Milestones in the history of Celtic Football Club
November 6, 1887
Celtic Football Club is formally constituted in St Mary's Church Hall
in East Rose Street (now Forbes Street), Calton. The purpose is stated
as being to alleviate poverty in Glasgow's East End parishes.
May 28, 1888
Celtic beat Rangers 5-2 in a "friendly". It is the new club's
first match and is played on the first Celtic Park.
1889
Celtic reach the final of the Scottish Cup in their first full season
of competition, but they lose 2-1 to the well-established Third Lanark.
However, the club wins its first trophy, the North-Eastern Cup (a local
competition), beating Cowlairs 6-1 in the final.
1892
Celtic win the Scottish Cup for the first time in their history by defeating
Queen's Park 5-2 in the final at Ibrox Park. A few months later, the club
moves to its present ground.
1893
Celtic win their first Scottish League Championship.
1897
The club becomes a private limited liability company, and Willie Maley
is appointed secretary-manager.
1905-0910
Celtic win the League Championship for six successive seasons.
1907
Celtic achieve the "double" by winning the Scottish Cup and
the League Championship in the same season, the first time the feat has
been achieved in the history of the national sport. The team repeats the
achievement the following season.
1914-1917
Celtic win the championship four times in a row.
1937
Celtic beat Aberdeen in a Scottish Cup final, watched by a record crowd
of 146,433 at Hampden Park. The attendance (sometimes reported as 147,365)
remains a record for a club match in Europe.
1939
Celtic win the Empire Exhibition Trophy by defeating Everton 1-0 at Ibrox
after extra time in the final.
1940
Former player and ex-captain Jimmy McGrory replaces Jimmy McStay as manager.
1953
Celtic defeat Hibernian 2-0 in the final of the Coronation Cup, held to
celebrate the crowning of Queen Elizabeth II. The invited teams included
the best in Scotland and England, and the final attracted a crowd of 117,000
at Hampden Park.
1956
Celtic win the League Cup for the first time - after a decade of striving
- by beating Partick Thistle 3-0 in a replay.
1957
Celtic retain the League Cup in memorable style by thrashing Rangers 7-1
in the final.
1964
Celtic reach the semi-final of the European Cup-Winners' Cup in only their
second campaign in European competition, but lose 4-3 on aggregate to
MTK Budapest.
1965
Jock Stein succeeds Jimmy McGrory as manager in March 1965, and guides
the team to the first victory in a Scottish Cup final in 11 years. Billy
McNeill's dramatic header seals a 3-2 win over Dunfermline Athletic.
1966
Celtic win the championship for the first time in 12 seasons, and reach
the semi-final of the Cup-Winners' Cup again before losing 2-1 on aggregate
to Liverpool.
1967
Celtic complete their most glorious season by winning every competition
entered: Scottish League, Scottish Cup, League Cup, Glasgow Cup and the
European Cup. The climax of the season is the 2-1 victory over Inter Milan
in the European Cup final played at the Estadio Nacional in Lisbon on
May 25, 1967. Celtic thus become the first British (and non-Latin) club
to win Europe's most coveted trophy.
1970
Celtic reach the final of the European Cup again, but lose 2-1 to Feyenoord
after extra time in Milan. In the semi-final Celtic defeated Leeds United
in both legs. The second leg at Hampden Park was watched by 133,961, the
largest crowd ever to watch a match in European club competition.
1972
Celtic reach the European Cup semi-final for the third time, but lose
in heart-breaking fashion at Parkhead to Inter Milan when Dixie Deans
misses the first spot kick during the penalty shoot-out.
1974
Celtic win the league championship for the ninth season in a row - at
the time, a joint world record for success in domestic titles. The team
reaches the semi-final of the European Cup for the fourth time, but loses
2-0 on aggregate to Atletico Madrid.
1978
Billy McNeill, captain of the 1967 team, succeeds Jock Stein as manager.
During Stein's 12-year tenure (excluding 1975/76, when he was recuperating
from injuries received in a car accident), the club enjoyed 25 successes
in major competitions: the European Cup, 10 Championships, 8 Scottish
Cups and 6 League Cups.
1979
Billy McNeill guides Celtic to the championship in his first season as
manager. The title is gained in truly dramatic fashion at Celtic Park
with a 4-2 win over Rangers in the club's final match.
1983
Another ex-player, David Hay, replaces Billy McNeill as manager.
1985
Celtic win the Scottish Cup by beating Dundee United 2-1 at Hampden Park
in the 100th cup final.
1986
Celtic snatch the championship by pipping Heart of Midlothian on the last
day of the campaign. The margin was on goal difference, as Celtic beat
St Mirren 5-0 at Love Street and Hearts fall to two late goals from Dundee
at Dens Park.
1987
Billy McNeill returns to Celtic Park as manager, replacing David Hay.
1988
Celtic celebrate the centenary season (1987/88) by winning the first "double"
in 11 years. The accomplishment marks the 35th league title, and the 28th
Scottish Cup.
1989
Celtic win the Scottish Cup for the 29th time as Joe Miller's goal sinks
Rangers by 1-0.
1991
Liam Brady becomes Celtic's manager when he takes over from Billy McNeill.
His appointment marks a break from tradition, as he is the first Celtic
manager never to have played for the club.
1993
Liam Brady is replaced as manager by former-Celt Lou Macari.
1994
In March, expatriate businessman and Celtic supporter Fergus McCann takes
control of a financially-strained club, in the process ousting a board
of directors which included members with long family connections with
Celtic. Shortly afterwards, Lou Macari is replaced as team manager by
another ex-Celt Tommy Burns. Later that same year, in accordance with
Fergus McCann's Five-Year Plan, the club is reconstituted as a plc, a
development quickly followed by the most successful share-issue in the
history of British football with 10,000 taking up the offer of investing
a minimum of £620, thus contributing £14 million towards the
re-financing of the club.
1995
Celtic play home fixtures at Hampden Park during season 1994/95, while
Celtic Park is undergoing the first phase of a reconstruction, leading
to the development of a stadium for the new Millennium, capable of holding
60,500 spectators in all-seated comfort.
The 'exile' ends with a 1-0 victory over Airdrieonians in the Scottish
Cup final, marking the club's 30th triumph in the competition and also
the first major trophy since the centenary season of 1987/88.
1997
Tommy Burns is replaced by the Dutch coach Wim Jansen, ironically a member
of the Feyenoord side which defeated Celtic in the European Cup final
in Milan in 1970. In 1997 he guides Celtic to the first League Cup final
victory in 15 years in a 3-0 defeat of Dundee United at Ibrox Park, a
competition sponsored by Coca-Cola.
1998
Jansen continues the good work by steering Celtic to the first Scottish
League championship since 1988, and preventing Rangers from surpassing
Celtic's cherished Nine-in-a Row record. However, he departs almost immediately
and is replaced for the start of the new campaign by Dr Jozef Venglos,
a coach of vast international experience, most notably as manager of Czechoslovakia.
1999
In April, Fergus McCann departs at the completion of his five-year stint.
Allan MacDonald, a former British Aerospace managing director, succeeds
him as chief executive. A few months later Dr Venglos retires and is replaced
by John Barnes, the former England internationalist who was undertaking
his first appointment as a head coach, although under the supervision
of famous ex-Celt Kenny Dalglish, recently installed as director of football
operations.
2000
A shock 3-1 defeat at Celtic Park in the Scottish Cup by rank outsiders
Inverness Caledonian Thistle in February leads to the departure of John
Barnes, with Kenny Dalglish taking control of team matters until the end
of the season. Celtic end up the 1999/2000 season as runners-up to Rangers
in the championship, but a massive 21 points behind. The gloom is lifted
slightly by a 2-0 victory over Aberdeen in the League Cup final, a competition
now sponsored by the Co-operative Insurance Society.
During the summer Martin O'Neill takes over as Celtic's manager - and
will soon be in full control of the football operations following the
departure of Kenny Dalglish. O'Neill, an Irishman, has established an
excellent reputation as a manager with a chain of clubs in England, notably
Leicester City. He endears himself to the Celtic support by masterminding
an astonishing 6-2 league victory over Rangers at Celtic Park on August
27, a promising omen for his and Celtic's future.
A Brief Introduction