Historic UK football stadium given protected status

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FT Desk

The world's first international football stadium has earned a "protected" status, meaning the site cannot be used for redevelopment or commercial purposes.

The original Hampden Park is situated in Kingsley Avenue in Glasgow's southside and when it was a football venue, it hosted Scottish Cup finals from 1873 to 1883 as well as high-profile international matches such as Scotland's famous 5-1 defeat of England in 1882.

While official football matches took place before that fixture, like the first ever officially recognised international between Scotland and England in 1872, they were in venues not specifically designated for football like the West of Scotland Cricket Club's ground in Partick, Glasgow, where that aforementioned game was played.

Remains of the original football stadium were discovered following an archaeological excavation at the site five years ago.

Historic Environment Scotland has now designated the original Hampden as a monument in recognition of its place in football history.

Dara Parsons, head of designations at HES, said: "It feels timely to recognise the central role that Scotland played in the development of the sport, and the place of First Hampden within that story.

"The remains of the pavilion at the first Hampden are a link to the earliest days of football in Scotland, and its importance to, and impact on, communities. It is a monument to our national game and to the origins of the modern football stadium."

We’re delighted to have been involved in a historic moment for football heritage and preservation in Scotland.

The remains of the historic pavilion at Hampden Bowling Club - the site of the First Hampden Park - have been designated as a Scheduled Monument!

We don’t often toot… pic.twitter.com/vdVz6foTcp

— Football Heritage (@footyheritage) May 13, 2026

Locals gave their blessing to the decision.

"We'd like to thank everyone who took time to take part in our consultation and share their valuable contributions," Parsons added.

"We had a great response, and we are looking to continue that engagement over the summer, where we will be asking people to suggest important football heritage sites from across the whole of Scotland for us to investigate."

The original ground was succeeded by the second Hampden Park in 1884, before a third stadium in Mount Florida opened in 1903. The site of the first ground was later taken over by Hampden Bowling Club in 1905 until it's closure earlier this year.

“In a world with millions of famous Football images, the 1878 photo of the Queen’s Park Members proudly posing in front of their new Pavilion is as iconic as they come," Ged O’Brien, football historian and founder of the Scottish Football Museum, said, praising the decision.

"Football is the world’s most popular sport, and Glasgow is the historical capital of world Football. The First Hampden is the home of the world’s first purpose built international ground. And in the north-western corner was the first building designated as a changing room and home for Queen’s Park and Scotland.

“In a year when the World Cup will be held in countries who owe much of their game to Scottish emigrants, it is important to link the Scottish side of 2026 with the men who changed in that Pavilion - men who delivered 7-2 and 5-1 drubbings to an England team that had not yet learned how to play Scottish Combination. Every stadium that hosts a World Cup Game, can trace its architectural roots back to that small corner of Kingsley Gardens, on the South Side of Glasgow."

There were previous concerns that the site of the original Hampden would be demolished to make way for the construction of flats, but thanks to the work of Football Heritage and HES, the site remains protected.