Falkirk Football Club is a Scottish professional

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

club based in the town of Falkirk. The club was founded in 1876 and competes in Scottish League One, the third tier of Scottish football, as a member of the Scottish Professional Football League. The club was elected to the Second Division of the Scottish Football League in 1902–03, was promoted to the First Division after two seasons and achieved its highest league position in the early 1900s when it was runner-up to Celtic in 1907–08 and 1909–10. The football club was registered as a Limited Liability Company in April 1905 – Falkirk Football & Athletic Club Ltd. Falkirk won the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Second Division. In 2005, Falkirk were promoted to the Scottish Premier League (SPL). Falkirk won the Scottish Cup again in

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...

and were runners-up in the competition in

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

, 2009 and 2015. As a result of their performance in the 2009 Scottish Cup, the club qualified for the inaugural season of the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

in 2009–10. Falkirk have won the second tier of Scottish football a record seven times, an honour shared with St Johnstone. They have also won the Scottish Challenge Cup more than any other club, winning it for the fourth time in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

. In their early years, Falkirk played at three venues: Hope Street, Randyford Park and Blinkbonny Park. Between 1885 and 2003, the club was based at Brockville Park, built on the former Hope Street ground. After the creation of the SPL in 1998, its strict stadium criteria – to which Brockville Park did not conform – was enforced, and the club was denied promotion on three occasions. The club's present home ground since 2004 is the

Falkirk Stadium The Falkirk Stadium is a football stadium in Falkirk, central Scotland, which is the home ground of Scottish League One club Falkirk and Lowland Football League club East Stirlingshire. The stadium has a capacity of and currently consists of t ...

, a

all-seater stadium An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football a ...

on the outskirts of Falkirk.

History

Club formation and early years

The club's date of formation is uncertain.A Brief History – Part One – Origins
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 20 June 2012. Although some accounts point to the year 1876, others claim it was formed in 1877.Club directory
, Scottish Football Historical Archive. Retrieved 20 June 2012. However, the former is the date used by the club and its fans.Fans Zone – 1876 Club
Falkirk FC, 16 August 2007. Retrieved 20 June 2012. In 1878, the club joined the Scottish Football Association, and became eligible to compete in the Scottish Cup, a

knockout tournament A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

which became the country's main association football cup competition. The club reached the second round in the first year that it competed.A Brief History – Part Two – 19th Century Bairns
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 20 June 2012. In the first few years after it was formed, Falkirk played mostly friendly games. They played their home matches at three different grounds during this period; Hope Street, Randyford Park and Blinkbonny Park. It left the latter in 1884 and moved to Brockville Park, which remained the club's home ground for 118 years. The Stirlingshire Football Association was founded in 1883, which invited clubs from the

Stirlingshire Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling, gd, Siorrachd Sruighlea) is a historic county and registration countyRegisters of Scotland. Publications, leaflets, Land Register Counties. of Scotland. Its county town is Stirling. It borders Perth ...

region to join. It resulted in the establishment of a new tournament, the

Stirlingshire Cup The Stirlingshire Cup is an association football cup competition for clubs in the county of Stirlingshire, Scotland. The competition was founded in 1883 and is contested annually by senior member clubs of the Stirlingshire Football Association. Th ...

, a competition open exclusively to the teams from the region, which Falkirk won in its inaugural season.Stirlingshire Cup
, Scottish Football Historical Archive. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
Falkirk FC Historian. 14 February 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2012. The club's nickname is "The Bairns", a Scots word meaning sons or daughters, which is given to natives of the town of Falkirk.Why are Falkirk people called 'bairns'?
Falkirk Local History Society. 2005. Retrieved 20 June 2012. This is reflected in the Falkirk Burgh motto: ''"Better meddle wi' the de'il than the Bairns o' Fa'kirk"''.Historical Walks
Falkirk Local History Society. 2005. Retrieved 20 June 2012.

Election to the Football League

After playing mostly regional matches, friendly games and the nationwide Scottish Cup tournament for the majority of its existence, the club was elected to the bottom tier of the Scottish Football League in 1902–03, a national

sports league A sports league is a group of sports teams or individual athletes that compete against each other and gain points in a specific sport. At its simplest, it may be a local group of amateur athletes who form teams among themselves and compete on wee ...

consisting of Scotland's top football clubs. At the time, the league consisted of two tiers, the First and Second Divisions. Falkirk was promoted to the top division with a second-place finish behind

Clyde Clyde may refer to: People * Clyde (given name) * Clyde (surname) Places For townships see also Clyde Township Australia * Clyde, New South Wales * Clyde, Victoria * Clyde River, New South Wales Canada * Clyde, Alberta * Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...

after two seasons. Despite the club's success, several months beforehand a proposal to merge with local rivals East Stirlingshire was raised, which was narrowly rejected in a vote.A Brief History – Part Three – Early Success
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 20 June 2012. In 1907–08, Falkirk's third season in the top flight, the club finished the season in second place, its highest league position to date, and repeated this in the 1909–10 season. On both occasions it finished behind champions Celtic despite being the top goal scorers in the league, becoming the first Scottish club to break the 100 goals barrier in a single season. In

1913 Events January * January 5 – First Balkan War: Battle of Lemnos – Greek admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis forces the Turkish fleet to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles, from which it will not venture for the rest of the ...

, the club won the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Raith Rovers Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the Scottish Championship as a member of the Scottish Professional Football Leagu ...

in the final 2–0. In 1922, the club broke the world record transfer fee, paying £5000 for the transfer of striker Syd Puddefoot from English club

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

. The following year, the club played against the

Scottish Football League XI The Scottish League XI was a representative side of the Scottish Football League. The team regularly played against the (English) Football League and other national league select teams between 1892 and 1980. For a long period the annual fixture be ...

to raise funds for those affected by the Redding mine disaster. Falkirk spent 30 consecutive seasons in their first spell in the top flight of Scottish football, before being relegated in 1934–35 after finishing 20th at the bottom of the league.Falkirk : History 1918 to 1945
, statto.com. Retrieved 20 June 2012. Despite this, the club was promoted to the top flight after one season, as champions of the 1935–36 Second Division, amassing a club record of 132 league goals in the process. Falkirk remained in the top flight until the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

in 1939, when the league was suspended.

Post-war promotion and demotion

After the war ended in 1945, the Scottish Football League resumed and Falkirk regained its place in the First Division for the 1946–47 season. In 1947, a new competition, the

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...

, was inaugurated. In the 1947–48 season, Falkirk reached the final, and lost 4–1 to East Fife in the replayed final after an initial 0–0 draw. The club competed in the final of the Scottish Cup in

. They defeated Kilmarnock in a replay. This was their first success in the tournament since winning it 44 years earlier. In June 1958 Alex Parker and Eddie O'Hara from the cup winning side were bought by Everton for a combined fee or £18,000. John White was signed two months later from Alloa Athletic with £3,300 of that money. In the years to follow, relegation and promotion between the first and second tiers occurred seven times until the 1995–96 season. The club spent eight consecutive seasons at a time in either division. As a result, Falkirk has won or finished runners-up in the second tier of Scottish football a record 14 times, the majority occurring in this period. The club also spent three seasons in the late 1970s in the newly created third tier, the lowest tier it has competed in. In 1977–78 the club finished in its lowest ranking to date, ending the season in the equivalent of 29th in Scotland following a 5th-place finish in the new Second Division.A Brief History – Part Seven – Underachieving Bairns
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 20 June 2012. In the 1996–97 season, the club reached the final of the Scottish Cup for the third time, and Falkirk became the seventh club in 106 years to reach the final whilst competing outside the top league of Scottish football. Falkirk's opponents were Kilmarnock, a repeat of the 1957 final,Scotland – List of Cup Finals
Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 31 May 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2012. but the club could not match its 1957 success and lost 1–0.Scottish FA Cup – 1996/97
soccerbase.com. Retrieved 29 June 2012.

Scottish Premier League

The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was founded in 1998 as the new top flight of Scottish football. The new league and its rules denied Falkirk the chance to be promoted into it on three occasions as a consequence of its formation. When the SPL was created from the old Premier Division, a play-off match that was held between the team ranked ninth in the Premier Division and the team ranked second in the First Division was abolished during the 1997–98 season. Falkirk, ranked second in the First Division, was thus denied a play-off with Motherwell. The SPL's criterion that clubs required a 10,000 capacity all-seater stadium in order to compete in the new league, which Falkirk's Brockville Park did not comply with, was introduced. When the SPL was due to expand to 12 teams at the end of the 1999–2000 season,

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

, which finished bottom of the SPL, would have competed in a three-way play-off against the teams that finished second and third in the First Division, and two of these three clubs would gain SPL status for the next season. Brockville Park was still below the SPL criterion, and Falkirk applied to ground-share Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, but the proposal was rejected. The play-off was abandoned,

Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...

was automatically promoted and Aberdeen retained its status in the top flight. Falkirk FC League Performance

Following four successive top three finishes in the First Division since 1997–98, the club's fortunes changed dramatically and it finished the season in ninth position, which would have qualified the club to be relegated to the third tier. However, it was spared relegation by the liquidation of fellow First Division club Airdrieonians on the last day of the season.A Brief History – Part Eight – Revival
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 29 June 2012. The following season, Falkirk was again denied promotion to the SPL despite finishing top of the First Division. The club submitted another application to ground-share, this time at

New Broomfield The Excelsior Stadium, is a football stadium in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is the home ground of Airdrieonians of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL). Since the 2021–22 season it has also been used by Celtic for the h ...

– an SPL compliant stadium and the home of Airdrie United – but was rejected in a vote by SPL chairmen. Motherwell was thus spared relegation from the First Division.Falkirk miss out on top flight
'' uefa.com''. 9 February 2011. Retrieved 29 June 2012. In order to meet the criterion, Falkirk started building a new stadium and left Brockville Park. During the 2004–05 season, the SPL stadium criterion was reduced to 6,000, which the club's new

met. The club won the First Division that season, winning 1–0 to Ross County, and was promoted to the SPL. After three seasons in the SPL, including two seventh-place finishes, the club qualified for the inaugural season of the

, the first time the club qualified for a European competition. The same year, Falkirk was beaten by Rangers in the final of the Scottish Cup.A Brief History – Part Nine – Top Flight Bairns
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 29 June 2012. Despite its cup success, Falkirk finished in 10th place in the league and avoided relegation with a 1–0 win against Inverness Caledonian Thistle. The following season, the club competed in the Europa League but was relegated from the SPL to the First Division after being held to a 0–0 draw against Kilmarnock on the final day of the 2009–10 season.

Scottish First Division/Scottish Championship

Following its return to the First Division, Falkirk finished the

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...

and 2011–12 seasons in third position. As members of the Scottish Football League, the club was eligible to compete in the Scottish Challenge Cup, which it won 1-0 against

Hamilton Academical Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championship, having been relegated from the 2020–21 Scotti ...

in 2012 to win the cup for a record fourth time. In the same year Falkirk reached the semi-finals of the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

, but lost to Celtic. The club had defeated the reigning SPL champions Rangers 3–2 in the third round, and also defeated another top flight club

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...

on penalties in the quarter-finals. In 2012-13 Falkirk finished a distant third in the league, 25 points behind champions Partick Thistle, but had a great run in the Scottish Cup, beating local rivals Stenhousemuir as well as

en route to the semi-final against Hibernian at Hampden Park. Falkirk, under the management of Gary Holt for the first time, took a 3–0 half time lead, though Hibernian made a comeback to confirm their place in the final with a 4–3 win (AET). Gary Holt left the managers post in June 2014 to join

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

on their coaching team. He was replaced by Peter Houston. In the 2013–14 season Falkirk finished third in the Scottish Championship, narrowly missing out on the title by 3 points having still been in with a chance on the final day of the season. They qualified for the Premiership play-off, where they defeated Queen of the South 4–3 on aggregate (AET) in the quarter-final, before losing to

2-1 on aggregate in the semis. In 2014–15, Falkirk missed out on the play-off places, finishing in 5th place in the championship, Falkirk went one better in the Scottish Cup than two years previously, reaching the final, avenging their loss to Hibernian in the semi-finals before being defeated by Inverness 2–1 in the final. In 2015–16 Falkirk finished second in the Championship and qualified for the promotion play-offs. They defeated Hibernian 5–4 on aggregate in the semi-final before facing Kilmarnock. A 1–0 home win in the first leg put Falkirk on the verge of a return to top flight football. However, Kilmarnock won 4–0 in the second leg to retain their place in the

Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottis ...

4–1 on aggregate. The following season, Falkirk again finished second in the league and qualified for the play-offs. They went out to Dundee United 4–3 on aggregate in the semi-finals. Falkirk started the 2017–18 season very badly and the club found themselves in danger of relegation to

League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

. Manager Peter Houston was sacked in September 2017 following a 2–0 home loss to Livingston, which left the club second bottom of the league.

Paul Hartley Paul Hartley (born 19 October 1976) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is the manager of Scottish Championship side Cove Rangers. As a player, Hartley won trophies with both Hearts and ...

replaced him as manager. Hartley only won one of his first nine league games, and the club still sat in second bottom, 8 points from guaranteed safety at Christmas. A run of three wins in five games caused Falkirk to draw level on points with third bottom

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the ca ...

and eventually pull away to finish eighth.

Scottish League One

Falkirk had a disastrous 2018–19 season which saw the club relegated on the final day, despite running out 3–2 winners against the Champions Ross County. This led to the club's second spell in the Scottish third tier. The 2019–20 season was declared early after 28 games played, leaving Falkirk in second place, 1 point behind Raith Rovers. The 2020–21 season was another to forget for Falkirk fans. After starting the season on form and seeing themselves clear at the top of the table, a collapse in the second half of the season following a mid-season break due to Covid19 saw Falkirk fall to 5th in League 1 after a 2–0 defeat to Airdrieonians on the final day cost them a spot in the play-offs.

Colours and badge

Falkirk's traditional colours are navy blue and white, which the team first wore during the 1882 season. However, the club's first

strip Strip or Stripping may refer to: Places * Aouzou Strip, a strip of land following the northern border of Chad that had been claimed and occupied by Libya * Caprivi Strip, narrow strip of land extending from the Okavango Region of Namibia to ...

, thin blue and white horizontal hoops on the

jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

and socks, was worn between 1876 and 1880. This was replaced with a blue jersey and white shorts, which has featured predominantly since. Touches of red were introduced to the strip in the late 1930s – mostly on the socks – was worn until the early 1960s, re-introduced in the mid-1970s and has since been featured in the team's kit. For the 2017–18 season the kit consisted of a navy blue jersey, white shorts and navy socks.Falkirk – Historical Football Kits – Kit History
historicalkits.co.uk. Retrieved 14 June 2012. Falkirk's current crest is a stylised version of the

Falkirk Steeple The Falkirk Steeple is a landmark which dominates the skyline of Falkirk in central Scotland. The present structure on the High Street was built in 1814, and replaced an earlier steeple dating from the late 17th century, which itself replaced ...

, a dominant landmark of the town. During the 2007–08 season the club used a crest – known as "The Highlander" – that was worn during the club's 1957 Scottish Cup win as a 50th anniversary tribute to the players. Kit manufacturer

Umbro Umbro is an English sports equipment manufacturer founded in 1924 in Wilmslow, Cheshire and based in Manchester. They specialise in football and rugby sportswear featuring their ''Double Diamond'' logo. Umbro products are marketed in over 10 ...

supplied the club's kit for the 1977–78 season. Other kits have been supplied by

Bukta Bukta is an English sports clothing brand which was founded in 1879 in Stockport, Cheshire, England. It was also, for much of the 20th Century, a leading brand of tents and camping equipment. History E.R. Buck & Sons was founded in 1879, mainly ...

, Patrick and

Le Coq Sportif Le Coq Sportif (, "the athletic rooster") is a French manufacturing company of sports equipment. Founded in 1882 by Émile Camuset and located in Entzheim, the company first issued items branded with its now-famous rooster trademark in 1948. The c ...

. The current supplier since 2008 is Puma and the club's shirt sponsor is Clarke ePOS (UK) Ltd. Recent sponsors include Central Demolition, Budweiser Budvar, John R Weir Mercedes Group and Beazer Homes.

Stadiums

In the club's early years, Falkirk played its home games at three different sites: Hope Street, Randyford Park and Blinkbonny Park. The first pitch used by the club was on Hope Street, the location that would become Brockville Park in 1884. The first match at Hope Street was against

Grasshoppers Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago. Grasshop ...

from

Bonnybridge Bonnybridge ( gd, Drochaid a'Bhuinne; sco, Bonniebrig) is a village in the Falkirk council area of Scotland. It is west of Falkirk, north-east of Cumbernauld and south-southwest of Stirling. The village is situated near the Bonny Water which ...

.Falkirk Grounds – Part One – Hope Street
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2012. After one season, Falkirk moved to Randyford Park, the home of East Stirlingshire Cricket Club during the summer months, in 1878 where the club played its first competitive match, which it won against Campsie Glen of

Lennoxtown Lennoxtown ( gd, Baile na Leamhnachd, ) is a town in East Dunbartonshire council area and the historic county of Stirlingshire, Scotland at the foot of the Campsie Fells, which are just to the north. The town had a population of 4,094 at the 20 ...

in the Scottish Cup.Falkirk Grounds – Part Two – Randyford Park
bettermeddle.org.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2012. The ground was located near

Forth Valley College Forth Valley College is a college of further education#Scotland, further education located in Scotland. The college was established in 2005 from the merger of Falkirk College and Clackmannan College.

, several hundred yards west of the present Falkirk Stadium. The club played at Blinkbonny Park between 1881 and 1883.Lost Football Grounds of Falkirk District – Blinkbonny Park
Falkirk-football-history.co.uk Turnstile

Between 1885 and 2003, Falkirk was based at Brockville Park, which was located a quarter of a mile (0.4 km) from the town centre of Falkirk. Brockville Park was largely

terraced In agriculture, a terrace is a piece of sloped plane that has been cut into a series of successively receding flat surfaces or platforms, which resemble steps, for the purposes of more effective farming. This type of landscaping is therefore ...

and had a capacity of between 7,500 and 8,000 spectators in its later years. On 21 February 1953, Falkirk's largest home attendance was recorded at the ground when 23,100 spectators watched the club play against Celtic in the

third round Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hig ...

of the Scottish Cup.Scottish FA Cup 1952–1953 : Results
statto.com. Retrieved 15 June 2012. Falkirk Stadium - geograph

When the SPL was created in 1998, Brockville Park fell short of the SPL's stadium criteria, mainly because of the terraced stands. As a result, the club was denied entry to the league, despite winning the First Division or qualifying for a promotion

play-off The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

, on three occasions. Falkirk remained at the stadium until the last day of the 2002–03 football season, and in late 2003 Brockville was demolished and the site sold to supermarket chain Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc. To commemorate the club's time at the stadium, the supermarket displays Falkirk F.C. memorabilia, including a turnstile.50 Fascinating Falkirk Facts
, stforum.co.uk. Retrieved 15 June 2012. For the 2003–04 season, Falkirk entered an agreement with Stenhousemuir to ground-share Ochilview Park stadium for one season while the club's new stadium was under construction. Since the beginning of the 2004–05 season, the club has been based at

, an 7,937 capacity

built on the eastern outskirts of Falkirk. The stadium was opened in July 2004 with a friendly match against Dundee.What's The Ground Like?
, Scottish Football Grounds Guide. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 12 January 2012.
, The Falkirk Stadium. 25 July 2004. Retrieved 11 January 2012. When it opened, only the 4,200 capacity west stand was completed. The 2,000 capacity north stand was constructed during the opening season and was completed in May 2005, taking the stadium above the SPL's reduced 6,000 seating criterion. Falkirk became champions of the First Division that season and was promoted to the SPL. The stadium has since been further expanded; the south standWork on third stand gets underway
BBC News. 3 December 2008. Retrieved 12 January 2012. officially opened in a match against

Royal Antwerp Royal Antwerp Football Club, often referred to as Royal Antwerp or simply Antwerp, is a Belgian football club based in the city of Antwerp. Founded around 1880 as ''Antwerp Cricket Club'' by English students residing in Antwerp, 15 years before ...

of Belgium in August 2009.Club debut for new stadium stand
BBC News. 30 July 2009. Retrieved 12 January 2012

Supporters and rivalries

Falkirk's strongest recent rivalry is the Kincardine derby which is contested with

. The towns of Dunfermline and Falkirk are roughly 13 miles apart, separated by the

River Forth The River Forth is a major river in central Scotland, long, which drains into the North Sea on the east coast of the country. Its drainage basin covers much of Stirlingshire in Scotland's Central Belt. The Gaelic name for the upper reach of t ...

. Both clubs are a similar size and have regularly competed at the same level in the SPL and First Division but the origin of the rivalry is unclear, as former Falkirk manager John Hughes said in an interview in 2005.Dunfermline v Falkirk: Preview
''

ESPN Soccernet ESPN FC (formerly ESPN SoccerNet) is a website and a U.S. television studio program covering soccer that is broadcast daily over the streaming service ESPN+. ESPN FC's origin was a website owned by ESPN Inc. Originally established in 1995 as Soc ...

''. 15 October 2005. Retrieved 26 June 2012. The two clubs have played important promotion and relegation encounters against each other over the past thirty years which has only increased the animosity between the two sets of fans. In 2009 the Falkirk Herald recalled Super Tuesday: "More than 20 years ago a previously postponed league fixture took place at Brockville. The then mighty Dunfermline had come to town expecting victory as they looked to continue their push for promotion from the B&Q First Division. But, for over half of the 9200 supporters that packed the terraces on 7 March 1989, little did they know they would witness a match which would eventually become part of Falkirk folklore. Goals from Derek McWilliams, Paul Rutherford, Sammy McGivern and Stuart Burgess without reply brought the Pars back down to earth with an almighty bang." A significant match between Falkirk and Dunfermline took place in April 2009, when they met at the semi-final stage of the

2008–09 Scottish Cup The 2008–09 Scottish Cup was the 124th season of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The winners were Rangers, who defeated Falkirk in the 2009 final on 30 May 2009. The competition was under new sponsorship. While the ...

at Hampden Park; the ''Bairns'' won 2–0 in front of over 17,000 fans to progress to the final. The club's traditional rival was East Stirlingshire, a club that was also based in Falkirk. The two teams regularly competed against each other in their early existences in the Stirlingshire Cup, as well as in league football following Falkirk's election to the Scottish Football League in 1902–03, two seasons after East Stirlingshire. As of May 2020, the last time the clubs played each other in a competitive league fixture was in April 1982, which East Stirlingshire won 3–0, when both clubs were in the First Division.Falkirk : Head-to-Head vs East Stirlingshire
statto.com. Retrieved 26 June 2012. Following East Stirlingshire's relegation that season, the two clubs have not competed in the same league; Falkirk predominantly in the First Division and East Stirlingshire in the Third Division. In 1999–00 the clubs were drawn against each other in the second round of the Scottish League Cup, which Falkirk won 2–0 after extra time was played, the last competitive fixture between the clubs excluding the Stirlingshire Cup.

Club staff

Current squad

On loan

Notable players

Managers

The club's first manager was Willie Nicol, who was appointed in 1905, before which all manager appointments were assigned to the club secretary. Nicol was first appointed club secretary in 1900, then secretary/manager and finally manager. Nicol is the longest serving manager in Falkirk's history. Alex Totten, manager from 1996 to 2002 who led the side to the 1997 Scottish Cup Final, was named the clubs lifetime ambassador ahead of his retirement from football in 2021. This list does not include caretaker managers or those who managed in a temporary capacity. ''Only competitive matches are counted''

Honours

League * Scottish League Championships: (first tier) ** Runners-up (2): 1907–08, 1909–10 *

Scottish First Division The Scottish Football League First Division was the second tier in the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The First Division was introduced in 1975–76 to replace the old Scottish Football League Division Two, as ...

: (second tier) ** Winners (7): 1935–36, 1969–70, 1974–75,

1990–91 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...

, 1993–94, 2002–03, 2004–05 ** Runners-up (8): 1904–05, 1951–52, 1960–61, 1985–86, 1988–89, 1997–98, 1998–99, 2015–16 *

Scottish Second Division The Scottish Football League Second Division was the third tier of the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The Second Division was created in 1975, as part of a wider reconstruction of the Scottish Football League (SFL ...

: (third tier) ** Winners (1): 1979–80 ** Runners-up (1): 2019–20† Cups *

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,1913 Events January * January 5 – First Balkan War: Battle of Lemnos – Greek admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis forces the Turkish fleet to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles, from which it will not venture for the rest of the ...

** Runners-up (3):

, 2009, 2015 *

: **Runners-up (1): 1947–48 * Scottish Challenge Cup: ** Winners (4):

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

, 2004,

†The 2019-2020 Scottish League One season declared early after 28 games played after the Covid-19 outbreak.

Club records

* League victory: 9–0 v Port Glasgow Athletic, Division One, 21 September 1907Falkirk : Records
statto.com. Retrieved 17 June 2012. * League defeat: 1–11 v Airdrieonians, Division One, 28 April 1951 * Cup victory: 11–1 v Tillicoultry,

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup, * Cup defeat: 1–9 v Motherwell,

, 11 August 1962; 0–8 v

, League Cup, 20 September 1972 * Record attendance: 23,100 v Celtic, Scottish Cup, Brockville Park, 21 February 1953Falkirk Football Club – Team Profile & History
, Scottish Premier League. Retrieved 17 June 2012. * Most international

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

: 14, Alex Parker for

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

(1955–58)Falkirk FC Players – International Appearances
Falkirk FC Historian. Retrieved 17 June 2012. *Most league goals in one season: 43, Evelyn Morrison, ( 1928–29)Falkirk FC – Most Senior Goals in a Season
Falkirk FC Historian. 27 May 2010. Retrieved 17 June 2012. *Most goals in one season: 45, Evelyn Morrison, (1928–29) *Most league goals: 129, Kenneth Dawson, ( 1934–35 to 1950–51)
*Most senior goals: 237, Kenneth Dawson, (1934–35 to 1950–51) *Most top division goals: 115,

Jock Simpson John Robert Simpson (25 December 1886 – 4 January 1959) was a footballer who played as an outside right in the 1900s and 1910s. Career Club Simpson's footballing career began with Laurieston Villa, and after a trial with Rangers, he signed f ...

, ( 1905–06 to 1921–22) *Most Scottish Cup goals: 12, Robert Keyes, ( 1934–35 to 1938–39)Falkirk FC 100 Club – Bobby Keyes
Falkirk FC Historian. 6 October 2010. Retrieved 16 June 2012. *Most League Cup goals: 25, Angus Plumb, ( 1949–50 to 1954–55) * Most league appearances: 451, Tom Ferguson, ( 1919–20 to 1931–32)Thomas Ferguson = Falkirk FC
Falkirk FC Historian. 12 October 2010. Retrieved 16 June 2012. * Most senior appearances: 498, Tom Ferguson, (1919–20 to 1931–32) * Most Scottish Cup appearances: 47, Tom Ferguson, (1919–20 to 1931–32) * Most League Cup appearances: 68,

John Markie John Markie (born 16 December 1944) is a Scottish former footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American footbal ...

, ( 1964–65 to 1975–76)

European record

Since the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) was formed in 1960, Falkirk has qualified for a UEFA club competition on one occasion.Falkirk – History
'' uefa.com''. Retrieved 28 June 2012. In 2009, Falkirk reached the final of the Scottish Cup, which it lost to Rangers. The winner of the Scottish Cup would normally qualify for the UEFA Europa League, but because Rangers had already qualified for the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...

through their league ranking in the SPL, the place was passed to Falkirk as runners-up. Falkirk was eliminated in the

second qualifying round The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds each ...

FC Vaduz FC may refer to: Businesses, organisations, and schools * Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India * Finncomm Airlines (IATA code) * FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC * Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Paki ...

of Liechtenstein in a

two-legged tie In sports (particularly association football), a two-legged tie is a contest between two teams which comprises two matches or "legs", with each team as the home team in one leg. The winning team is usually determined by aggregate score, the sum ...

.UEFA Europa League 2009/10 – Matches
'' uefa.com''. 13 August 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2012. The club's only European goal was scored by Ryan Flynn in the 1–0 first leg home victory against

References

External links

* {{Authority control Sport in Falkirk Football clubs in Scotland Association football clubs established in 1876 1876 establishments in Scotland Scottish Premier League teams Scottish Football League teams Scottish Cup winners Scottish Challenge Cup winners Scottish Professional Football League teams