National football stadiums often lack a bit of character, but Scotland's Hampden Park in Glasgow is an exception. The renowned Hampden Roar made the football temple world-famous. Despite some unsuccessful years for the Scottish national football team recently, the Scottish crowd still manages to make every game a loud and intimidating affair.
The Scottish national football team has played in Hampden Park since 1906. For over a decade, the stadium was also the home of the quirky football club Queen’s Park F.C. The club, which currently plays in the Scottish third tier, played its last game in the stadium on the 20th of March 2021. Queen’s Park is one of the world’s oldest clubs and takes his identity from the club's amateur status for 152 years. Because football is only played for ‘the sake of playing’. Soon, The Spiders (great nickname by the way!) will play their home games in Lesser Hampden, the football pitch next to Hampden Park.
The stadium has also been the stage for some legendary finals. In 1960, Ferenc Puskás and Alfredo Di Stéfano led Real Madrid to a 7-3 win against Eintracht Frankfurt in the European Cup final. In 2002, Zinédine Zidane scored arguably one of his best-ever goals in Hampden Park: The majestic volley in Real Madrid’s Champions League final against Bayer Leverkusen.
Besides the national games of Scotland, the stadium also hosts the final and semi-finals of the Scottish Cup.
Hampden Park surprisingly has a lot of character for a national stadium. The facade from the South Stand is particularly beautiful with its red bricks, dark blue walls and fences and banners of Scottish football legends. The inside is truly spectacular as well. The stadium has got a running track, unfortunately, but the passionate Scottish crowd makes up for it. It is not without reason that the ground is known for its Hampden Roar: the deafening and intimidating noise the Scottish fans created back in the day. Many visitors still claim this to be the loudest ground they have ever been in.
If you are in Hampden Park make sure to visit the Scottish Football Museum. The museum is filled with thousands of objects and numerous videos of beautiful moments, including the beauty of Archie Gemmill against The Netherlands during the 1978 World Cup. Of course, you can also listen to the famous Hampden Roar.
The Hampden Park which exists now is the third Hampden Park in history. The first one was located in Queen’s Park, where you will nowadays find a bowling green. The second Hampden Park was in the neighbouring Cathkin Park. To this day you can still see the touchlines of the football pitch and some abandoned terraces which are covered in moss. Queen’s Park FC played here from 1884 to 1903 before it moved to the current Hampden Park. The now-dissolved football club Third Lanark A.C. played in the stadium in Cathkin Park until 1967.
Within walking distance from the stadium, you can find the pub The Florida Park: a nice Scottish bar with a beer garden where you will find many Scottish fans when the national team plays. Around the corner, you also have the charming The Clockwork Bar and Restaurant with its many international flags hanging from the ceiling. Church on the Hill is a bit further, but a recommendation nonetheless. The old church has been turned into a bar and is filled with Scottish fans on match days.
Hampden Park is almost always sold-out when the Scottish national team plays. It might therefore be useful to become a member through the official website of the Scottish FA. With a membership, you will get priority access to tickets before they are put up for general sale. Tickets for the final and semi-finals of the Scottish Cup can be bought through the official websites of the clubs that play. Please note that getting your hand on these tickets is not easy either and it might be necessary to have a membership or purchase history at the particular club.
Hampden Park can easily be reached by the train. From Glasgow Central station you can take a train to Mount Florida. The stadium is within walking distance of this train station.
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