HES is inviting the public to help identify sites linked to the development of football in Scotland
On the eve of Scotland’s ninth World Cup finals, Historic Environment Scotland (HES) is launching a new project exploring the places that have shaped the development of modern football in Scotland.
HES is asking members of the public, local communities, supporters and historians across the country to suggest sites connected to the history of football in Scotland for further investigation and recording.
Sites could include grounds, pavilions, parks, buildings or other locations with a strong connection to the history of the game in Scotland.
Scotland is recognised as a pioneering football nation, but many places linked to that story are not widely known or recorded. With the help of the public, the project aims to build a fuller picture of locations throughout the country that have helped shape the game.
The project will mainly look to focus on the development of Association Football from the 1860s onwards, a time when Scotland’s first teams and players played an important role in developing and popularising the version of the sport that is played worldwide today.
The information gathered through the survey will be used to help HES identify sites for further research, recording and possible recognition as Protected Historic Places, such as listed buildings and scheduled monuments.
Victoria Murray, Head of Heritage Information, Recording and Business at HES, said: “As Scotland get ready to return to football’s world stage, it feels like the right time to look at the origins of the modern game and Scotland’s role in that story.
“Football is Scotland’s national sport and a key part of our history, and we’ve launched this project to better understand the sites that are important to our football heritage. We want to hear from anyone who knows about the places that have played a part in the development of football in Scotland.
“These could be the remains of grounds themselves – such as recently scheduled Cathkin Park or the site of First Hampden – or more varied sites with football links – such as the listed Rose Reilly pub in Glasgow’s southside, where we recently updated our records to recognise the former Hampden Bar’s connection to Reilly, who is an icon of women’s football in Scotland.
“We know that there are many people right across the country who are keen to get involved in how the history and impact of football in Scotland is recorded and celebrated, and we’d like to encourage as many as possible to take part in our survey.”
Ged O’Brien, football historian and founder of the Scottish Football Museum, welcomed the launch of the project. He said: “Football is all about memories. Many of those memories are stored in the places we love: the stadium, the pub, the park where we played. They must be recorded, cherished and protected, so that future generations can have their own memories.
“The football culture of Scotland is the football culture of world football. The historic environment of football was nurtured and brought to full bloom in a thousand corners of Scotland. They all tell us where football came from and who we are as a nation.
“It is our duty to collect and promote the places where Scottish sporting genius was turned into something tangible. They are evidence of the birth pangs of the modern game.”
Members of the public can suggest sites they would like to be considered via the consultation page on the HES website. The survey is open for submissions until Thursday 20 August 2026.
The Scottish football heritage project has been informed by Talking About Heritage, HES’s national conversation about heritage where the organisation spoke to over 6,000 people across Scotland about what heritage matters to them and how it should be looked after. For more information and to read the project report, visit the HES website.
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