
football and is controlled by the
Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside
England, whom they played in the world's
first international football match in 1872.
Although a
constituent country of the
United Kingdom, Scotland maintains its own national side that competes in all major professional tournaments, with the exception of the
Olympics as Scotland isn't a member of the
International Olympic Committee.
Some of Scotland's most famous results include defeating the
World Cup holders England 3–2 at
Wembley Stadium in 1967, and defeating tournament finalists the
Netherlands 3–2 in the
1978 World Cup, with
Archie Gemmill scoring a famous goal. In 2006 and 2007 Scotland enjoyed home and away victories against
France, defeating the World Cup finalists 1–0 on both occasions.
Traditionally England have been Scotland's fiercest rivals, though in recent times senior level fixtures between the teams have become uncommon. The last match between the sides was the second leg of a
Euro 2000 qualifying play-off in
1999, which Scotland won 1-0.
History
Scotland are the oldest national football team in the world, alongside
England. The two countries contested
the first ever international football match, at
Hamilton Crescent in
Partick,
Scotland on
30 November 1872. The match ended in a goalless draw. All eleven players who represented Scotland that day played for
Glasgow amateur club
Queen's Park. Perhaps the best-remembered of Scotland's early matches was the 5–1 victory over England in 1928, which led that Scotland side to be nicknamed "The
Wembley Wizards". Scotland won the British Home Championship, which took place annually until 1984, outright on twenty-four occasions, and shared the title with another team seventeen times.
In 1929, Scotland played their first match outside
Britain and
Ireland, beating
Norway 7–3 in
Bergen. Scotland continued to contest regular friendly matches against European opposition and enjoyed wins against
Germany and
France before losing to
Austria and
Italy in 1931.
1958 - In 1958, Scotland again qualified for the
FIFA World Cup in Sweden and drew their first game against Yugoslavia 1-1. However, they then lost 3-2 to
Paraguay and
France and went out. It was also in 1954 that Scotland appointed their first team manager,
Andy Beattie, but he resigned before the game against Uruguay.
Under the management of
Ian McColl, Scotland enjoyed consecutive British Home Championship successes in 1962 and 1963. Brown's first match as manager was a daunting encounter against newly crowned world champions England at
Wembley Stadium. Despite being underdogs, Scotland emerged triumphant after a 3–2 victory, with goals from
Denis Law,
Bobby Lennox and
Jim McCalliog. After the result, rapturous Scotland fans jovially heralded their team as the "Unofficial world champions". This joke ultimately led to the conception of the
Unofficial Football World Championships.
After
Tommy Docherty's brief spell as manager between 1971 and 1972,
Willie Ormond was hired in 1973. Scotland continued to play impressively under MacLeod and the team secured qualification for the World Cup with victories over
Czechoslovakia and
Wales.
During the build-up to the
World Cup, MacLeod fuelled the hopes of the nation by stating that Scotland would come home with a medal. As the squad left for the finals in
Argentina, they were given an enthusiastic send off as they were paraded around a packed
Hampden Park. Thousands more fans lined the route to
Prestwick Airport as the team set off for South America. After taking a single point from their opening two games, Scotland had to defeat one of the tournament favourites, the Netherlands, by three clear goals to progress. The victory wasn't sufficient to secure a place in the second round, and Scotland were eliminated on goal difference for the second successive World Cup. Stein aimed to take Scotland to their third successive World Cup finals. Scotland qualified from a tough group including
Sweden,
Portugal,
Israel and
Northern Ireland, losing just one match in the process.
1982 - At the
1982 World Cup Finals in
Spain, Scotland, for the third successive World Cup, went out on goal difference beating
New Zealand 5-2, drawing with the
USSR 2-2 and losing 4-1 to a magical
Brazilian team which included
Socrates,
Zico,
Eder and
Falcao. The squad went into their last qualification match against Wales, needing a point to reach the tournament in
Mexico. With only nine minutes remaining and Wales leading, Scotland were awarded a
penalty kick which was calmly scored by
Davie Cooper. However, as the players and fans celebrated, news began to circulate that Scotland manager
Jock Stein had suffered a fatal
heart attack.
1990 - Scotland qualified for the World Cup in 1990 by finishing second in their qualifying group, beating out
France. At the
1990 FIFA World Cup in
Italy, results for Scotland got even worse. Drawn in a group with
Costa Rica,
Sweden, and
Brazil, the Scots inexplicably lost 0-1 to
Costa Rica in their first match in what was a major upset. While they recovered to beat
Sweden 2-1 in their second game, they lost to
Brazil in their third and final match 0-1 and once again Scotland was out in the first round. This was the fifth consecutive
FIFA World Cup finals in a row that
Scotland had failed to get out of the first round.
Scotland made their
UEFA European Championship debut at the
1992 European Championship. Scotland qualified for the tournament by a narrow margin. A 1–0 defeat to
Romania away from home left qualification dependent upon other results, but a 1–1 draw between
Bulgaria and
Romania in the final group match saw Scotland through. Despite playing well in matches against the Netherlands and Germany the team was knocked out at the group stage. The game ended 0–0, raising morale ahead of a much anticipated game against England at
Wembley Stadium. Scotland lost 2–0. with a goal for
England by
Paul Gascoigne and a
Gary McAllister penalty miss adding to Scotland's woes. Scotland recovered to beat
Switzerland 1–0 with
Ally McCoist scoring but Scotland were once again knocked out on goal difference.
John Collins equalised from the penalty spot to level the score 1–1 after
Cesar Sampaio scored but a
Tom Boyd own goal led to a 2-1 defeat. Scotland went on to draw 1-1 with Norway in
Bordeaux with
Craig Burley scoring.. This was the eighth time Scotland had made it to the finals and the 8th time the team had failed to get out of the first round.
During the qualification for the
2000 European Championship, Scotland faced England in a
two-legged playoff nicknamed the "Battle of Britain" by the media. Scotland won the second match 1–0 but lost the tie on aggregate. Under Vogts Scotland performed badly and suffered a series of defeats. Consequently the team dropped twenty-six places in the
FIFA World Rankings. In 2004 Vogts announced his resignation, blaming the hostile media for his departure. Former
Rangers and
Everton manager,
Walter Smith was brought in as manager in the wake of Vogts' departure. Smith secured victories against
Bulgaria, Norway, the
Faroe Islands and most notably against France in a far more productive period, with Scotland rising up the FIFA Rankings. The Scottish players also lifted their first trophy in years after winning the
Kirin Cup in
Japan.
2006 - Scotland failed to qualify for the 2006
FIFA World Cup in Germany with a 3-4-3 win-draw-loss record, finishing third in their group behind
Italy and
Norway
Smith left the national side in early 2007 to return to club football, with Scotland leading their
Euro 2008 qualification group.
Alex McLeish was named as Smith's successor and Scotland's twentieth manager. McLeish's first match in charge was a 2008 European Championship qualifying match against
Georgia which was won 2–1 by Scotland, making McLeish only the third Scotland manager to win his first match in charge.. McLeish then guided Scotland to wins against the
Faroe Islands,
Lithuania,
France and
Ukraine before defeats to
Georgia and
Italy ended their chances of qualification.
World Cup record
Scotland have played at eight
World Cup Finals, including five consecutive tournaments from
1974 to
1990. During the preparations for the
1928 Olympic Football Tournament,
FIFA ruled that all its member associations must provide "broken-time" payments to cover the expenses of players from their country who participated. In response to what they considered to be unacceptable interference, the football associations of Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales held a meeting at which they agreed to resign from FIFA. As a result, Scotland didn't compete in the three interwar World Cup competitions. The
Scottish Football Association didn't rejoin FIFA as a permanent member until 1946.
Scotland have competed at eight World Cup Finals, but have never progressed beyond the first round of the finals competition. They have missed out on progressing to the second round three times on goal difference: in
1974, when
Brazil edged them out; in
1978, when the
Netherlands progressed; and in
1982, when the
USSR went through. Although Scotland have played at eight finals tournaments, they've actually qualified on nine occasions. The Scottish Football Association declined to participate in
1950 as Scotland were not the
British champions.
!GA
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1930–
1938
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
Did not enter || || || || || ||
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1950
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
Withdrew || || || || || ||
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1954
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 2 || 0 || 8
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1958
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 3 || 0 || 1 || 2 || 4 || 6
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1962–
1970
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
Did not qualify || || || || || ||
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1974
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 3 || 1 || 2 || 0 || 3 || 1
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1978
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 3 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 5 || 6
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1982
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 3 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 8 || 8
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1986
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 3 || 0 || 1 || 2 || 1 || 3
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1990
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 3 || 1 || 0 || 2 || 2 || 3
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1994
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
Did not qualify || || || || || ||
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
1998
|ignore="text-align: left;"| Round 1 || 3 || 0 || 1 || 2 || 2 || 6
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
2002
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
Did not qualify || || || || || ||
|-
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
2006
|ignore="text-align: left;"|
Did not qualify || || || || || ||
|-class="sortbottom"
! colspan="2"|Totals !! 23 !! 4 !! 7 !! 12 !! 25 !! 41
|}
European Championship record
Scotland have qualified for two
European Championships but have failed to advance beyond the first round on both occasions, most recently at the
1996 European Championship, where the Netherlands progressed on
goals scored.
| Year |
Result |
Matches |
Wins |
Draws |
Losses |
GF The current 52,000 capacity Hampden is one of several historic stadiums to bear the name, and Hampden and its predecessors have hosted international matches since 1878. In its heyday, Hampden regularly attracted crowds of over 100,000. In 1937, 149,415 fans attended a match between Scotland and England. Hampden is one of only two Scottish football stadiums to receive a UEFA 5-star rating.
Some matches, particularly friendly games, are occasionally played at a venue belonging to a Scottish Premier League team. There have been a few instances where competitive qualifying matches have been played outside of Hampden: Celtic Park, Pittodrie, Ibrox Stadium and Rugby Park all hosted matches during the 1998 World Cup qualifying campaign. Similarly, Scotland played 2000 European Championship qualifying matches at Tynecastle Stadium, Pittodrie Stadium, Celtic Park and Ibrox Stadium while Hampden was being refurbished. Scotland played the Faroe Islands in their first 2008 European Championship qualification match at Celtic Park, due to the fixtures being decided by a draw and Hampden was already being used for a music concert on the same date.
Colours
Scotland traditionally wear dark blue shirts with white shorts and dark blue socks, the colours of the Queens Park team who represented Scotland in the first international. From 1994–96 a tartan kit was used. The current version of the crest includes the Scottish flag and a background of thistles, representing the national flower of Scotland, in addition to the lion rampant.
Scotland have not always played in dark blue; on a number of occasions between 1881 and 1951 they played in the primrose and pink racing colours of Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery. A former Prime Minister, Lord Rosebery was an influential figure in Scottish football, serving as honorary President of the Scottish Football Association and Edinburgh team Hearts. His colours were used most frequently in the first decade of the twentieth century, but were discontinued in 1909. The colours were briefly reprised in 1949, and were last used against France in 1951. In 1900, when Scotland defeated England 4-1. Lord Rosebery remarked, "I have never seen my colours so well sported since Ladas won the Derby".
More recently, the SFA have supported the use of Scots Gaelic on the national teams's strip in recognition of the language's revival in Scotland. While only in small letters on the reverse of the home kit, it's hoped by many supporters of the language that it'll become more prominent in future years and encourage other national teams (such as the Scotland national rugby union team) to follow suit.
Supporters
The Scottish team have become famous for their travelling support, known as the Tartan Army. The movement developed from attempts to distance supporting the national team from the hooliganism which was prevalent in British football in the 1970s. Since then, the Tartan Army have won awards from UEFA for their combination of vocal support, friendly nature and charity work. The Tartan Army have been awarded a Fair Play prize by the Belgian Olympic Committee, were named as the best supporters during the 1992 European Championship,
Players
Current squad
The following players are part of the latest Scotland international squad.
| goals=0|club=Sunderland|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=0|club=Norwich City|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=0|club=Sunderland|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=0|club=Hearts|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=2|club=Celtic|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=6|club=Rangers|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=0|club=Tottenham Hotspur|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=1|club=Celtic|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=0|club=Cardiff City|clubnat=WAL}} |
goals=1|club=Sheffield United|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=0|club=Rangers|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=4|club=Manchester United|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=1|club=Celtic|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=0|club=West Brom|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=0|club=Cardiff City|clubnat=WAL}} |
goals=0|club=Celtic|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=0|club=Rangers|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=7|club=Rangers|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=0|club=Hibernian|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=0|club=Motherwell|clubnat=SCO}} |
goals=13|club=Birmingham City|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=1|club=Aston Villa|clubnat=ENG}} |
goals=11|club=Derby County|clubnat=ENG}}
|
Others
The following players have all been called up to the squad in the 12 months to April 2008.
|caps=3|goals=0|club=
Rangers|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=1|goals=0|club=
Rangers|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=0|goals=0|club=
Aberdeen|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=61|goals=1|club=
Rangers|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=32|goals=0|club=
Celtic|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=3|goals=0|club=
Derby County|clubnat=ENG}}
|caps=32|goals=0|club=
Burnley|clubnat=ENG}}
|caps=22|goals=1|club=
Rangers|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=6|goals=0|club=
Hibernian|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=4|goals=0|club=
Reading|clubnat=ENG}}
|caps=1|goals=0|club=
Hearts|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=43|goals=3|club=
Rangers|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=9|goals=0|club=
Celtic|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=15|goals=1|club=
Rangers}}
|caps=14|goals=1|club=
West Ham United|clubnat=ENG}}
|caps=11|goals=0|club=
Plymouth Argyle|clubnat=ENG}}
|caps=14|goals=0|club=
Aberdeen|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=10|goals=0|club=
Derby County|clubnat=ENG}}
|caps=2|goals=2|club=
Rangers|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=2|goals=0|club=
Rangers|clubnat=SCO}}
|caps=7|goals=1|club=
West Bromwich Albion|clubnat=ENG}}
|caps=1|goals=0|club=
Rangers|other=also plays for Under-21}}
|caps=14|goals=4|club=
Birmingham City|clubnat=ENG}}
|}
Managers
From 1872–1954 and 1954–1958 the Scotland national team was appointed by a selection committee.
Andy Beattie was manager for six matches in 1954 when Scotland competed at their first World Cup. After the tournament the selection committee resumed their duties, continuing until the appointment of
Matt Busby in 1958.
The most recent manager is
George Burley who was appointed on
23 January2008 after leaving
English Championship club
Southampton.
| Name |
Scotland career |
Played |
Won |
Drawn |
Lost |
Win % |
Points per game |
| Selection committee |
1872–1954
1954–58 |
254 |
148 |
48 |
58 |
58.27 |
1.94 |
|
1954 |
6 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
33.33 |
1.17 |
|
1958 |
6 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
16.66 |
0.83 |
|
1958 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
50.00 |
2.00 |
|
1959–60 |
11 |
4 |
3 |
4 |
36.36 |
1.36 |
|
1960–65 |
28 |
17 |
3 |
8 |
60.71 |
1.93 |
|
1965–66 |
7 |
3 |
1 |
3 |
42.86 |
1.43 |
|
1966 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
0.00 |
0.25 |
|
1966–67 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
50.00 |
2.00 |
|
1967–71 |
28 |
9 |
8 |
11 |
32.14 |
1.25 |
|
1971–72 |
12 |
7 |
2 |
3 |
58.33 |
1.92 |
|
1973–77 |
38 |
18 |
8 |
12 |
47.37 |
1.63 |
|
1977–78 |
17 |
7 |
5 |
5 |
41.18 |
1.53 |
|
1978–85 |
61 |
26 |
12 |
23 |
42.62 |
1.48 |
|
1985–86 |
10 |
3 |
4 |
3 |
30.00 |
1.30 |
|
1986–93 |
62 |
23 |
19 |
20 |
37.10 |
1.42 |
|
1993–2002 |
70 |
32 |
18 |
20 |
45.71 |
1.63 |
|
2002–04 |
31 |
8 |
7 |
16 |
23.33 |
0.93 |
|
2004 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
|
2004–07 |
16 |
7 |
5 |
4 |
43.75 |
1.63 |
|
2007 |
10 |
7 |
0 |
3 |
70.00 |
2.10 |
|
2008- |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1.00 |
| Totals |
675 |
323 |
149 |
203 |
47.85 |
1.66 |
Last updated: 23 January 2008. Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only.
Records
Kenny Dalglish holds the record for Scotland appearances, having played 102 times between 1971 and 1986. He is the only Scotland player to have reached 100
caps.
Jim Leighton is second, having played 91 times, a record for appearances by a
goalkeeper. Former Scotland manager
Alex McLeish played for Scotland 77 times and is the third most capped player.
The title of Scotland's highest goalscorer is shared by two players.
Denis Law scored 30 goals between 1958 and 1974, during which time he played for Scotland on 55 occasions.
Kenny Dalglish scored an equal number from 102 appearances.
Hughie Gallacher as well as being the third highest scorer is also the most prolific with his 23 goals coming from only 20 games (averaging 1.15 goals per game). Gallacher holds the record for goals scored in one match; he scored five goals in a 7–3 defeat of
Northern Ireland in February 1929. Other notable strikers include,
Lawrie Reilly,
Ally McCoist,
Mo Johnston and
Joe Jordan.
The largest margin of victory achieved by a Scotland side is 11–0 against
Ireland in the
1901 British Home Championship. The record defeat occurred during the 1954 World Cup, a 7–0 deficit against reigning world champions
Uruguay.
Scotland's 1937 British Home Championship match against England set a new world record for a football attendance. The Hampden Park crowd was officially recorded as 149,415, though the true figure is unknown as a large number of additional fans gained unauthorised entry. This attendance was surpassed 13 years later by the
1950 World Cup final, but remains a European record.
United Kingdom team
Scotland, alongside
England,
Northern Ireland and
Wales, has always preserved its own representative side that plays in all but one of the major professional tournaments. At the
Olympic Games, the rules only permit the
United Kingdom to compete.
London's
successful bid for the
2012 Summer Olympics, prompted suggestions that a combined UK team be created for the tournament. However, the
Scottish Football Association has stated that it won't participate in such a team as doing so would threaten the independent status of the Scottish side.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter has however stated that a UK team would in no way threaten the continued existence of the Scotland team.
Gordon Smith the chief executive of the SFA had backed a UK team for the Olympics before being appointed. When asked about the prospect on BBC Newsnight he said "Football fans might say they don't support a British team, but I like to see Britain winning medals in the Olympics. If there are four athletes in a relay team, two of them Scots, one English and one Irish, then I'd be supporting them because they were from Britain. So I'd support a British football team [atthe Olympics] and hopefully we can just allow it to happen". After being appointed SFA chief executive he decided to back the SFA's position saying "If the SFA don't want to take part, that's fine by me and I'll back that stance. I've got more important things to think about".
Despite the opposition of the Scottish Football Association and that of the
Football Association of Wales, which also opposes a UK wide team, the formation of a squad comprising players from
England and
Northern Ireland remains a possibility. In response, groups representing the supporters of all four national teams have stated their opposition to a UK team and have issued a joint statement in an attempt to prevent the amalgamation of their teams. In April 2008 it was announced a 'Four Nations' tournament could begin in 2011 with Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland involved, with the notable exclusion of England.
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