Moving football’s home from Hampden to Murrayfield is an act of cultural vandalism
While the costs of Hampden v Murrayfield as the national football stadium are different, the final judgement should not just be about economics but social, cultural, community and financial assets.
At present, the Scottish Football Association (SFA) rent the 115-yearold ground from its Queen’s Park owners under the terms of the current lease which expires in 2020.
In June 2017, the SFA reiterated that the preferred option was for Hampden Park to remain the home of the national game and that a decision would be made within 12 to 18 months. Fourteen months later, the conclusion of the next phase of the Hampden story is about to be revealed. The announcement this week may not be definitive but the arguments so far might suggest that, subject to certain assurances, the aforementioned preferred option is likely to hold.
The historic case is no small thing. It’s not just about that the origins of the relationship between football and Hampden go back to at least 1873; that the oldest football international in the world is associated with Hampden; or that Hampden is part of the story of Glasgow at play which cannot be simply relocated.
Scotland has given a lot to the world of sport and the relationship between football and Hampden is an important part of that success. Glasgow is the only Scottish city, and one of only two UK cities, in the top 20 Sportcal Index of international sporting cities. Hampden helps to connect Scotland and Glasgow with other parts of the world.
While Italy does not have a national football stadium, a survey of Fifa members showed that 65 per cent of Uefa members (Europe), 83 per cent of Concacaf (North and Central America and the Caribbean), 81 per cent of Caf (Asia), 80 per cent of Conmebol (South America) and 41 per cent of AFC (Africa) members have national football stadiums.
The attempt by the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) to shift the centre of footballing power from Glasgow to Edinburgh has been ambitious. The competitive advantages of ground ownership and greater stadium capacity have allowed the SRU to offer the SFA financial inducements of up to £2 million a year. The SRU recognises the pull of football. One in five people globally connect with football is some way or another. It has an unparalleled attraction and Scotland has an internationally recognised foothold in this world that many sports would like to tap into.
The fact that playing members of football’s governing bodies are more than double those of rugby will not have gone unnoticed. Football has grown from 120,000 playing members in 2014 to 137,134 in 2017, compared to rugby’s modest growth from 47,598 in 2014 to 48,654 in 2017.
A 2017 survey of 2,923 Scottish football fans showed 15 per cent wanted Hampden Park to continue as the national stadium; 34 per cent favoured Murrayfield; playing at grounds across Scotland was preferred by 25 per cent; 24 per cent wanted a “new Hampden” while 97 per cent believed fans should have an input into the decision.
But what were the views of the 67,887 Scottish Football Supporters Association members who didn’t take part in the survey? Were the views represented mainly those of the bigger clubs who would financially benefit from the demise the national football stadium?
Regular Old Firm football matches being played at Murrayfield has prompted the Scottish Police Federation to put a marker down about the additional human and financial costs associated with policing the M8 corridor should the move be sanctioned. It is one thing for an Edinburgh Tory councillor to suggest this is just a matter of resources but it is another thing to find such resources on a regular basis.
The SFA would certainly have to contribute to the cost of Murrayfield policing. It is a matter of judgement as to whether scarce SFA resources should be spent on policing or grassroots community developments, given the proven benefits of football in relation to social cohesion and crime reduction.
In a nation that believes in devolved power and that local voices should be listened to, the Mount Florida community council have made their views known. The third Hampden Park, located on Mount Florida some 500 yards south of its predecessor, opened in 1903. The community council has put forward the case for the national stadium to remain on cost to local heritage, the local economy and local identity.
Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken has warned of a historic stain that would be impossible to erase should Hampden, Queen’s Park, King’s Park and Mount Florida be abandoned. The promise of increased capacity through safe standing, improved transport links and a user-friendly council to assist the SFA with any stadium alterations have all been forthcoming.
In some ways, Hampden suffers, as does Scottish sport, from not having a unified voice fighting for it. There is a danger that Hampden and Scottish football do not fully realise what they have until it is too late. Hampden must remain the national home of Scottish football. It would be cultural theft and vandalism to move it.
Celtic, Rangers, Hibs, Hearts, Aberdeen and the SRU may gain financially in some small way if football moves away from Hampden, but Scotland as a whole would lose nationally and internationally.
Scotland has a recognised base, role and reputation through football – why should it move to a base where, in the words of the SRU’S chief operating officer “rugby has to take priority”. This is not mutuality, this is not equality, and it is not good for Scotland or Scottish football.