Celtic F.C.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Celtic F.C. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | The Celtic Football Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname(s) | 'Bhoys', 'Hoops', 'Celts', 'Tic' | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Founded | 1888 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ground | Celtic Park | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Capacity | 60,832 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chairman |  Brian Quinn |
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| Manager | Gordon Strachan |
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| League | Scottish Premier League | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005-2006 | Scottish Premier League, 1st | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Celtic Football Club (pronounced "seltik" /sɛltɪk/ in IPA; AIM: CCP) is a Scottish football club, competing in the Scottish Premier League, the highest form of competition in Scotland. The club is based in the east end of the city of Glasgow.
The club is officially nicknamed The Bhoys. The full name of the club is The Celtic Football Club, though it is often incorrectly called Glasgow Celtic or Celtic Glasgow, particularly by foreign commentators. Until 1994 the club was called The Celtic Football and Athletic Company Ltd.
Celtic play home games at Celtic Park, which is currently the second largest club stadium in the United Kingdom. In 2005-06, Celtic Park attracted an average attendance of 58,149 [1], making Celtic third only to Manchester United [2] and Arsenal F.C. in average attendance for any football club in the UK.
Together with their rivals, Rangers F.C., they form the Old Firm which is one of the most famous and fiercest rivalries in sport. Celtic has traditionally been identified with the Catholic community of Glasgow and has strong support from Irish Catholics. Celtic's home kit is green and white hooped jerseys, white shorts and white socks.
In 1967, Celtic became the first British[3] and northern European team to win the European Champions Cup, which had previously been the preserve of Italian, Portuguese and Spanish clubs. Celtic won every competition that they entered that season: the Scottish League, the Scottish Cup, the Scottish League Cup, the European Cup and the Glasgow Cup.
Additionally, Celtic remain the only Scottish club ever to have reached the final, and are the only club ever to win the trophy with a team composed entirely of home-grown talent; [4] [5] all of the players in the side were Scottish, and all were born within a 30-mile radius of Celtic Park. Celtic again reached the European Cup final in 1970, only to be beaten by Feyenoord in extra time. In 2003 Martin O'Neill led the team to the UEFA Cup final in Seville where they lost 3-2 to F.C. Porto after extra time. Around 80,000 [6] [7] [8] Celtic supporters travelled to Seville for the final.
[edit] Formation
Celtic Football Club was formally constituted at a meeting in St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church hall on East Rose Street (now Forbes Street), Calton, Glasgow, by an Irish Marist brother named Brother Walfrid originally from Ballymote in County Sligo on 6 November 1887.
The charity established by Brother Walfrid was named The Poor Children's Dinner Table. Walfrid's move to establish the club as a means of fund raising was largely inspired by the example of Hibernian F.C. who were formed out of the immigrant Irish population thirteen years earlier in Edinburgh.
On 28 May 1888, Celtic played their first official match against Rangers and won 5-2 in what was described as a "friendly encounter". Celtic had 8 'guest' players from Hibernian playing that day.
[edit] The Old Firm and sectarianism
The term sectarian refers to a group who belongs to a religious and cultural sect, and display contempt, hatred or dislike of all others, not belonging to their sect.
Celtic have had a historic association with the peoples of Ireland.
In the context of Scottish football, sectarianism is beyond the control of any individual football club. It is a much wider issue, rooted in social, cultural, historical and religious circumstances. Nevertheless, both Celtic and Rangers accept that they have a problem with sectarianism. Both Celtic and Rangers admit that a proportion of their supporters have been, and continue to be, guilty of perpetuating sectarian beliefs and cultural intolerance. Some Celtic fans sing the Irish national anthem (A Soldier's Song) at games, and some Rangers fans, who are traditionally Loyalist, sing songs such as Billy Boys.
In recent times both clubs have taken measures to combat sectarianism. Working alongside the Scottish Parliament, church groups and community organisations, the Old Firm has clamped down on sectarian songs, inflammatory flag-waving, and troublesome supporters, using increased levels of policing and surveillance.[9][10] In 1996, for instance, Celtic launched their Bhoys Against Bigotry campaign, later followed by Youth Against Bigotry to "educate the young on having ... respect for all aspects of the community - all races, all colours, all creeds", according to then chief executive Ian McLeod.[11] In October 2006, club chairman Brian Quinn dismissed calls to institute a list of what songs are unacceptable at Celtic Park and chief executive Peter Lawwell defended the singing of "Irish ballads" at matches.[12] This followed action by Rangers in response to a 2006 fine for singing sectarian songs. [13]
[edit] Celtic and the media
Celtic have always attempted to engage directly with the fans and bypass the traditional media outlets as a method of communicating accurate information to the outside world about the inner workings of the club.
When Jock Stein was Celtic manager, he instigated a trend in British football that subsequently became known as the "tracksuit manager", where he trained publicly with the playing staff and hosted media/press conferences.
In 1965 Celtic began publishing the The Celtic View, the UK's first ever regular football club newspaper.
In 2004 Celtic launched its own digital TV channel Celtic TV available in the UK through Setanta Sports on satellite and cable platforms. Since 2002 Celtic's Internet TV channel, Channel67 (previously known as Celtic Replay), has broadcast Celtic's own content worldwide, offers live match coverage to subscribers outside the UK, and now provides 3 online channels.
[edit] Recent seasons
- Further information: History of Celtic F.C.
[edit] 2003-04
- Further information: Celtic F.C. season 2003-04
After a draw in the opening game of the season, Celtic notched up a record-setting 25-match winning run, giving Celtic a healthy lead in the title race. Celtic did not lose a game until after the club's 39th championship was delivered.
The 2003-04 season also saw Celtic notch up four league wins over Rangers, and one in the Scottish Cup - the first time in either club's history when a five-match "whitewash" had been achieved.
Club hero Henrik Larsson played his final professional match for Celtic in the 2004 Scottish Cup Final victory over Dunfermline, scoring two goals, with Bulgarian Stilian Petrov's goal following Larsson's goals to overturn an early setback, and handing Celtic their second double under Martin O'Neill.
Larsson is now widely acknowledged as one of the club's greatest ever players, and ranks amongst the top three goalscorers in the club's history.
[edit] 2004-05
- Further information: Celtic F.C. season 2004-05
Following a close race for the SPL title, with Rangers closely following, the club extended their lead at the top of the SPL table to two points as they lined up for the final game of the season, with a win at Motherwell F.C. required to seal the title. With two minutes remaining on the clock, Celtic were leading 1 – 0 — a result which would have handed them the league.
However, Motherwell's Scott McDonald netted two last-minute goals. Rangers defeated Hibernian F.C. 1 – 0 at Easter Road, thereby winning the league championship title. Earlier in the season Celtic recorded a record seventh straight win over city rivals Rangers.
Celtic ended the season one week later with a 1–0 win over Dundee United F.C. in the Scottish Cup Final, which was marked by fans as Martin O'Neill's final match as manager.
On 25 May 2005, O'Neill announced he would resign as manager of Celtic at the end of 2004-05 season along with first team coach Steve Walford and assistant manager John Robertson. It was widely reported that O'Neill decided to take time out of football in order to care for his ailing wife Geraldine, who is ill with lymphoma. He is currently manager of Aston Villa F.C.
Martin O'Neill is now recognised as Celtic's most successful manager since Jock Stein, third greatest[citation needed] after Stein and Willie Maley and is credited with helping to restore some pride in Celtic's ability to compete on the European stage.
[edit] 2005-06
- Further information: Celtic F.C. season 2005-06
Former Aberdeen F.C. player and Scotland international Gordon Strachan from Edinburgh took charge of the club on 1 June 2005, on a 12-month rolling contract, similar to O'Neill's arrangement with the club; his contract effectively extending for one calendar year from any current date. Garry Pendrey was appointed as Strachan's assistant manager.
In his first competitive match, against Artmedia Bratislava on 27 July 2005, Celtic lost 5-0 in the first leg of an important Champions League 2nd Round qualifier, suffering the worst European defeat in the club's history and the widest margin of defeat since the 1963-64 season, when the club lost 6-0 to Kilmarnock F.C. at Rugby Park.
In Strachan's first domestic match of the 2005-06 SPL season, Celtic relinquished a 3-1 half-time lead over Motherwell F.C. at Fir Park on 30 July 2005, the game ending in a 4-4 draw after Celtic managed to equalise through a goal by Craig Beattie.
The nine goals against Celtic in Strachan's first two competitive matches is the biggest goal tally scored against the club in successive matches for 14 years.
In the return leg of the Champions League 2nd Round qualifier against Artmedia at Celtic Park, Strachan's vastly improved side won 4-0 but were eliminated from European competition 5-4 on aggregate.
However, following these setbacks, and a defeat against Rangers in the pair's first match of the season at Ibrox, Celtic recorded a series of victories, including beating Rangers twice, and returned to the top of the SPL - a vast improvement on their form at the start of the season.
Celtic knocked arch rivals Rangers out of the League cup on 19 November 2005. Celtic were knocked out of the Scottish Cup on 8 January 2006 by First Division side Clyde F.C.
Celtic beat Rangers again on 12 February to make it 17 wins from the previous 21 Old Firm games. Celtic won the CIS Cup, with a 3-0 win over Dunfermline Athletic on 19 March. They created a new scoring record for the SPL, an 8-1 victory against Dunfermline in February 2006, where Maciej Żurawski scored 4 goals and assisted in 2 others.
On 5 April 2006 Celtic clinched their 40th title thanks to a goal from John Hartson in a 1-0 win against Hearts at Celtic Park. The title was Celtic's fourth title in six years. This feat was achieved with six games remaining until the end of the season and before the SPL split. The Bhoys lifted the SPL trophy on Easter Sunday 2006 at home to Hibernian, after a 1-1 draw.
In April 2006, Celtic's reserve and Under-19 teams also won their championships, completing a clean sweep of Scotland's league competitions. Celtic's reserve team have now won their league 5 years in a row and the Under-19 have won their league 4 years in a row.
[edit] 2006-07
- Further information: Celtic F.C. season 2006-07
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Such was the good form of Celtic and the lack of a clear rival in the early stages of the 2006/07 season, that bookmakers Paddy Power took the unprecedented step of paying out on Celtic as the winners of the SPL on November 4, 2006, only 13 games into the season. By mid-November Celtic were 15 points clear of their nearest challengers.
On November 21, Celtic defeated Manchester United 1-0 at home earning them qualification to the knockout stage of the last 16 teams for the first time since the format was altered in 1993, drawing AC Milan. After both legs of the tie ended 0-0, Celtic's Champions League run was ended by a solitary goal in extra-time by AC Milan.
During the January 2007 transfer window Celtic signed Scotland internationals and former Hearts players Steven Pressley and Paul Hartley, centre back Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé from Rennes and goalkeeper Mark Brown from Inverness Caledonian Thistle.
In March, Celtic lost three games running for the first time in 13 years, losing to AC Milan, Rangers and Falkirk. Despite the slide they remained 13 points clear of Rangers.
On March 26, Celtic were fined 1000 Swiss francs for the conduct of their supporters during the Champions League match against AC Milan at the San Siro, where two water bottles being thrown were reported. The club are considering an appeal as the bottles did not come from the area specifically designated for Celtic supporters, and Celtic supporters were to be denied access to anywhere but their own area.[14]
[edit] Club records
- The Scottish Cup final win against Aberdeen F.C. in 1937 was attended by a crowd of 146,433 at Hampden Park in Glasgow, which remains a record for a club match in European football.
- Celtic currently hold the UK record for an unbeaten run in professional football: 62 games (49 won, 13 drawn), from 13 November 1915 until 21 April 1917- a total of 17 months and four days in all (they lost at home to Kilmarnock F.C. on the last day of the season).
- Celtic also hold the SPL record for an unbeaten run of home matches (77), spanning from 2001 to 2004 (this run was ended by a 2-1 defeat to Aberdeen on 21 April 2004), and the record for the longest run of consecutive wins in a single season (25 matches).
- Record victory: 11-0, against Dundee in 1895.
- Record defeat: 0-8 against Motherwell F.C. in 1937.
- Record home defeat: 0-8 against Dumbarton F.C. in 1892.
- Record post war home defeat 1-5 Aberdeen 1948.
- Record European victory 9-0 KPV Kokkola (Finland), 1970.
- Record European defeat: 0-5 against FC Artmedia Bratislava on 27 July 2005.
- Record victory against Rangers: 7-1 1957 Scottish league cup final.
- Complete record v Rangers P371 W91 D133 L147 F508 A529
- Record points earned in a season: 72 (Premier Division, 1987/88, 2 points for a win); 103 (Scottish Premier League, 2001/02, 3 points for a win), also the SPL points tally record.
- Record home attendance: 92,000 against Rangers F.C. in 1938. A 3-0 victory for Celtic.
- Most capped player: 102, Kenny Dalglish: Scotland
- Record appearances: Billy McNeill, 790 from 1957 - 1975.
- Most goals in a season: Henrik Larsson, 53.
- Record scorer: Jimmy McGrory, 468 (plus 13 whilst on loan at Clydebank).
- First British club to reach the final of the European Cup.
- First and only Scottish club to reach the final of the European Cup.
- First Scottish, British and northern European team to win the European Cup.
- First and only European club to win four trophies in one season.
- Only club in history to have won the European Cup with a team comprised entirely of home-grown talent
- Hold the record for the highest score in a domestic cup final: Celtic 7 - 1 Rangers, Scottish League Cup Final 1957.
- Hold the record for the highest attendance for a European club competition match: Celtic v Leeds United in the European Cup semi-final 1970 at Hampden Park, Glasgow. Official attendance 136,505.
- Fastest hat-trick in European Club Football - Mark Burchill v Jeunesse Esch of Luxembourg in 2000.
- Earliest SPL Championship won. Won with 6 games to go against Kilmarnock on 18 April 2004 and Hearts on 5 April 2006.
- First weekly club publication in the UK.
- Biggest margin of victory in the SPL. 8-1 against Dunfermline, February 2006.
- First stadium in the UK to stage motorcycle speedway racing on 28 April 1928.
[edit] Major honours
- European Champions Cup (1): 1967, Runner-up 1970.
- UEFA Cup Runner-up 2003.
- Scottish Football League Champions (40): 1893, 1894, 1896, 1898, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1919, 1922, 1926, 1936, 1938, 1954, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 19741, 1977, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006
- Scottish Cup (33): 1892, 1899, 1900, 1904, 1907, 1908, 1911, 1912, 1914, 1923, 1925, 1927, 1931, 1933, 1937, 1951, 1954, 1965, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1995, 2001, 2004, 2005
- Scottish League Cup (13): 1957, 1958, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1975, 1983, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2006.
1 - Set a record of nine championships in a row. It was equalled by Rangers in 1997.
[edit] Other honours
- Glasgow Cup (29): 1891, 1892, 1895, 1896, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1916, 1917, 1920, 1921, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931, 1939, 1941, 1949, 1956, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1975*, 1982 (* 1975 shared with Rangers after 2-2 draw)
- Glasgow Merchant's Charity Cup (23)
- Glasgow Football League: 1899
- Inter City Football League: 1900
- Glasgow International Exhibition Cup: 1902
- Scottish League Commemorative Shield: 1904/05, 1909/10
- Ferencvaros Vase: 1914
- Empire Exhibition Trophy: 1938
- Victory In Europe Cup: 1945
- Saint Mungo Cup: 1951
- Coronation Cup: 1953.
- Alfredo di Stefano Trophy: 1967
- Statuette of Samothrace: 1970 (L'Equipe European Team of the Year)
- Drybrough Cup: 1974.
- Polar Bear Trophy: 1975 (Presented by Valur of Iceland)
- Real Madrid Silver Cabin: 1980
- Tennents' Sixes: 1992.
[edit] All time scorers
Top 10 all time goal-scorers (including, League, Scottish Cup, League Cup and European goals):
- Jimmy McGrory - 468 (McGrory also holds the record for the most professional career league goals in British football history).
- Bobby Lennox - 273
- Henrik Larsson - 242
- Stevie Chalmers - 231
- Jimmy Quinn - 217
- Patsy Gallacher - 192
- John Hughes - 188
- Sandy McMahon - 177
- Jimmy McMenemy - 168
- Kenny Dalglish - 167
Top 10 League goal-scorers:
- Jimmy McGrory- 397
- Jimmy Quinn - 187
- Patsy Gallacher - 186
- Henrik Larsson - 174
- Bobby Lennox - 167
- Stevie Chalmers - 159
- Jimmy McMenemy - 144
- Sandy McMahon - 130
- Adam McLean - 128
- John Hughes - 115
[edit] All time appearances
Top 10
- Billy McNeill - 790
- Paul McStay - 678
- Roy Aitken - 669
- Danny McGrain - 661
- Pat Bonner - 642
- Bobby Lennox - 587
- Bobby Evans - 548
- Jimmy McMenemy - 515
- Jimmy Johnstone - 515
- Tommy Burns - 504
[edit] Managers
- Willie Maley, 1897 - 1940
- Jimmy McStay, 1940 - 1945
- Jimmy McGrory, 1945 - 1965
- Jock Stein, 1965 - 1978
- Billy McNeill, 1978 - 1983
- David Hay, 1983 - 1987
- Billy McNeill, 1987 - 1991
Liam Brady, 1991 - 1992- Lou Macari, 1992 - 1994
- Tommy Burns, 1994 - 1997
Wim Jansen, 1997 - 1998
Jozef Vengloš, 1998 - 1999
John Barnes, 1999 - 2000- Kenny Dalglish, 2000 (Previously serving as Director of Football)
Martin O'Neill, 2000 - 2005- Gordon Strachan, 2005 -
[edit] Current squad
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[edit] Players out on loan
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[edit] Reserve & youth squad
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[edit] Non-playing staff
- Chairman: Brian Quinn
- Chief Executive: Peter Lawwell
- Director of Finance: Eric J. Riley
- Non-Executive Directors: Dermot Desmond, Eric Hagman, Thomas E. Allison, Brian McBride, Brian Wilson
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[edit] Notable former players
[edit] Greatest ever team
| Greatest ever Celtic team |
The following team was voted the greatest ever Celtic team by supporters in 2002. [15]
- Ronnie Simpson
- Danny McGrain
- Tommy Gemmell
- Bobby Murdoch
- Billy McNeill - greatest ever captain
- Bertie Auld
- Jimmy Johnstone- greatest ever player
- Paul McStay
- Kenny Dalglish
Henrik Larsson- Bobby Lennox
- Jock Stein - voted greatest ever Celtic manager
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.scotprem.premiumtv.co.uk/page/Attendance/0,,10002~20053,00.html
- ^ http://www.footballeconomy.com/stats/stats_att_04.htm
- ^ Celtic FC- Milestones in the history of Celtic Football Club
- ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/sportscotland/asportingnation/article/0045/print.shtml
- ^ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/2003/05/20/celtic_history/
- ^ http://observer.guardian.co.uk/gallery/0,8561,972767,00.html
- ^ http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=98023&cc=5739
- ^ http://www.fifa.com/en/mens/awards/gala/0,2418,73590,00.html?articleid=73590
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/5236284.stm
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/r/rangers/5222454.stm
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1593970.stm
- ^ http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/sport.cfm?id=1587672006 'Vile' sectarian songs embarrass Celtic, The Scotsman
- ^ Rangers told to axe 'Billy Boys', BBC Sport, 9 June 2006
- ^ "Celtic fined for bottle throwing", BBC Sport website, March 26, 2007.
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/2245965.stm
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[edit] See also
- Sport in Scotland
- Football in Scotland
- Celtic Park
- Celtic TV
- The Celtic View
- Celtic F.C. Songs
- History of Celtic F.C.
- Pronunciation of Celtic
- Lisbon Lions
- European Cup 1966-67
- UEFA Cup 2002-03
- The Bhoys from Seville
- Old Firm
- 1967 European Cup Final
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Real Madrid |
European Cup Winner 1967 |
Succeeded by Manchester United |
Categories: Companies listed on the Alternative Investment Market | Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | Articles lacking sources from December 2006 | All articles lacking sources | Celtic F.C. | Scottish football clubs | Sport in Glasgow | Publicly traded sports companies | Football (soccer) clubs established in 1888
