- Ravenscraig Pioneers to be honoured before SWNT World Cup Play-Off against Austria, 50 years after first women’s international against England 

- National Association to support re-enactment of first-ever men’s international at West of Scotland Cricket Ground 

- Archie Macpherson and Eilidh Barbour provide the voices of Scottish football to archive film written by Daniel Gray 

- Inaugural National Week of Football to be held next year 

The Scottish FA today (29 September) kicks-off a calendar of events to celebrate 150 years of Scotland’s national game and the cradle of world football.

Over the next 18 months a series of special events will be held across Scotland to mark 150 years since the first international football match, the founding of the Scottish FA and the first season of the Scottish Cup.

Today the Scottish FA reveals the 150th Commemorative Crest, inspired by the original association crest of 1873 and emblematic of the unrivalled and multi-faceted history and heritage that will be celebrated globally, internationally and domestically in 2023 and beyond.

The crest is unveiled alongside a new website that will become a history portal celebrating 150 years of Scottish football. It is the first in a series of unique events and milestones including:

  • Honouring the first-ever Scotland Women’s National Team at the forthcoming FIFA Women’s World Cup Play-Off against Austria at Hampden Park
  • Commemorating the first-ever men’s international at the West of Scotland Cricket Ground
  • The creation of an annual National Week of Football to promote the significance of Scottish football in communities across the country
  • Digital transformation of the Scottish Football Museum in partnership with Google Arts & Culture
  • An exciting heritage programme of exhibitions and events in partnership with the Scottish Football Museum

The first milestone marked by the Scottish FA is a series of events to commemorate the Scotland Women’s National Team’s first official match, held 50 years ago in Greenock on 18 November 1972 to take on England.

The Ravenscraig Pioneers will be honoured during the week of Scotland’s crucial Play-Off for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup with a special reunion event and the unveiling of the Icons Mural, an art installation featuring some of the most significant women’s football trailblazers on Hampden Park’s West Stand.

The players who took the field in Greenock will be guests of honour against Austria.

On St Andrews Day, 30 November 1872, a Scotland men’s team made up of players from Queen’s Park FC played out a 0-0 draw in front of 4,000 spectators in a significant moment in the history of world football. This November, the first international football match in the world will be celebrated with a special event at the West of Scotland Cricket Ground.

To mark the launch of the 150th celebrations, the Scottish FA have released a unique video recounting the history of Scottish football over the last 150 years. The story was written by celebrated Edinburgh-based writer Daniel Gray with narration provided by the voices of Scottish football past and present, broadcasters Archie Macpherson and Eilidh Barbour.

The Scottish Football Museum based in Hampden Park will also host a special exhibition, ‘Milestones’, to tell the stories of the key moments in Scotland’s football history. The exhibition will include the only surviving match ticket from the first international football game in 1872, alongside an embroidered lion which adorned the Scotland shirts on the day.

The exhibition also includes mementos from the Ravenscraig Pioneers including a match programme and poster from the match.

Further activities will be announced in due course involving the founding of the Scottish FA, the “Three Hampdens” and the 150th Scottish Cup.

Rod Petrie, Scottish FA President: “I am privileged to have the honour of being President during such an historically significant anniversary. Of course, the very fabric of football was woven here in Scotland and I look forward to seeing that history being retold not just for the benefit of today’s Scottish football fans but for fans of football around the world. 

“It is entirely appropriate that the celebrations kick-off by honouring the Ravenscraig Pioneers, whose determination 50 years ago set in motion a commitment and dedication to the women’s game which has culminated in the SWNT qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup and UEFA Women’s EURO in recent years, with Pedro Martinez Losa’s team on the cusp of reaching a second Women’s World Cup.

“The National Week of Football will provide a centrepiece and legacy to the anniversary; an annual focal point for us all to celebrate the many and varied ways in which the power of Scottish football positively impacts on our country.”