Tynecastle Stadium
Encyclopedia
Tynecastle Stadium is a football stadium situated in the Gorgie
area of Edinburgh
, Scotland
, which is the home ground of Scottish Premier League
club Hearts
. Tynecastle has a seating capacity
of 17,420, which makes it the seventh largest football stadium in Scotland. In the 2007-08 season and 2008-09 seasons, Tynecastle was voted as having the best atmosphere in Scotland's top division in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League Fans' Survey. Hearts first played at the present site of Tynecastle in 1886.
was formed in 1874, the club played at sites in the Meadows
, Powburn and Powderhall
. Hearts first moved to the Gorgie
area, in the west of Edinburgh, in 1881. This pitch stood on the site of the present-day Wardlaw Street and Wardlaw Terrace. As this site was then regarded as being 'out of town', Hearts would sometimes stage two matches for the price of one, or set an admission price much lower than Edinburgh derby
rivals Hibs
. In 1886, with the city continuing to expand, tenements replaced the old ground and Hearts moved across Gorgie Road to the present site, which was leased from Edinburgh Corporation. Hearts played a friendly against Bolton Wanderers
to inaugurate their new home on 10 April 1886. Tynecastle staged its first Scottish Football League
match on 23 August 1890, when Hearts lost 5–0 to Celtic
.
Hearts won the Scottish Cup
in 1891, which allowed the club sufficient finance a new clubhouse. Tynecastle hosted its first international fixture in 1892, a 6–1 victory for Scotland
against Wales
. Only 1,200 fans attended the match because a snowstorm had led many fans to assume that it would be postponed. 1892 also saw a roof constructed on the original "South" stand. Tynecastle underwent substantial changes in the early twentieth century. A small stand and pavilion were built in 1903. The banks of terracing were greatly increased in 1906, giving a total capacity of 61,784. In 1911, a covered enclosure was erected on the western "distillery" side. The two old stands and pavilion were replaced in 1914 by a pitch-length grandstand (the present Main Stand), designed by the renowned stadium architect Archibald Leitch
. To partly fund the cost of the new stand, Hearts sold Percy Dawson
to Blackburn Rovers
for a British record transfer fee of £2,500. A number of items were omitted from the first estimate of the stand, which meant that its cost doubled to £12,000.
Hearts purchased the ground in 1926. Over the next four years, the terraces were expanded using ash from the nearby Haymarket railway yards
. In 1927, Hearts gave the BBC
permission to begin radio commentaries from the ground. New turnstiles were built on Wheatfield Street and subways created to allow access to the terraces. Tynecastle's record attendance was achieved in 1932, when 53,396 attended a Scottish Cup
tie against Rangers
. Tynecastle was now tightly squeezed on three sides, however, by narrow streets, Tynecastle High School
and bonded warehouses of the North British Distillery. Hearts considered moving to Murrayfield Stadium
, which had opened in 1925. There was also a proposal to move to a new ground in Sighthill
. The start of the Second World War halted these schemes, however.
The terraces were concreted in 1951 and Tynecastle became Scotland's first all-concrete stadium in 1954. Following the modernisation of the stadium, the club architects said that the capacity stood at 54,359, but for safety reasons only 49,000 tickets were printed for big matches. Floodlights were installed at Tynecastle in 1957. A roof was constructed along part of the "distillery" side and in the north-west corner of the ground in 1959. This work was paid for by the sale of Dave Mackay for £32,000 to Tottenham Hotspur
.
No further changes were made to Tynecastle until stricter ground safety regulations came into effect in the 1970s. Hearts also lacked the finances to redevelop Tynecastle, as the club were relegated from the Premier Division
three times in five seasons in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Hearts began to perform better under the ownership of Wallace Mercer
, who took control in 1981. The capacity was cut to 29,000 with the installation of benches on the "distillery" covered terrace and in the Main Stand paddock in 1982 and 1985 respectively. Also around this time, lounges and facilities were installed in the Main Stand.
The Taylor Report
required all major sports grounds to become all-seated by August 1994. Hearts initally entered discussions with Hibernian and the local authorities, but none of the sites suggested were suitable for all parties. In March 1991, Hearts submitted their own proposal for a 30,000 all-seat stadium at Millerhill, in the south-east of Edinburgh. The development would have also incorporated offices, a hotel, supermarket, restaurants and a business park. The site was in the Edinburgh green belt and the proposal was rejected later in 1991. Hermiston was then suggested as a possible site for a new Hearts stadium, but this fell through in December 1992 due to its being within the green belt.
The collapse of the Hermiston proposal meant that Hearts had to admit that Tynecastle would have to be redeveloped. In 1994, the entire western and northern sides of the ground were demolished, allowing for the construction of the Wheatfield Stand that year and the Roseburn Stand the following year. Temporary 'bucket' seating was installed on the (southern) Gorgie Road end terracing. The Gorgie Road end terracing was razed in 1997 and replaced by the Gorgie Stand.
In 2004, then club CEO Chris Robinson announced plans to sell Tynecastle, which he claimed was “not fit for purpose”. Hearts would have rented Murrayfield
from the SRU
instead. The prime motivation for this move was to eradicate the club's debt of nearly £20 million. The plan was almost universally unpopular with supporters, and a campaign, entitled ‘’Save Our Hearts’’, was set up to try to block the move. In spite of this, Robinson and those supporting his actions controlled a slender majority of the issued shares and it appeared that a sale would be completed, particularly after a deal was preliminarily agreed to sell the site for just over £20 million to Cala Homes, a property development company.
The sale was cancelled, however, when Vladimir Romanov
purchased the club in January 2005, invoking a clause in the initial agreement that allowed for its annulment upon the payment of a fixed sum of £75,000. Following the clubs January 2005 takeover by Vladimir Romanov, the club’s short-term future at Tynecastle was assured. The new ownership revealed that in the long-term capacity had to be increased – either by improving Tynecastle or moving to a new purpose-built home. In 2005, the pitch dimensions were altered to meet UEFA standards, necessitating the removal of the lowest rows of seating in the Gorgie and Roseburn Stands. As a result, the overall capacity was reduced from 18,000 to 17,420.
On 20 August 2007 the club announced they were “at an advanced stage” in plans for demolishing the aged Main Stand and replacing it with a 10,000 seat stand with a hotel and leisure facilities incorporated. A planning application was lodged with Edinburgh City Council in February 2008. This development would raise capacity to 23,000, but the proposal has been knocked back due to the club's large amount of debt and the current financial climate.
and completed in 1919. It is split into two levels, with approximately 3,300 seats in the main section and 1,400 seats in a paddock to the front of the stand. The paddock was reduced in 1994, when the pitch was shifted 6 metres to the east to make room for the new Wheatfield Stand. The three other stands were constructed between 1994 and 1997, with all having a distinctive goalpost roof structure made out of steel tubes. Unusually, the framework sits at the front of each stand, which means that the support towers sit within 10 yards of the corner flag, forming an arch over the stand. The stadium floodlights sit on top of the support towers, angled down towards the pitch, like the lighting rigs used at concerts. The Wheatfield Stand, which seats just under 6,000 people, slopes at just under 34 degrees, the maximum angle permitted. The Roseburn Stand (School
End) was completed in August 1995 and cost £1.4 million to build. The Roseburn Stand seated 3,676 when it was opened, but 280 seats were removed from both it and the Gorgie Stand when the pitch was lengthened in 2005 to meet UEFA
requirements. The Gorgie Stand, which was completed in September 1997, contains the Gorgie Suite and a club superstore.
on nine occasions. It regularly played host to the British Home Championship
match with Wales
, which was considered to have the least box-office potential and was often played outside of Glasgow
. After the Second World War, however, the Scottish Football Association
favoured playing all home matches at Hampden Park
, unless exceptional circumstances prevented Scotland playing there. More recently, Tynecastle has become the home of the Scotland women's national football team
.
Tynecastle has been used as a neutral venue for domestic cup semi-finals on numerous occasions, most frequently when these games involve teams from the east or north-east of Scotland (such as Aberdeen
, Dundee United
or Hibernian
). At one stage during the 1920s, Tynecastle hosted a Scottish Cup
semi-final in four consecutive years. In total 19 Scottish Cup semi-finals (not including replays) and 10 League Cup
semi-finals have been staged at the ground.
However, since the advent of regular live television coverage caused semi-finals to be played at different times, it has been SFA policy to stage both Scottish Cup semi-finals at Hampden, where possible. League Cup semi-finals are still staged at smaller venues depending upon the participants. The last Scottish Cup semi-final hosted at Tynecastle was Aberdeen’s defeat of Hibernian in 1992–93. The last League Cup semi-final was the 2007–08 meeting of Dundee United
and Aberdeen
, where Dundee United
won 4–1.
Tynecastle was a venue when Scotland hosted the 1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship
. Initial group-stage matches were sparsely attended, however, on 20 June 1989, 28,555 spectators watched Scotland defeat a Portugal side containing Rui Costa
and Luís Figo
1–0 in the semi-final. Scotland went on to lose the final to Saudi Arabia.
matches on four occasions. In 1911 a test match between England
and Australia ended in an 11-11 draw. Eight decades later, the newly created Super League
again attempted to promote the sport in Scotland, moving two league fixtures to Tynecastle. The 1998 meeting between London Broncos and Bradford Bulls
drew over 7,000 fans, while the following year Gateshead Thunder
met Wigan Warriors
before a smaller crowd. In 2000, Tynecastle staged a sectional tie in the Rugby League World Cup
between Scotland
and Samoa
, which the Samoans won 20-12.
Gorgie
Gorgie is an area of west Edinburgh, Scotland, located near Murrayfield, Ardmillan and Dalry. It is home to Tynecastle Stadium, home of Scottish Premier League side Heart of Midlothian Football Club, and the North British Distillery, which creates a distinctive odour in parts of the area.The area...
area of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, which is the home ground of Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
club Hearts
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
. Tynecastle has a seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
of 17,420, which makes it the seventh largest football stadium in Scotland. In the 2007-08 season and 2008-09 seasons, Tynecastle was voted as having the best atmosphere in Scotland's top division in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League Fans' Survey. Hearts first played at the present site of Tynecastle in 1886.
History
After HeartsHeart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
was formed in 1874, the club played at sites in the Meadows
The Meadows (park)
The Meadows is a large public park in Edinburgh, Scotland, just to the south of the city centre. Largely consisting of wide open grassland crossed by tree-lined paths, the park also has a children's playground, a croquet club, tennis courts and cricket pitches...
, Powburn and Powderhall
Powderhall
Powderhall is an area in the north of Edinburgh, the Scottish capital. It is mainly centred around Broughton Road. Until recently it was best known for its greyhound racing track, which has now closed. The site has been redeveloped for housing and business purposes...
. Hearts first moved to the Gorgie
Gorgie
Gorgie is an area of west Edinburgh, Scotland, located near Murrayfield, Ardmillan and Dalry. It is home to Tynecastle Stadium, home of Scottish Premier League side Heart of Midlothian Football Club, and the North British Distillery, which creates a distinctive odour in parts of the area.The area...
area, in the west of Edinburgh, in 1881. This pitch stood on the site of the present-day Wardlaw Street and Wardlaw Terrace. As this site was then regarded as being 'out of town', Hearts would sometimes stage two matches for the price of one, or set an admission price much lower than Edinburgh derby
Edinburgh derby
The Edinburgh derby is an informal title given to any football match played between Scottish clubs Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian , the two professional clubs based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The two clubs have a fierce rivalry that dates back to the clubs being founded in the mid-1870s, which...
rivals Hibs
Hibernian F.C.
Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...
. In 1886, with the city continuing to expand, tenements replaced the old ground and Hearts moved across Gorgie Road to the present site, which was leased from Edinburgh Corporation. Hearts played a friendly against Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers F.C.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the area of Horwich in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester. They began their current spell in the Premier League in 2001....
to inaugurate their new home on 10 April 1886. Tynecastle staged its first Scottish Football League
Scottish Football League
The Scottish Football League is a league of football teams in Scotland, comprising theScottish First Division, Scottish Second Division and Scottish Third Division. From the league's foundation in 1890 until the breakaway Scottish Premier League was formed in 1998, the Scottish Football League...
match on 23 August 1890, when Hearts lost 5–0 to Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
.
Hearts won the Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
in 1891, which allowed the club sufficient finance a new clubhouse. Tynecastle hosted its first international fixture in 1892, a 6–1 victory for Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
against Wales
Wales national football team
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
. Only 1,200 fans attended the match because a snowstorm had led many fans to assume that it would be postponed. 1892 also saw a roof constructed on the original "South" stand. Tynecastle underwent substantial changes in the early twentieth century. A small stand and pavilion were built in 1903. The banks of terracing were greatly increased in 1906, giving a total capacity of 61,784. In 1911, a covered enclosure was erected on the western "distillery" side. The two old stands and pavilion were replaced in 1914 by a pitch-length grandstand (the present Main Stand), designed by the renowned stadium architect Archibald Leitch
Archibald Leitch
Archibald "Offside Archie" Leitch was a Scottish architect, most famous for his work designing football stadia throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.-Early work:...
. To partly fund the cost of the new stand, Hearts sold Percy Dawson
Percy Dawson
Percival "Percy" Dawson was an English footballer who played as a striker. He was born in Cullercoats....
to Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....
for a British record transfer fee of £2,500. A number of items were omitted from the first estimate of the stand, which meant that its cost doubled to £12,000.
Hearts purchased the ground in 1926. Over the next four years, the terraces were expanded using ash from the nearby Haymarket railway yards
Haymarket TMD
Haymarket TMD is a railway Traction Maintenance Depot situated inside Edinburgh, Scotland, next to Haymarket Station and Murrayfield Stadium. The depot is operated by First ScotRail. The depot code is HA.-External links:A of the depot.-References:...
. In 1927, Hearts gave the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
permission to begin radio commentaries from the ground. New turnstiles were built on Wheatfield Street and subways created to allow access to the terraces. Tynecastle's record attendance was achieved in 1932, when 53,396 attended a Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
tie against Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
. Tynecastle was now tightly squeezed on three sides, however, by narrow streets, Tynecastle High School
Tynecastle High School
Tynecastle High School is a secondary school in South West Edinburgh, Scotland.-Headteacher and SMT:The Headteacher is Tom Rae. He is assisted by his depute heads Elizabeth Turnbull, Jacqueline Ramsay and Jim Brown.-History:...
and bonded warehouses of the North British Distillery. Hearts considered moving to Murrayfield Stadium
Murrayfield Stadium
Murrayfield Stadium is a sports stadium located in the west end of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Its all-seater capacity was recently reduced from 67,800 to 67,130 to incorporate the largest permanent "big screen" in the country though it still remains the largest stadium in Scotland and one...
, which had opened in 1925. There was also a proposal to move to a new ground in Sighthill
Sighthill, Edinburgh
Sighthill is a suburb in the west of Edinburgh, Scotland.For nearly 50 years, the West Edinburgh skyline was dominated by 4 high rise residential tower blocks the first of which was demolished on 21st September 2008 with the other three blocks following the same fate just over 3 years later...
. The start of the Second World War halted these schemes, however.
The terraces were concreted in 1951 and Tynecastle became Scotland's first all-concrete stadium in 1954. Following the modernisation of the stadium, the club architects said that the capacity stood at 54,359, but for safety reasons only 49,000 tickets were printed for big matches. Floodlights were installed at Tynecastle in 1957. A roof was constructed along part of the "distillery" side and in the north-west corner of the ground in 1959. This work was paid for by the sale of Dave Mackay for £32,000 to Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
.
Scottish Football League Premier Division
The Scottish Football League Premier Division was, from 1975 until 1998, the top division of the Scottish Football League and the entire Scottish football league system...
three times in five seasons in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Hearts began to perform better under the ownership of Wallace Mercer
Wallace Mercer
Wallace Mercer was chairman of the Scottish football club Heart of Midlothian from 1981 to 1994.-Hearts:He is remembered mainly for improving the fortunes of Hearts during the early 1980s...
, who took control in 1981. The capacity was cut to 29,000 with the installation of benches on the "distillery" covered terrace and in the Main Stand paddock in 1982 and 1985 respectively. Also around this time, lounges and facilities were installed in the Main Stand.
Taylor Report
The Hillsborough Stadium Disaster Inquiry report, better known as the Taylor Report is a document, whose development was overseen by Lord Taylor of Gosforth, concerning the aftermath and causes of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989. An interim report was published in August 1989, and the final...
required all major sports grounds to become all-seated by August 1994. Hearts initally entered discussions with Hibernian and the local authorities, but none of the sites suggested were suitable for all parties. In March 1991, Hearts submitted their own proposal for a 30,000 all-seat stadium at Millerhill, in the south-east of Edinburgh. The development would have also incorporated offices, a hotel, supermarket, restaurants and a business park. The site was in the Edinburgh green belt and the proposal was rejected later in 1991. Hermiston was then suggested as a possible site for a new Hearts stadium, but this fell through in December 1992 due to its being within the green belt.
The collapse of the Hermiston proposal meant that Hearts had to admit that Tynecastle would have to be redeveloped. In 1994, the entire western and northern sides of the ground were demolished, allowing for the construction of the Wheatfield Stand that year and the Roseburn Stand the following year. Temporary 'bucket' seating was installed on the (southern) Gorgie Road end terracing. The Gorgie Road end terracing was razed in 1997 and replaced by the Gorgie Stand.
In 2004, then club CEO Chris Robinson announced plans to sell Tynecastle, which he claimed was “not fit for purpose”. Hearts would have rented Murrayfield
Murrayfield Stadium
Murrayfield Stadium is a sports stadium located in the west end of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Its all-seater capacity was recently reduced from 67,800 to 67,130 to incorporate the largest permanent "big screen" in the country though it still remains the largest stadium in Scotland and one...
from the SRU
Scottish Rugby Union
The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...
instead. The prime motivation for this move was to eradicate the club's debt of nearly £20 million. The plan was almost universally unpopular with supporters, and a campaign, entitled ‘’Save Our Hearts’’, was set up to try to block the move. In spite of this, Robinson and those supporting his actions controlled a slender majority of the issued shares and it appeared that a sale would be completed, particularly after a deal was preliminarily agreed to sell the site for just over £20 million to Cala Homes, a property development company.
The sale was cancelled, however, when Vladimir Romanov
Vladimir Romanov
Vladimir Nikolayevich Romanov ; born 1947 in Tver Oblast, Russian SFSR, USSR) is an ethnic Russian businessman who also holds Lithuanian citizenship following that country's independence from the Soviet Union. He is chairman of UBIG Investments which is the majority shareholder in Scottish Premier...
purchased the club in January 2005, invoking a clause in the initial agreement that allowed for its annulment upon the payment of a fixed sum of £75,000. Following the clubs January 2005 takeover by Vladimir Romanov, the club’s short-term future at Tynecastle was assured. The new ownership revealed that in the long-term capacity had to be increased – either by improving Tynecastle or moving to a new purpose-built home. In 2005, the pitch dimensions were altered to meet UEFA standards, necessitating the removal of the lowest rows of seating in the Gorgie and Roseburn Stands. As a result, the overall capacity was reduced from 18,000 to 17,420.
On 20 August 2007 the club announced they were “at an advanced stage” in plans for demolishing the aged Main Stand and replacing it with a 10,000 seat stand with a hotel and leisure facilities incorporated. A planning application was lodged with Edinburgh City Council in February 2008. This development would raise capacity to 23,000, but the proposal has been knocked back due to the club's large amount of debt and the current financial climate.
Structure and facilities
Tynecastle is an all-seated stadium, split into four sections known as the Gorgie Stand, Main Stand, Wheatfield Stand and Roseburn Stand. The Main Stand was designed by noted football stadium architect Archibald LeitchArchibald Leitch
Archibald "Offside Archie" Leitch was a Scottish architect, most famous for his work designing football stadia throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.-Early work:...
and completed in 1919. It is split into two levels, with approximately 3,300 seats in the main section and 1,400 seats in a paddock to the front of the stand. The paddock was reduced in 1994, when the pitch was shifted 6 metres to the east to make room for the new Wheatfield Stand. The three other stands were constructed between 1994 and 1997, with all having a distinctive goalpost roof structure made out of steel tubes. Unusually, the framework sits at the front of each stand, which means that the support towers sit within 10 yards of the corner flag, forming an arch over the stand. The stadium floodlights sit on top of the support towers, angled down towards the pitch, like the lighting rigs used at concerts. The Wheatfield Stand, which seats just under 6,000 people, slopes at just under 34 degrees, the maximum angle permitted. The Roseburn Stand (School
Tynecastle High School
Tynecastle High School is a secondary school in South West Edinburgh, Scotland.-Headteacher and SMT:The Headteacher is Tom Rae. He is assisted by his depute heads Elizabeth Turnbull, Jacqueline Ramsay and Jim Brown.-History:...
End) was completed in August 1995 and cost £1.4 million to build. The Roseburn Stand seated 3,676 when it was opened, but 280 seats were removed from both it and the Gorgie Stand when the pitch was lengthened in 2005 to meet UEFA
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
requirements. The Gorgie Stand, which was completed in September 1997, contains the Gorgie Suite and a club superstore.
Other football matches
Tynecastle has been a home venue for the Scotland national football teamScotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
on nine occasions. It regularly played host to the British Home Championship
British Home Championship
The British Home Championship was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from the 1883–84 season until the 1983–84...
match with Wales
Wales national football team
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
, which was considered to have the least box-office potential and was often played outside of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
. After the Second World War, however, the Scottish Football Association
Scottish Football Association
The Scottish Football Association is the governing body of football in Scotland and has the ultimate responsibility for the control and development of football in Scotland. Members of the SFA include clubs in Scotland, affiliated national associations as well as local associations...
favoured playing all home matches at Hampden Park
Hampden Park
Hampden Park is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The 52,063 capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland...
, unless exceptional circumstances prevented Scotland playing there. More recently, Tynecastle has become the home of the Scotland women's national football team
Scotland women's national football team
The Scotland women's national football team represents Scotland in international women's football. They have yet to qualify for the final stages of the World Cup or European Championships and are currently ranked 23rd in the world and 14th in Europe....
.
Tynecastle has been used as a neutral venue for domestic cup semi-finals on numerous occasions, most frequently when these games involve teams from the east or north-east of Scotland (such as Aberdeen
Aberdeen F.C.
Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
, Dundee United
Dundee United F.C.
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...
or Hibernian
Hibernian F.C.
Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...
). At one stage during the 1920s, Tynecastle hosted a Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
semi-final in four consecutive years. In total 19 Scottish Cup semi-finals (not including replays) and 10 League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
semi-finals have been staged at the ground.
However, since the advent of regular live television coverage caused semi-finals to be played at different times, it has been SFA policy to stage both Scottish Cup semi-finals at Hampden, where possible. League Cup semi-finals are still staged at smaller venues depending upon the participants. The last Scottish Cup semi-final hosted at Tynecastle was Aberdeen’s defeat of Hibernian in 1992–93. The last League Cup semi-final was the 2007–08 meeting of Dundee United
Dundee United F.C.
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...
and Aberdeen
Aberdeen F.C.
Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
, where Dundee United
Dundee United F.C.
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...
won 4–1.
Tynecastle was a venue when Scotland hosted the 1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship
1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship
The FIFA U-16 World Championship 1989 was held in the Scottish cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Motherwell, Aberdeen, and Dundee between 10 June and 24 June 1989...
. Initial group-stage matches were sparsely attended, however, on 20 June 1989, 28,555 spectators watched Scotland defeat a Portugal side containing Rui Costa
Rui Costa
Rui Manuel César Costa, OIH is a former Portuguese football player and current Director of Football for Sport Lisboa e Benfica. An attacking midfielder also capable of playing as a deep-seated defensive midfielder, he most recently played for Portuguese club Benfica...
and Luís Figo
Luís Figo
Luís Filipe Madeira Caeiro Figo, OIH, is a Portuguese former international footballer. He played as a midfielder for Sporting CP, FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Internazionale, during a career which spanned over a period of 20 years. He retired from football on 31 May 2009...
1–0 in the semi-final. Scotland went on to lose the final to Saudi Arabia.
Full internationals
Other sports
The Gorgie ground has also hosted rugby leagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
matches on four occasions. In 1911 a test match between England
England national rugby league team
The England national rugby league team represent England in international rugby league football tournaments. The team has now seen a revival, having largely formed from the Great Britain team, who also represented Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The team is run under the auspices of the Rugby Football...
and Australia ended in an 11-11 draw. Eight decades later, the newly created Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
again attempted to promote the sport in Scotland, moving two league fixtures to Tynecastle. The 1998 meeting between London Broncos and Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls is a professional rugby league club based in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. They play in the European Super League and are currently joint 10th in the league....
drew over 7,000 fans, while the following year Gateshead Thunder
Gateshead Thunder
Gateshead Thunder is a professional rugby league club based in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear in England. They currently play in the Championship 1 competition, the third tier of rugby league in the United Kingdom...
met Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
before a smaller crowd. In 2000, Tynecastle staged a sectional tie in the Rugby League World Cup
2000 Rugby League World Cup
The 2000 Rugby League World Cup was the twelfth staging of the Rugby League World Cup and was held during October and November of that year in Great Britain, Ireland and France...
between Scotland
Scotland national rugby league team
The Scotland national rugby league team represent Scotland in international rugby league football tournaments. The team is run under the auspices of the Scotland Rugby League, and are nicknamed The Bravehearts. Scotland are not regarded as a test nation...
and Samoa
Samoa national rugby league team
-Notable Players & Coaches:* John Ackland * Steve Kaiser Coach 1990 - 1994* Steve Kaiser 1986* Afi Ah Koui 1986* Andrew Ah Koui 1986* George Apelu 1986* Fa'ausu Afoa circa-1995* Wing Afoa 1990 - 1994* Isaak Ah Mau circa-2006...
, which the Samoans won 20-12.
External links
- Tynecastle Image Archive London Hearts