Many years ago I bought a little silver buckle at an antique fair. Now I have finally established that its original owner, Hugh McColl, was a football pioneer in Scotland and Chile. Read about his story: www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

Search for stolen rugby caps, 40 years on www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...?

Many years ago I bought a little silver buckle at an antique fair. Now I have finally established that its original owner, Hugh McColl, was a football pioneer in Scotland and Chile. Read about his story: www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

Disappointing, not a single induction to the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame again this year. Sportscotland ignore Sir Alex Ferguson, Doddie Weir, Eve Muirhead, David Coulthard, Catriona Matthew, Paul Lawrie, Eilidh Doyle. Is the Hall of Fame dead? sportfirst.sportscotland.org.uk/articles/sco...

🇲🇦🇰🇲 Scotland's World Cup opponents, Morocco, kicked off the African Cup of Nations finals in Rabat with a 2-0 win over Comoros. Ayoub El Kaabi scored Morocco's second with a McTominay-esque overhead kick.

Less than 3 weeks until #AThousandBlows season 2! Here's my season 1 'true stories Vs the show' blog. Hezekiah might not be Jamaican He didn't arrive with Alec He wasn't a bareknuckle guy He didn't dream of lion taming Wife WAS white & called Mary &c. grapplingwithhistory.com/2025/03/11/h...

🆕 TTAM-0048 St Bernard's 'In Memoriam' Card - This little postcard-like oddity belonged to an old St Bernard's supporter whose collection was inherited by @andymitchellmedia.bsky.social many years ago; a bit of black humour from the Saints fans! 👉 www.thethistlearchive.net/archive-muse...

Well well well (!) a more contemporary representation of the St Bernard's badge is now applied to our Thistle Archive, with thanks to @andymitchellmedia.bsky.social for digging it out... 👉 thethistlearchive.net/versus-st-be...

Still time to order these football history books for Christmas! www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B096TN55XY/ www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1986612449/ www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1475206844/ www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B085HMV4CS/

Still time to order these football history books for Christmas! www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B096TN55XY/ www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1986612449/ www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1475206844/ www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B085HMV4CS/

New book just out: Fifty Scottish Footballers by Alistair Firth and Martin Donnelly. Fascinating project to celebrate the memorials to Scotland caps. £10 from www.lulu.com/shop/alistai...

[Sport à lire] Le 15 décembre 1995, il y a trente ans aujourd’hui, l’arrêt Bosman était promulgué par la Cour européenne. Une révolution dans le monde du football, mais une victoire amère pour Jean-Marc Bosman, l’homme à l’origine de l’affaire…

New book just out: Fifty Scottish Footballers by Alistair Firth and Martin Donnelly. Fascinating project to celebrate the memorials to Scotland caps. £10 from www.lulu.com/shop/alistai...

The Scots revolutionised football, but did Scotland invent soccer? It's complicated... The new episode of 'Rugby Reloaded' unravels the tangled origins of the round-ball game north and south of the border: on.soundcloud.com/jfgUfdyTeFiE...

#OnThisDay 12 Dec 1872 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Third Lanark Athletic Club was formed out of a Scottish regiment The club won 1x Scottish League title🏆 and 2x Scottish Cups🏆🏆 ‘The Thirds' played here at Cathkin Park, Glasgow, until folding in 1967. The stadium still exists as a unique public park.

Happy birthday football!🎂 201 years ago today, on 11 December 1824, the world's first football club was founded in Edinburgh. The players hired a field, bought a ball, set up goalposts and continued to play regularly for almost two decades. More: www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

The full story of the world's first football club, founded #OTD in 1824 in Edinburgh, is told in this ground-breaking book. Price now just £10, post free, and available worldwide: www.amazon.co.uk/Worlds-First...

Happy birthday football!🎂 201 years ago today, on 11 December 1824, the world's first football club was founded in Edinburgh. The players hired a field, bought a ball, set up goalposts and continued to play regularly for almost two decades. More: www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

Stuck for a Scottish football book as a Christmas present? My Who's Who contains comprehensive biographies of every one of the 615 internationalists who represented Scotland between 1872 and 1939. Every review on amazon is five stars! www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...

Stuck for a Scottish football book as a Christmas present? My Who's Who contains comprehensive biographies of every one of the 615 internationalists who represented Scotland between 1872 and 1939. Every review on amazon is five stars! www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...

⚡️ @UEFA fined Ukraine for a “Russia is a terrorist state” banner while still sending millions in solidarity funds to Russian clubs. 🧵 1/5 ⬇️

Good to see Rod Stewart taking an interest in football history! www.fifamuseum.com/en/explore/f...

The world could be a dangerous place in the 1930s! I'm loving these Safety First cigarette cards, especially the advice not to read while walking - just replace newspaper for smartphone. Nothing about the dangers of smoking, curiously enough.

Christmas is a time for giving, appreciating & reflecting on what matters most. For those starting again in Scotland the reality is very different. Give a loved one a meaningful gift: donate in their name to help someone start again in safety. Order a £5 e-gift here: ow.ly/Brg850XA5r7 🧡

I'm always interested to get feedback on my books, but this email I got the other day just sounded a bit 'off' even though it purported to come from a genuine author. I contacted her to check: turns out its an AI-generated scam of some sorts, despite being well written and plausible. Worrying.

Today, in "things you never thought you'd ever hear said"

#OTD 4 December 1815, the Carterhaugh Ba' Game - an early Scottish football event, part of the 'primordial soup' of ball games that ultimately led to the modern sports of association and rugby football. www.fifamuseum.com/en/explore/f...

2 of 4 This has been a labour of love and is a result of their quest to find the graves of every Scot who played for the Nation. How do you buy it? Simples. tinyurl.com/3dy926bx Get on to Lulu and have a wee look. Christmas giving is starting to look that little bit easier.

1 of 4 #scotsfoundedfootball Today is a good day for Football History. A new book is out. ‘Fifty Scottish Footballers’ by Alistair Firth and Martin Donnelly. Both colleagues from the Scots Football Historians’ Group. Both assiduous cataloguers of the Nation’s sporting history.

1 of 4 #scotsfoundedfootball OTD a football match began in Glasgow. One which would change sporting history. Inspired by the coaching of Robert Gardner, a TEAM of Scots from many parts of the nation took on a team picked by a London Association struggling to make its way.

140 years ago this week in 1885 the word 'soccer' first appeared in print to describe association football - unless anyone can come up with an earlier example! The exact origins of 'soccer' and 'rugger' remain obscure, here's why: www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

Emma Clarke, pioneering footballer with the British Ladies FC, died 100 years ago today, 27 November 1925. She has a fascinating story, this is what I wrote about her: www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

A new experience in 50+ years of watching football. Am in Madeira, about to watch Maritimo v Penafiel in Portugal second division. Kick off delayed by 20 minutes as both touchlines are having to be repainted 🧐

Well, at least one Dane has qualified for the World Cup. Panama, who topped their group last night, are managed by Thomas Christiansen. (And yes, I know he is naturalised Spanish)

Seems like a good time to crack open this wee bottle which I've been saving since 1998. #Scotland

Today's front page 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Oh Scotland. Magnificent.

At risk of sounding desperate (also, WHY ARE ALL THE JOURNOS STILL ON X) - if you're a TV / history writer or podcaster and fancy doing something on Season II of #AThousandBlows and the true history of 1880s boxing and boxers, get in touch. Disney PR aren't likely to put me forward for things again.

1 of 4 #scotsfoundedfootball 5 years ago, I wrote about an article by Andy Mitchell @andymitchellmedia.bsky.social A masterly work which is much more important than people realise tinyurl.com/kc3xmpbj by I came to it via Richard McBrearty’s masterful analysis ‘Glasgow Before the Explosion’.

Ahead of Scotland's World Cup showdown against Denmark, here's the story of the Scot who helped to establish football in Copenhagen. I think they owe us one... www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

This is a great project: a reverse advent calender to donate to an Edinburgh foodbank this Xmas. Have a keek: edinburghfoodproject.org/reverse-adve...

Ahead of Scotland's World Cup showdown against Denmark, here's the story of the Scot who helped to establish football in Copenhagen. I think they owe us one... www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿⚽️ Your morning round up of the latest Scottish football news. Hampden to host six EURO 2028 games. Bill Foley sells his 25% stake in Hibs. SWNT squad announced. Scotland Under-19s draw 2-2 with Latvia. Glasgow City draw 1-1 in Europe. 📰 www.scottishfootballkickoff.co.uk/p/the-kick-o...

There was such a big opportunity for FIFA to not do this when every other sport/entertainment event in the US is. To not do dynamic pricing. To not fleece ordinary fans. To make the World Cup accessible and genuinely grow the game. Instead Gianni got dollar signs in his eyes.

1 #OTD 1969 Celtic beat Benfica 3-0 in the European Cup (lost 2nd leg by same score & won on a coin toss), Attendance 74,894 & as old Wullie Shakespeare said thereby hangs a tale. Never one to miss out on the main chance Celtic chairman Bob Kelly issued a public sale of tickets before a reserve game

Over a decade ago, I wrote this blog about Danish footballer Carl Hansen and his wartime experiences. I suggested his book would be a great project for translation and I'm delighted that Ian Hogg has taken up the challenge and produced a free ebook! www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

Over a decade ago, I wrote this blog about Danish footballer Carl Hansen and his wartime experiences. I suggested his book would be a great project for translation and I'm delighted that Ian Hogg has taken up the challenge and produced a free ebook! www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

The venue for the 2026 British Society of Sports History has just been announced. It will be held at the John McIntyre Centre, University of Edinburgh, from 26 to 28 August 2026. See below for more details.. www.sportinhistory.org/articles/edi...

Great to have helped get this historic Scottish football trophy back on display in its home town, Musselburgh. www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...

Great to have helped get this historic Scottish football trophy back on display in its home town, Musselburgh. www.scottishsporthistory.com/sports-histo...