Full name | The Celtic Football Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nickname(s) | The Bhoys (official) The Celts The Hoops |
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Founded | 1888 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ground | Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland (Capacity: 60,832) |
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Chairman | Dr John Reid MP | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manager | Gordon Strachan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
League | Scottish Premier League | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2007/08 | Scottish Premier League, 1st |
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All-time top scorer | James McGrory (522) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Current season |
The Celtic Football Club are a Scottish football club based in the east end of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. Celtic are the champions of Scotland, having completed a hat-trick of titles on 22 May 2008, the final day of the 2007/08 season. Since its formation in 1888, Celtic have won the Scottish crown on 42 occasions and the Scottish Cup 34 times (a record), and are the only Scottish team to have won Europe's premier football competition, the European Cup, in 1967. Celtic's home stadium is Celtic Park (commonly referred to as Parkhead after the area of Glasgow in which it is situated) which has a capacity of 60,832, making it the largest football stadium in Scotland. Together with their Glasgow rivals, Rangers, they form the Old Firm, one of the most famous and fierce rivalries in sport. The club's traditional playing colours are green and white hooped shirts with white shorts and white socks.
In 1966/67 season, Celtic became the first British team to win the European Cup (now known as the UEFA Champions League), and are one of only two clubs ever to win the competition with a team composed entirely of home-grown talent (along with Steaua Bucharest of Romania in 1986).[1][2]. All of the players, subsequently known as the Lisbon Lions, were born within a 30-mile radius of Celtic Park. Celtic won every competition that they entered that season: the Scottish League Championship, the Scottish Cup, the Scottish League Cup, the European Cup and the Glasgow Cup, to become the first, and so far only, team to win the Quadruple. Celtic also reached the 1970 European Cup Final, but were beaten by Feyenoord.
In 2003 Celtic reached the UEFA Cup final, where they lost 3–2 to FC Porto. Approximately 80,000 Celtic supporters travelled to Seville for this game, the largest foreign travelling support in history at the time. The fans also received awards from UEFA and FIFA for their behaviour throughout the tournament.[3][4][5] Celtic have an estimated fan base of nine million, including one million in North America.[6]
Celtic were formally founded at a meeting in St. Mary's Church Hall on East Rose Street (now Forbes Street), Calton, Glasgow, by Brother Walfrid, an Irish Marist brother, on 6 November 1887. The purpose stated in the official club records as "being to alleviate poverty in Glasgow's East End parishes".
Walfrid's move to establish the club as a means of fund raising for his charity, The Poor Children's Dinner Table, was largely inspired by the example of Hibernian who were formed out of the immigrant Irish population thirteen years earlier in Edinburgh. Walfrid's own suggestion of the name 'Celtic' (pronounced Seltik), was intended to reflect the club's Irish and Scottish roots, and was adopted at the same meeting.
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. The club's first ever goal was scored by Neil McCallum in this match. During these formative years, Celtic played in a white shirt with a green collar and a red Celtic cross on the breast, then switched to green and white vertical stripes around 1890. They made the switch to their iconic green-and-white hoops in 1903.
In 1965 Celtic began publishing The Celtic View, the oldest club magazine in football [7].
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.
Celtic have a historic association with the people of Ireland and Scots of Irish extraction, who are both predominantly Catholic. However, Celtic has never promoted itself as a club for Catholics only. Throughout it's history Celtic has prided itself as being a club for everyone. Fans of rivals Rangers FC tended to come from Scottish Protestant backgrounds and were supporters of British Unionism. As a result both clubs became linked to the opposing factions in the political difficulties of Northern Ireland, which intensified the rivalry in Scotland.
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, hand gestures, and troublesome supporters, using increased levels of policing and surveillance.[8][9] 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.[10]
Celtic began the 2005/06 season with a new manager: Gordon Strachan, the former Scotland, Aberdeen and Manchester United midfielder took over from Martin O'Neill. Garry Pendrey was appointed as Strachan's assistant manager.
Before his first game, he was already being criticized by the press for signing unknown players such as Japanese midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura from relegation battlers Reggina of Serie A and Polish goalkeeper Artur Boruc from Legia Warsaw. In Celtic's first competitive game under Strachan, they lost 5–0 in a UEFA Champions League qualifier to Slovakian minnows Artmedia Bratislava. Strachan was under more pressure after the first SPL game of the season after his side lost a 3–1 lead away to Motherwell and only escaped with a point after grabbing a late equaliser in a 4–4 draw. The shoots of recovery started to grow with a 4–0 win in the home leg of the Champions League tie with Artmedia and although Celtic lost 3–1 to Rangers in the first Glasgow derby of the season, the team went on a 13 game unbeaten run, winning 12 of those games before losing to Dunfermline Athletic.
Celtic showed their Championship credentials on New Year's Day 2006, after staging a late comeback to beat Hearts 3–2 in a top-of-the-table clash at Tynecastle thanks to two late goals from centre-half Stephen McManus.
After signing Roy Keane from Manchester United in January 2006, Celtic lost to Clyde 2–1 in the Scottish Cup Third Round. Their impressive league form continued however and on 19 February 2006 Celtic set a new scoring record for the SPL, an 8–1 victory at East End Park against Dunfermline, where Polish striker Maciej Żurawski scored 4 goals and assisted in 2 others.
On 19 March, Gordon Strachan won his first trophy for Celtic with a 3–0 win over Dunfermline in the final of the Scottish League Cup.
On 5 April, Celtic clinched their 40th league title thanks to a goal from John Hartson in a 1–0 win against Hearts at Celtic Park. The title was Celtic's fourth 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 had won their league 5 years in a row and the Under-19s had won their league 4 years in a row.
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 paid out on Celtic as the winners of the SPL on 4 November 2006, only 13 games into the season.[11] By mid-November Celtic were 15 points clear of their nearest challengers.
Having qualified automatically for the group stage of the Champions League, Celtic were drawn with Benfica, F.C. Copenhagen, and Manchester United. Although Celtic lost their 3 away games, a 100% record at home earned them qualification to the knockout stage for the first time since the format was altered in 1993. Their opponents in the last 16 were AC Milan. After both legs of the tie ended 0–0, Celtic's Champions League run was ended by a solitary Milan goal in extra-time by Kaká.
During the January 2007 transfer window Celtic signed Scotland internationals and former Heart's players Steven Pressley and Paul Hartley, full-back Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé from Rennes on loan and goalkeeper Mark Brown from Inverness Caledonian Thistle.
On 22 April 2007 Celtic won their 41st league championship, and second in a row. The title was won by an injury-time free-kick from Shunsuke Nakamura in a 2–1 victory against Kilmarnock.[12] The result left Celtic 13 points clear of Rangers with four matches remaining. They finished the season 12 points above Rangers.
On 26 May 2007 Celtic won the Scottish Cup for a record 34th time after beating Dunfermline 1–0. The winner was scored by Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé in the 84th minute.
Celtic bolstered their side for the 2007/08 season, signing Scott Brown, Chris Killen, Scott McDonald and Massimo Donati. Skipper Neil Lennon left for Nottingham Forest after seven years with the club, with Stephen McManus taking over the club captaincy.[13] However Lennon returned to the club later in the season as a coach.
Celtic were drawn against Russian side Spartak Moscow in the third round of qualifying for the 2007/08 Champions League. The tie ended in a penalty shootout, with Artur Boruc saving twice to ensure Celtic's passage to the next round. This was Celtic's first European penalty shootout victory. They competed against AC Milan, Benfica and FC Shakhtar Donetsk in the group stages, who they beat 2–1, 1–0, and 2–1 respectively at home, but losing all their away matches. They finished second in their group, ensuring qualification to the knockout stage for the second year in succession. Celtic were drawn against FC Barcelona in the last 16 of the Champions League. The first leg, played at Celtic Park, saw them defeated 3–2, after being ahead 1–0 and 2–1. In the second leg Barcelona grabbed an early goal through Xavi and held on for a 1–0 win on the night and 4–2 on aggregate.
The club's first signing of the winter transfer window was Andreas Hinkel. They followed up by signing Japanese youngster Koki Mizuno, Barry Robson from Dundee Utd as well as young striker Ben Hutchinson from Middlesbrough.
Although leading for the early part of the season, Celtic found themselves 7 points behind Rangers having played a game more with only seven weeks of the season left, because of this the manager was badly criticised and there was speculation that he might be sacked or resign. However, the club made a remarkable comeback, winning their last 7 games, including two victories over rivals Rangers at Celtic Park 2–1 and 3–2, and won the league on 22 May 2008, the last day of the season with a 1–0 win over Dundee United. Meanwhile Rangers lost to Aberdeen at Pittodrie. The victory was dedicated to the memory of Tommy Burns, former player and manager, who had died the previous Thursday. The result also meant Gordon Strachan became only the third Celtic manager to win three consecutive League Championships.
Celtic signed winger Pat McCourt from League of Ireland side Derry City on a 3 year contract on 19 June. Greek international striker Georgios Samaras, who had spent the 2nd half of the 2007/08 season on loan from Manchester City signed on a permanent basis on 14 July after agreeing a 3 year contract. Celtic also added the signings of Marc Crosas, Glenn Loovens and the return of Shaun Maloney from Aston Villa before the closure of the Summer transfer window.
As SPL Champions, Celtic gained automatic entry to the UEFA Champions League, but after being drawn with Manchester United, Villarreal, and AaB Aalborg, they finished bottom of their group.
Celtic are currently top of the SPL, and have qualified for the semi-finals of the League Cup, and will play Dundee United at Hampden Park on Wednesday 28 January 2009.
* 1975 trophy shared with Rangers after a 2–2 draw
# | Name | Career | Goals |
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1 | James McGrory | 1922–1937 | 522 |
2 | Bobby Lennox | 1961–1978 1979-1980 |
273 |
3 | Henrik Larsson | 1997–2004 | 242 |
4 | Stevie Chalmers | 1958–1971 | 231 |
5 | Jimmy Quinn | 1900–1917 | 217 |
6 | Patsy Gallacher | 1911–1926 | 192 |
7 | John Hughes | 1960–1971 | 189 |
8 | Sandy McMahon | 1891–1903 | 171 |
9 | Jimmy McMenemy | 1902–1920 | 168 |
10 | Kenny Dalglish | 1969–1977 | 167 |
# | Name | Career | Goals |
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1 | James McGrory | 1922–1937 | 397 |
2 | Jimmy Quinn | 1900–1917 | 187 |
3 | Patsy Gallacher | 1911–1926 | 186 |
4 | Henrik Larsson | 1997–2004 | 174 |
5 | Bobby Lennox | 1961–1978 1979–1980 |
167 |
6 | Stevie Chalmers | 1958–1971 | 159 |
7 | Jimmy McMenemy | 1902–1920 | 144 |
8 | Sandy McMahon | 1891–1903 | 130 |
9 | Adam McLean | 1917–1928 | 128 |
10 | John Hughes | 1960–1971 | 115 |
# | Name | Career | Apps |
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1 | Billy McNeill | 1957–1975 | 790 |
2 | Paul McStay | 1981–1997 | 678 |
3 | Roy Aitken | 1976–1990 | 669 |
4 | Danny McGrain | 1970–1987 | 661 |
5 | Packie Bonner | 1978–1995 | 642 |
6 | Bobby Lennox | 1961–1978 1979–1980 |
587 |
7 | Bobby Evans | 1944–1960 | 548 |
8 | Jimmy Johnstone | 1962–1975 | 515 |
9 | Jimmy McMenemy | 1902–1920 | 515 |
10 | Tommy Burns | 1975–1989 | 504 |
Name | Scottish League | Scottish Cup | Scottish League Cup | European Cup | Total |
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Willie Maley 1897–1940 | 16 | 14 | — | — | 30 |
Jimmy McStay 1940–1945 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 |
Jimmy McGrory 1945–1965 | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | 5 |
Jock Stein 1965–1978 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 25 |
Billy McNeill 1978–1983, 1987–1991 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 |
David Hay 1983–1987 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Liam Brady 1991–1993 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Lou Macari 1993–1994 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Tommy Burns 1994–1997 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Wim Jansen 1997–1998 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Jozef Vengloš 1998–1999 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
John Barnes 1999–2000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kenny Dalglish 2000 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Martin O'Neill 2000–2005 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
Gordon Strachan 2005–present | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
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Position | Name |
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Chairman | Dr John Reid |
Chief Executive | Peter Lawwell |
Director of Finance | Eric J. Riley |
Non-Executive Director | Ian Livingston |
Non-Executive Director | Dermot Desmond |
Non-Executive Director | Eric Hagman |
Non-Executive Director | Thomas E. Allison |
Non-Executive Director | Brian McBride[19] |
Non-Executive Director | Brian Wilson |
Commercial Director | Adrian Filby |
Director of International Developments | Jason Hughes |
Position | Name |
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Manager | Gordon Strachan OBE |
Assistant Manager | Garry Pendrey |
First Team Coach | Neil Lennon |
Reserve Team Coach | Willie McStay |
Reserve Assistant Team Coach | Danny McGrain |
Head of Youth Development | Chris McCart |
Youth Team Coach | John McLaughlan |
Under 17's Coach | Joe McBride |
Goalkeeping Coach | Jim Blyth |
Goalkeeping Coach | Chris Hannah |
Goalkeeping Coach | Stevie Woods |
Club Doctor | Derek McCormack |
Head of Sports Science | Gregory Dupont |
Physiotherapist | Graham Parsons |
Physiotherapist | Gavin McCarthy |
Kit Controller | John Clark |
Football Development Manager | John Park |
Chief Scout | Ray Clarke |
Scout | Tommy O'Neill |
See List of Celtic F.C. players for players with over 100 appearances, List of Celtic F.C. international footballers and Category:Celtic FC players
So far 7 Celtic players have entered the Scotland Football Hall of Fame:
In the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame 5 Celtic players have been selected, they are:
Greatest ever Celtic team |
The following team was voted the greatest ever Celtic team by supporters in 2002.[20]
Preceded by Real Madrid |
European Cup Winner 1967 |
Succeeded by Manchester United |
Celtic FC
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