Heart of Midlothian Football Club, commonly known as Hearts, is a professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The team competes in the , the top division of

Scottish football Association football is one of the national sports of Scotland and the most popular sport in the country. There is a long tradition of "football" games in Orkney, Lewis and southern Scotland, especially the Scottish Borders, although many of ...

. Hearts, the oldest football club in the Scottish capital, was formed in 1874, its name influenced by

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

's novel ''

The Heart of Midlothian ''The Heart of Mid-Lothian'' is the seventh of Sir Walter Scott's Waverley Novels. It was originally published in four volumes on 25 July 1818, under the title of ''Tales of My Landlord, 2nd series'', and the author was given as "Jedediah Clei ...

''. The club crest is based on the Heart of Midlothian mosaic on the city's

Royal Mile The Royal Mile () is the nickname of a series of streets forming the main thoroughfare of the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. The term originated in the early 20th century and has since entered popular usage. The Royal ...

; the team's colours are maroon and white. Hearts have played home matches at

Tynecastle Park Tynecastle Park, also known as Tynecastle Stadium, is a football stadium in the Gorgie area of Edinburgh, which is the home ground of Scottish Professional Football League club Heart of Midlothian (Hearts). A UEFA category four stadium, it ha ...

since 1886. After converting the ground into an all-seater stadium in 1990, it now has a capacity of following the completion of a rebuilt main stand in 2017. They have training facilities at the Oriam, Scotland's national performance centre for sport, where they also run their youth academy. Hearts have won the Scottish league championship four times, most recently in 1959–60, when they also retained the

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup, also known as the Premier Sports 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 ...

to complete a League and League Cup double – the only club outside of the

Old Firm The Old Firm is a collective name for the Scottish football clubs Celtic and Rangers, which are both based in Glasgow. The two clubs are the most successful and popular in Scotland, and the rivalry between them has become deeply embedded i ...

to achieve such a feat. The club's most successful period was under former player turned manager Tommy Walker from the early 1950s to mid 1960s, during which they won two league titles and five major cups and finished inside the league's top four positions for 11 consecutive seasons and 1954 and 1962. Jimmy Wardhaugh, Willie Bauld and Alfie Conn Sr., known as the Terrible Trio, were forwards at the start of this period with wing half linchpins Dave Mackay and John Cumming. Wardhaugh was part of another notable Hearts attacking trinity in the 1957–58 league winning side: along with Jimmy Murray and Alex Young, they set the record for the number of goals scored in a Scottish top-flight winning campaign (132) and also became the only side to finish a season in the Scottish top tier with a goal difference exceeding 100 (+103). Hearts have won the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

after a 5–1 victory over Hibernian, their local rivals. They have since been beaten finalists in

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

and

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

. All four of Hearts'

triumphs came under Walker, most recently a 1–0 victory against

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock ( ; ; , ), meaning "the church of Mernóc", is a town and former burgh in East Ayrshire situated in southwest Scotland. The town has served as the administrative centre of East Ayrshire Council since 1996 and is the region's main ...

1962 The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War. Events January * January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...

. Their most recent League Cup Final appearance was in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, where they lost 3–2 to St Mirren. In 1958, Heart of Midlothian became the third

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

and fifth

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

team to compete in European competition. The club reached the quarter-finals of the

1988–89 UEFA Cup The 1988–89 UEFA Cup was the 18th season of the UEFA Cup, the secondary club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The final was played over two legs at the Stadio San Paolo, Naples, Italy, and ...

, losing to

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...

2–1 on aggregate.

History

Early years

The club was formed by a group of friends from the Heart of Midlothian Quadrille Assembly Club. The group of friends bought a ball before playing local rules football at the Tron from where they were directed by a local policeman to The Meadows to play. Local rules football was a mix of rugby and association football. In December 1873 a match was held between XIs selected by Mr Thomson from Queen's Park and Mr Gardner from Clydesdale at Raimes Park in Bonnington. This was the first time that Association rules had been seen in Edinburgh. Members from the dance club viewed the match and in 1874 decided to adopt the association rules. The new side was Heart of Mid-Lothian Football Club. The exact date of the club's formation was never recorded; however, 1874 is regarded as the year of formation as it was when association rules were taken on, although Tom Purdie claimed the club was formed in 1873. The earliest mention of ''Heart of Midlothian'' in a sporting context is a report in ''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact (newspaper), compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until ...

'' newspaper from 20 July 1864 of ''The Scotsman'' vs Heart of Mid-Lothian at cricket. It is not known if this was the same club who went on to form the football club, but it was common for football clubs in those days to play other sports as well. The club took its name from historic county

Midlothian Midlothian (; ) is registration county, lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh council ar ...

, dating from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, as well as the Heart of Midlothian mosaic on the

, which marks the historic entrance to the Old Tolbooth jail, which was demolished in 1817 but was kept fresh in the mind by

's novel ''

''.

Led by captain Tom Purdie the club played its matches in the East Meadows and in 1875 Hearts became members of the

Scottish Football Association The Scottish Football Association (; also known as the Scottish FA and the SFA) 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 incl ...

(SFA) and were founder members of the Edinburgh Football Association. By becoming members of the SFA Hearts were able to play in the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,3rd Edinburgh Rifle Volunteers F.C. in October 1875 at Craigmount Park in Edinburgh. The game ended in a scoreless draw. A replay was held at the Meadows which again finished 0–0. Under rules at the time both clubs progressed to the next round with Hearts losing out to Drumpellier in the next round. In the 1884–85 season, clubs in Scotland struggled to attract quality players who preferred to play professionally in England. After an 11–1 win in the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup, Hearts were suspended by the SFA for two years - the first ever suspension of an SFA club. They were readmitted after a change of the club's committee.

Early success

Hearts had considerable success in the early years of the

Scottish Football League The Scottish Football League (SFL) is a defunct league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4&nbs ...

, winning the league championship in

1895 Events January * January 5 – Dreyfus affair: French officer Alfred Dreyfus is stripped of his army rank and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island (off French Guiana) on what is much later admitted to be a false charge of tr ...

and

1896 Events January * January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end as Jameson surrenders to the Boers. * January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. * January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports Wilhelm Röntgen's dis ...

. They also won four

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

in the 1894–95 World Championship, but lost with a 5–3 score. Hearts did win the World Championship title in 1902, beating

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

3–1 in

, after a 0–0 in London a few months earlier.

Hearts in World War I

In November 1914, Heart of Midlothian comfortably led the First Division, having started the 1914–15 season with eight straight victories, including a 2–0 defeat of reigning champions

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

. This streak coincided with the start of the First World War and the beginnings of a public debate upon the morality of continuing professional football while young soldiers were dying on the front-line. A motion was placed before the

to postpone the season, with one of its backers, Airdrieonians chairman Thomas Forsyth declaring that ''"playing football while our men are fighting is repugnant"''.''McCrae's Battalion'', 15 While this motion was defeated at the

ballot box A ballot box is a temporarily sealed container, usually a square box though sometimes a tamper resistant bag, with a narrow slot in the top sufficient to accept a ballot paper in an election but which prevents anyone from accessing the votes cas ...

, with the SFA opting to wait for War Office advice, the East London philanthropist Frederick Nicholas Charrington was orchestrating a public campaign to have professional football in Britain suspended, and achieving great popular support for his cause.''McCrae's Battalion'', 21–24 The prime tactic of Charrington's campaign was to shame football players and officials into action through public and private denouncement. In response, sixteen players from Hearts enlisted in Sir George McCrae's new volunteer battalion, joining en masse on 25 November 1914. The battalion was to become the 16th Royal Scots and was the first to earn the "footballer's battalion" sobriquet. The group of volunteers also contained some 500 Hearts supporters and ticket-holders, 150 followers of Hibernian and a number of professional footballers from Raith Rovers, Falkirk and Dunfermline. Military training was thus added to the Hearts players football training regime, and the side had a 20-game unbeaten run between October and February. However, exhaustion from their army exertions, twice including 10-hour nocturnal-marches the night before a league game,''McCrae's Battalion'', 95–99 eventually led to a drop in form, as several enlisted players missed key games. Defeats to St Mirren and Morton allowed Celtic to usurp the ''Maroons'' and eventually claim the league title by 4 points. The war claimed the lives of seven first team players: Duncan Currie, John Allan, James Boyd, Tom Gracie, Ernest Ellis, James Speedie and Harry Wattie as well as former player David Philip. There are two war memorials to mark this period; The McCrae's Battalion Great War Memorial in Contalmaison and the Heart of Midlothian War Memorial in

Haymarket, Edinburgh Haymarket (,
) is an area of Edinburgh, Scotland. ...

donated to the city by the club in 1922. The latter was placed in storage due to the

Edinburgh Trams Edinburgh Trams is a tramway in Edinburgh, Scotland, operated by Edinburgh Trams Ltd. It is an line between Newhaven, Edinburgh, Newhaven and Edinburgh Airport, with 23 tram stops, stops. A modern tram network for Edinburgh was proposed by ...

work but has now been replaced a little to the east of its previous position. A further memorial commemorating the 1914 Hearts team has been proposed by the club. An annual pilgrimage is held by football supporters to Contalmaison every year, whilst Hearts hold their memorial services at Haymarket or, whilst it was in storage, at

Inter war years

Hearts collected no senior silverware in the inter war years. Tommy Walker joined the Hearts ground staff aged 16 in February 1932. As Scottish clubs could not then officially sign players until the age of 17, Walker played junior football for Linlithgow Rose until his birthday in May. A talented and elegant inside-forward, Walker quickly earned a place in the Hearts first team, helping the side to victory in the 1933 Jubilee edition of the Rosebery Charity Cup, in a season in which they finished 3rd in the league. He was a regular first team player by 1933–34 but despite some emphatic victories, inconsistent form limited Hearts to a sixth-place finish. Despite Walker scoring 192 league goals for Hearts and playing in sides boasting numerous internationals, such as Scots Dave McCulloch, Barney Battles, Andy Anderson and Alex Massie, Welshman Freddie Warren and Irishman Willie Reid, Walker was destined not to win a major honour as a player at Tynecastle. The closest Hearts came to success during his period there was a second place league finish in 1937–38.

Tommy Walker's managerial era

The first seeds of the Tommy Walker managerial success at Hearts were sown by Davie McLean. On 9 October 1948 after a mediocre start to the 1948–49 season, Hearts' manager McLean gave a competitive first team debut to 20 year old centre forward Willie Bauld and 19 year old inside left Jimmy Wardhaugh, and 22 year old inside right Alfie Conn Sr. had already broken through to the first team so this game marked the first time all three were deployed as a combined attacking force. They became dubbed the ''Terrible Trio'' and scored over 900 Hearts goals between them (Wardhaugh 376, Bauld 355, Conn 221). As a unit they played 242 games together. The combination of Wardhaugh's dribbling skills and non-stop running, Bauld's cerebral play and prodigious aerial ability, and Conn's energetic, tenacious style and powerful shooting complemented each other well.Scott, ''The Terrible Trio'', 101–103 Their first match as a forward combination ended in a 6–1 defeat of Scot Symon's East Fife team of the era.Hearts History 1944 – 54 www.heartsfc.co.uk
This was notable as Symon's team had defeated the ''Maroons'' 4–0 three weeks earlier. A few weeks later in December 1948 Tommy Walker left during his third season at Chelsea to return to Hearts. He took the role of player-assistant to manager McLean. McLean's intention was that Walker would be a steadying influence in a developing young team. However, after a single appearance at right-half in a 1–0 home defeat by

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

, Walker retired to concentrate fully on learning the managerial ropes. Tangible progress was made in the League Championship in 1949–50 when Hearts finished third. As Tommy Walker had become more influential, McLean was co-opted to the Board on 16 March 1950. Heart of Midlothian FC League Performance

Heart of Midlothian FC League Performance

McLean's death on 14 February 1951 saw Walker promoted to the position of manager. Walker's reign was to prove the most successful period in the club's history. Walker was always quick to acknowledge the contribution made by McLean and his fatherly interest in the welfare and development of the players. The important foundations Walker inherited from McLean included the ''Terrible Trio'' forwards, the full back pair of Bobby Parker and Tam McKenzie and half backs Bobby Dougan and Davie Laing. To this established core John Cumming had recently broken through to the first team in the left half position he was to dominate for many years.

Freddie Glidden Frederick Glidden (7 September 1927 – 1 January 2019) was a Scottish professional association football, footballer who spent most of his career with Heart of Midlothian F.C., Heart of Midlothian. Career Early years Raised in Stoneyburn, Glidd ...

was already at Tynecastle but yet to first team debut as was the then schoolboy Dave Mackay. Walker made Parker the team Captain. Mackay's key signing as a professional was under Walker in 1952 (initially part-time whilst also working as a joiner). Mackay's pairing with Cumming at wing half was to become the nucleus of the team in the middle of the pitch. Mackay was a supremely talented all round player of ferocious tackling, endless running and sublime ball control. Cumming's ''Iron Man'' nickname says much of his fearless determination. Despite his commitment he retained control of his temper and was never booked in his career. Cumming was the only player to collect medals for all seven of the trophies Hearts won under Walker. "He never had a bad game. It was either a fairly good game or an excellent game," said Mackay later of his former teammate. Both went on to become full Scotland internationalists while playing for Hearts. Bauld's value to the team was underlined in 1952–53, when he missed eight vital league games through ankle injuries. Hearts were struggling, but with Bauld's return to full fitness came a change in fortunes. From the bottom half of the league they surged up the table to finish in fourth place (as they had the two previous seasons). That resurgence also took them to a 1952–53 Scottish Cup semi final against Rangers before 116,262 fans at Hampden Park in Glasgow. Wardhaugh scored in the 2–1 defeat. Hearts were now though on an upward trajectory. In 1953–54, Wardhaugh became the A Division's top scorer with 27 goals as Hearts appeared set to win the League championship. However, on 13 March 1954 in the Scottish Cup quarter final 3–0 defeat away to Aberdeen, Parker broke his jaw, Conn injured his back, and Wardhaugh collected a serious shin bone injury. Dougan already had a lengthy knee injury meaning 9 November 1953 was his last competitive Hearts first team game (Dougan only subsequently played for Hearts in friendlies). Walker immediately tried Glidden to cover and he took over the centre half berth from Dougan. A stuttering end to their season saw

overtake them. The young Mackay was given his first team debut on 7 November of that 1953–54 season one week before his nineteenth birthday. Naturally more left sided than right, Mackay played in the number six jersey normally associated with the absent Cumming. Mackay's next two appearances though weren't until mid March immediately after the Aberdeen cup defeat when again he played in Cumming's position. It wasn't until 17 April 1954 in a 1–0 win at Clyde that Walker first selected Mackay, Glidden and Cumming in the numbers four, five and six. The team was boosted by the signing of Ian Crawford in August 1954. Mackay was given his extended place in the team in the 1954–55 season immediately after Laing's 5 September transfer to Clyde. It was from this point that Walker settled on Mackay, Glidden and Cumming as his combination for the number four, five and six jerseys. They promptly became a trophy winning force lifting the first of seven trophies over nine seasons between 1954 and 1963. In October of the 1954–55 season they won their first trophy since 1906, 48 years before. They beat

Motherwell Motherwell (, ) is a List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Shires of Scotland, Historically in the p ...

4–2 in the 1954 Scottish League Cup final. Bauld scored three and Wardhaugh scored one in the final giving the team their break through trophy. Hearts gained some recompense against Celtic from the season before by beating them home and away in that 1954–55 Scottish League Cup group stage.http://www.heartsfc.co.uk.p.preprod.performgroup.com/articles/20080802/1954-1964_2241543_1356683 After signing Alex Young and Bobby Kirk, Walker's side proceeded to win the 1955–56 Scottish Cup. They thrashed Rangers 4–0 in the quarter-finals with goals from Crawford, Conn and a Bauld double. Cumming's commitment to the team was typified in that 1956 Scottish Cup final before 132,840 fans. With blood streaming from a first half head injury from a clash with Celtic's Willie Fernie he said, "Blood doesn't show on a maroon jersey". He returned to the playing field in the 3–1 win and was man of the match. That quote is now displayed above the entrance to the players tunnel at Tynecastle. Kirk could play in either full back role and played on the right in the final at the expense of Parker. Glidden lifted the trophy as Hearts captain in what he recalled as the "sweetest" moment in his footballing career. Wardhaugh was the top tier's leading scorer again that season. The scorers in the cup final win over Celtic were Crawford with two and one from Conn. Conn ended that 1955–56 season at the peak of his powers aged 29 with a career best 29 goals from 41 games. On 2 May 1956 two weeks after the cup win Conn became the third of the terrible trio to collect a full

cap. At Hampden Park he put his side ahead after 12 minutes in a 1–1 draw with

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. However the following September he suffered a broken jaw playing against Hibernian keeping him out until January.Hearts FC Alfie Conn obituary
The days of the ''Terrible Trio'' as a combined force were nearing their end. 17 year old Gordon Marshall debuted in 1956 as did

George Thomson George Thomson may refer to: Government and politics * George Thomson (MP for Southwark) (c. 1607–1691), English merchant and Parliamentarian soldier, official and politician * George Thomson, Baron Thomson of Monifieth (1921–2008), Scottish p ...

in February 1957. Marshall, a future England under 23 internationalist, became a Hearts goalkeeping regular until 1963. Hearts led the Scottish League for most of the 1956–57 season. The title hinged on Rangers visit to Tynecastle on 13 April. A capacity crowd watched a tense game in which Rangers keeper, George Niven, was man of the match. Hearts could not beat him and the only goal came from Billy Simpson of Rangers who scored on the break in 35 minutes. Rangers had games in hand which they won to overtake Hearts and lift the trophy. Walker completed the set of having won all three major Scottish football trophies with the League Championship in 1957–58. Conn suffered a serious ankle injury meaning he only played in five league games all season. Injury hit Conn left Hearts for Raith Rovers in September 1958 just two years after his 1956 zenith. He did so after 408 first team games and 221 goals. With an injury hit Bauld only playing nine times in the league title win a new Hearts attacking trio were dominant. For a third time Wardhaugh was the League's top marksman with 28 strikes. This was one ahead of Jimmy Murray's 27 and four more than Young's 24. Mackay, now Captain, was fourth in Hearts' league scoring charts with 12. Hearts won that League title in 1957–58 with record-breaking points, goals scored and goal difference. Their record from 34 league games of 62 points out of a maximum possible 68 was 13 more than their nearest rival. They scored 132 goals (still the Scottish top tier record) with only 29 against for a record net difference of +103. This was Hearts' greatest ever league side. Murray and Mackay both played for Scotland at the

1958 FIFA World Cup The 1958 FIFA World Cup was the 6th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Sweden from 8 to 29 June 1958. It was the first and only FIFA World Cup to be played in a Nordic country. Br ...

where Murray scored in a 1–1 draw against Yugoslavia. Parker was a fringe player in the league winning season, his last season as a Hearts player. He moved to the club coaching staff before joining the Board of Directors where he also had a spell as chairman. In the 1958–59 Scottish League Cup group stage Hearts eliminated Rangers. That October 1958 Scottish League Cup final was won with a heavy 5–1 defeat of

Partick Thistle Partick Thistle Football Club are a professional association football, football club from Glasgow, Scotland and currently plays in the . Despite their name, the club are based at Firhill Stadium in the Maryhill area of the city, and have not ...

. Bauld and Murray each scored two and Johnny Hamilton netted one. Hearts defended their league title by being leaders in mid December. However a side visiting Ibrox missing injured Mackay were beaten 5–0 with all goals in the first 35 minutes. This put Rangers into top position in the table on goal average. This precipitated a run of only two wins from the next seven games without injured Mackay. Hearts beat Queen of the South in a 2–1 home league win on 7 March 1959. After that QoS game Rangers with six games to play were firm favourites for the title, six points ahead of second placed Hearts. Even if Hearts were to win their remaining seven games including a game in hand and beating Rangers in their visit Tynecastle in Rangers' penultimate game of the season, Rangers would still have to drop two points elsewhere and give away a superior goal average. The league game against QoS was Mackay's last for Hearts after they accepted a bid of £32,000 from

for their captain who was fit at this time despite having had lengthy spells out injured in the previous 12 months. Bobby Rankin was brought in to bolster the squad and scored twice in each of his first two games (both victories). On the penultimate Saturday of the league campaign goals by Cumming and Rankin at home to Rangers meant Hearts were four points behind with a game in hand. In midweek they next won 4–2 at Aberdeen with Rankin scoring a hat-trick. The last day of the season began with Rangers two points clear with an identical goal average to Hearts. Rangers thus needed a point to clinch the title but lost 2–1 at home to Aberdeen. Despite missing Bobby Kirk at right back with a knee injury, Rankin's ninth goal from his fifth Hearts game had Hearts 1–0 up at half time at

Celtic Park Celtic Park is a Soccer-specific stadium, football stadium and the home of Scottish Premiership team Celtic F.C., Celtic, in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, Scotland. With a capacity of 60,832, it is the largest List of football stadiums in Sco ...

. Any victory would have given Hearts the title. Then Celtic's Bertie Auld playing at left wing equalised before Eric Smith scored Celtic's winning second goal to seal the title for their cross city rivals leaving those at Tynecastle to wonder what would have happened if Mackay hadn't been sold when he was. Mackay's name as a club mainstay at half back was eventually taken over by

Billy Higgins Billy Higgins (October 11, 1936 – May 3, 2001) was an American jazz drummer. He played mainly free jazz and hard bop. Biography Higgins was born in Los Angeles, California, United States. Higgins played on Ornette Coleman's first records, be ...

. That League Cup win was also Glidden's last trophy as a recurring back injury that season numbered his playing days at Tynecastle. 36 year old MacKenzie left in 1959 as did Wardhaugh. He scored 206 goals in 304 league games and a total of 376 goals in 518 games for Hearts. After collecting three Scottish championships and 19 full Scotland caps at Hibernian, Gordon Smith had a recurring ankle injury leading to his free transfer in 1959. Smith believed that an operation could cure the injury and paid for an operation on the offending ankle himself. He then signed for Hearts, his boyhood heroes. He enjoyed immediate success at Tynecastle, winning both the 1959 Scottish League Cup final and league title in his first season with the club. Hamilton scored for Hearts in that second successive League Cup Final and Young hit the winner. Third Lanark were beaten 2–1. 1960 ended with Walker being awarded the OBE for services to football. The 1960s saw Hearts fortunes fluctuate as Walker attempted to adapt to football's tactical changes by implementing a 4–2–4 formation. Young and Thomson departed for Everton in November 1960. At Everton Young was known as ''The Golden Vision'' and became another from the Walker production line of full Scotland internationalists. Smith had an injury hit season leading to his joining Dundee (who became the third club with whom he won the Scottish title). Hearts signed further future full internationalists in Willie Wallace and David Holt. Hearts lost the 1961 Scottish League Cup final after a replay. Cumming scored a deserved equalising penalty for Hearts in the first game 1–1 draw they largely dominated against the Scot Symon managed Rangers. Norrie Davidson scored a then equalising Hearts goal when they lost in the 3–1 replay defeat. Bauld left Hearts in 1962 with 355 goals from 510 first team appearances. Another future internationalist, Willie Hamilton, joined for the run culminating in the 1962 Scottish League Cup final win. Hearts won the trophy for a fourth time with a 1–0 final win over Willie Waddell's fine Kilmarnock side of that era. Davidson's goal this time proved decisive. Like in the 1954–55 win Hearts eliminated Celtic in that 1962–63 Scottish League Cup group stage. In 1964–65 Hearts fought out a championship title race with Waddell's Kilmarnock. In the era of two points for a win Hearts were three points clear with two games remaining. Hearts drew with Dundee United meaning the last game of the season with the two title challengers playing each other at Tynecastle would be a league decider. Kilmarnock needed to win by a two-goal margin to take the title. Hearts entered the game as favourites with both a statistical and home advantage. They also had a solid pedigree of trophy winning under Walker. Waddell's Kilmarnock in contrast had been nearly men. Four times in the previous five seasons they had finished league runners-up including Hearts’ triumph in 1960. Killie had also lost three domestic cup finals during the same period including the 1962 League Cup Final defeat to Hearts. Hearts had won five of the six senior cup finals they played in under Walker. Even the final they had lost was in a replay after drawing the first game. Hearts' Roald Jensen hit the post after six minutes. Kilmarnock then scored twice through Davie Sneddon and Brian McIlroy after 27 and 29 minutes. Alan Gordon had an excellent chance to clinch the title for Hearts in second half injury time but was denied by a Bobby Ferguson diving save pushing the ball past the post. The 2–0 defeat meant Hearts lost the title by an average of 0.042 goals. Subsequently, Hearts were instrumental in pushing through a change to use goal difference to separate teams level on points. Ironically this rule change later denied Hearts the title in 1985–86.Hearts History 1964 – 74 www.heartsfc.co.uk
Following a slump in results, Walker resigned in September 1966. Under his management Hearts had won 7 senior trophies and been runners up in five others. Cumming left the playing staff a year later and joined the coaching team.

Latter 20th century

The highlight of the late 60s was the run to the 1968 Scottish Cup Final when they lost 3–1 to

George Farm George Neil Farm (13 July 1924 – 18 July 2004) was a Scottish professional football goalkeeper and manager. Born in Slateford, a suburb of Edinburgh, Farm represented his country on ten occasions, the last three of which occurred after a g ...

Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently compete in the after winning the 2022–23 Scottish League One title. Dunfermline play at ...

. The players of greatest note in the late sixties were Jim Cruickshank, Alan Anderson and Donald Ford with Drew Busby joining the three in the 1970s. The high point of the 1970s was another run to the Scottish Cup Final. In 1975–76 they again lost 3–1 in the final this time to Rangers. After the advent of the ten team Premier Division in 1975, Hearts were subsequently relegated for the first time in

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

. This began a sequence of yo-yoing between the Premier League and First Division six times in seven seasons. On 25 May 1981, 34-year-old Wallace Mercer became chairman after buying a controlling interest in Hearts for £265,000. Hearts had just been relegated from the top flight for the third time in five seasons. The following December (1981), Mercer promoted Alex MacDonald to be Player-Manager. At the end of the 1982–83 season, Hearts were promoted back to the top flight. This marked an upturn in their fortunes to rejoin the more competitive clubs in Scotland's top flight. The 1985–86 season was their best since 1965. The league campaign started with the loss of five of the first eight games. From there the club went on a 27-game unbeaten league run, reaching the top of the league on 21 December after a 1–0 win at St Mirren. Hearts needed a draw from the last game of the season away to

on 3 May 1986 to win the Scottish league title. Before that final game they were two points ahead of Celtic and with a superior goal difference of four goals. However, this strong statistical position was undermined in the run up to the game when several players in the Hearts squad were hit by a viral infection.

Craig Levein Craig William Levein (born 22 October 1964) is a Scottish professional association football, football manager and former player who was most recently the manager of Scottish Premiership club St Johnstone F.C., St Johnstone. During his playing c ...

failed to recover to make the game in Dundee. Celtic were 4–0 up away at St Mirren at half time in their final fixture. Thus, at half time the players knew that they would have to deliver a result at

Dens Park Dens Park is a football stadium in Dundee, Scotland, which is the home of club Dundee F.C. and has a capacity of . Tannadice Park, the home of rivals Dundee United, is just 200 yards (183 metres) away. History Dundee moved to "Dens" from the ...

. Substitute

Albert Kidd Albert Kidd (born 19 October 1961) is a Scottish former football player who now lives in Australia. He is best known in Scottish football for scoring two goals for Dundee against Hearts on the final day of the 1985–86 season to deny Hearts ...

forced Hearts to concede a corner kick with seven minutes remaining. The in-swinging corner was touched on and fell to Kidd who put Dundee ahead. This was the first goal Hearts had conceded from a corner all season. Hearts now needed an equaliser to win the title. However, Kidd went on a run with the ball from the halfway line down the right wing beating two Hearts players. After then playing a one-two with a teammate on the edge of the Hearts box he finished to score a second with four minutes left. Dundee won 2–0. This combined with Celtic winning 5–0 against St Mirren meant the top two clubs finished the season on the same number of points. Hearts lost out to Celtic by a goal difference of three. Had goal difference been the rule in 1965 Hearts would have been champions; had goal average still applied in 1986, they would have won the league. Hearts lobbying after the league loss in 1965 cost them the title in 1986. Hearts had been chasing a League and Scottish Cup double. After eliminating Rangers and

Jim McLean James Yuille McLean (2 August 1937 – 26 December 2020) was a Scottish football player, manager and director. He managed Dundee United between 1971 and 1993, becoming the longest-serving and most successful manager in the club's history, winni ...

's Dundee United they faced

Alex Ferguson Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December 1941) is a Scottish former professional football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. He is widely regarded as the greatest manager of all time and ...

's Aberdeen in the final; Aberdeen won 3–0 meaning Hearts finished runners-up as they had in the league. Hearts finished league runners-up again in 1988 and

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

. The club reached the quarter-finals of the

losing out to

2–1 on aggregate. After MacDonald's summer 1990 departure the club struggled to settle on a manager. Within a two-year period, Joe Jordan,

Sandy Clark Alexander Clark (born 28 October 1956) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player who manages Scottish Lowland Football League club Albion Rovers. Career Clark played for several clubs in his playing career including his h ...

and Tommy McLean were all sacked. From April 1989 to April 1994, Hearts went on a run of 22 games in a row without defeat against arch-rivals Hibernian in the

Edinburgh derby The Edinburgh derby is an informal title given to any association football, football match played between Football in Scotland, Scottish clubs Heart of Midlothian F.C., Heart of Midlothian (Hearts) and Hibernian F.C., Hibernian (Hibs), the two o ...

. In 1994 Mercer sold his shares in Hearts to Chris Robinson and Leslie Deans. Under Mercer, Hearts finished second in the Scottish top tier three times and once in the Scottish Cup, but his time at the helm concluded without senior silverware. His personal influence at the club is perhaps best remembered with an attempted merger with Hibs in 1990. Seen by Hibs fans as an attempted take over to liquidate their club, Mercer's attempts were met with bitterness and acrimony before he backed away.'Creative accountancy': How Jim McLean - and others - were unlikely saviours of Hibs as Wallace Mercer circled
''

'', 4 June 2020 In

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, Hearts beat Rangers 2–1 to lift the Scottish Cup under the management of ex Hearts player, Jim Jefferies. Colin Cameron scored a first-minute penalty and

Stéphane Adam Stéphane Lucien Adam (born 14 May 1969) is a French former professional association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Career Born in Lille, Adam was a Striker (association football), forward who play ...

added after half time. This was Hearts' first senior trophy win since the 1962–63 Scottish League Cup won in the Tommy Walker era.

Into the 21st century

Hearts finished third in 2003 and 2004, and reached the inaugural group stages of the

UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

in 2004–05, but finished bottom of their group, despite Robbie Neilson's goal giving a 2–1 victory over

FC Basel Fussball Club Basel 1893, widely known as FC Basel, FCB, or just Basel, is a Swiss professional Association football, football club based in Basel, in the Basel-Stadt, Canton of Basel-Stadt. Formed in 1893, the club has been List of Swiss footba ...

. During the 2004–05 season, they finished fifth in the league. In 2004, then club CEO Chris Robinson announced plans to sell Tynecastle, which he claimed was "not fit for purpose", and instead have Hearts rent

Murrayfield Murrayfield is an area to the west of Edinburgh city centre in Scotland. It is to the east of Corstorphine and north of Balgreen, Saughtonhall and Roseburn. The A8 road (Scotland), A8 road runs east–west through the south of the area. Murra ...

from the

Scottish Rugby Union The Scottish Rugby Union (SRU; ) is the Sport governing body, governing body of rugby union in Scotland. Now marketed as Scottish Rugby, it is the second-oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873. The SRU oversees the national league sys ...

. This move was deemed necessary due to the club's increasingly large debt. The plan was very unpopular with supporters, and a campaign, entitled ''Save Our Hearts'', was set up to try to block the move. As Robinson and his supporters had a slight majority of the club's shares, a preliminary deal to sell the stadium was struck with the Cala property development company for just over £20 million.

The Romanov era

In August 2004 the midst of Hearts' financial difficulties

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

- Lithuanian multi-millionaire Vladimir Romanov entered into talks to take over Hearts in what was dubbed the "Romanov Revolution". Romanov had already made failed attempts to purchase

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scotland, Scottish professional association football, football club based in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923. United are nickname ...

,Who is Vladimir Romanov?

BBC Sport BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC, providing national sports coverage for BBC BBC Television, television, BBC Radio, radio and BBC Online, online. The BBC holds the television and radio UK broadcasting rights to several sports, broadc ...

, 1 November 2005.

and

Dunfermline Dunfermline (; , ) is a city, parish, and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. Dunfermline was the de facto capital of the Kingdom of Scotland between the 11th and 15th centuries. The earliest ...

. Romanov offered the prospect of the club staying at a redeveloped Tynecastle, which was very attractive to Hearts supporters. At the end of September 2004 Chris Robinson agreed to sell his 19.6% stake to Romanov. Romanov called an

extraordinary general meeting An extraordinary general meeting, commonly abbreviated as EGM, is a meeting of members of an organisation, shareholders of a company, or employees of an official body that occurs at an irregular time.' The term is usually used where the group wo ...

in January 2005 so that the club could pass a motion to exercise the escape clause in the deal with Cala Homes.Hearts edge closer to home stay

, 7 January 2005. The backing of Leslie Deans and the McGrail brothers meant that the motion was passed with over 70% support. The sale of Robinson's shares was completed on 2 February 2005Romanov takes control at Hearts

, 2 February 2005. after Romanov made financial guarantees that the club could continue to trade without selling Tynecastle. This sale increased Romanov's stake to 29.9%, giving him effective control of the club. Romanov's takeover was welcomed by a fans' representative. Romanov increased his shareholding in Hearts to 55.5% on 21 October 2005, and offered to buy the rest of the shares.Romanov aims for Hearts ownership

, 21 October 2005. Chairman George Foulkes sold his shares to Romanov and encouraged others to do likewise. Romanov eventually increased his majority share in Hearts to 82%. Romanov's management of the club's debt became a cause for concern.Gibbons, Glenn
Gretna parallels should strike most concern among followers of Hearts
''

'', 2 April 2008 During his takeover Romanov pledged to eradicate the club's debt. Soon after the takeover was completed, the debt was transferred from

HBOS HBOS plc is a banking and insurance company in the United Kingdom, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Lloyds Banking Group, having been taken over in January 2009. It was the holding company for Bank of Scotland, Bank of Scotland plc, which ...

and SMG to the financial institutions controlled by Romanov,

Ūkio bankas Ūkio Bankas was a Lithuanian commercial bank based in Kaunas. More than 50% of shares are owned by Lithuanian businessman Vladimir Romanov who therefore was in the control of the bank. It was the fifth largest and oldest private bank in Lithuani ...

and UBIG. At the end of July 2007 the club were £36 M in debt. On 7 July 2008, Hearts issued a statement that stated the club would issue debt for equity to reduce the debt by £12M. A further issue was completed in 2010. Since the takeover Hearts had failed to pay players wages on time on several occasions, and were threatened with administration twice due to failure to pay an outstanding tax bills with the bill finally being settled in August 2011. Results released for the financial year ending 31 July 2010 showed that Hearts had made a small profit for the first time since 1999, although they were still heavily in debt. Hearts' first manager of the Romanov era was

George Burley George Elder Burley (born 3 June 1956) is a Scottish former football player and manager. He had a professional career spanning 21 years as a player, making 628 league appearances and earning 11 Scotland caps. His most successful spell came whi ...

, who was appointed during close season by new chief executive Phil Anderton, who replaced Chris Robinson as chief executive.Ferguson, David and Halliday, Stephen
Hearts turn to Anderton
''

'', 18 February 2005. With their new manager and signings, Hearts got off to a tremendous start in the 2005–06 season. The team won their first eight league matches,Happy Burley avoids talk of title

, 24 September 2005. equalling a club record set in

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as the First World War, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip ...

. Romanov shocked Scottish football by sacking George Burley on the following day whilst Hearts were sitting top of the SPL table; Hearts ultimately finished second. Hearts fans were led to expect a "top class manager"Burley in shock exit from Hearts

, 22 October 2005. would replace Burley.

Kevin Keegan Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. Nicknamed "King Kev" or "Mighty Mouse", Keegan was recognised for his dribbling ability, as well as his finishing and presence in the air, and is regard ...

Bobby Robson Sir Robert William Robson (18 February 1933 – 31 July 2009) was an English football player and coach. His career included periods playing for and later managing the England national team and being a UEFA Cup-winning manager at Ipswich Town. ...

Claudio Ranieri Claudio Ranieri (; born 20 October 1951) is an Italian professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who is the head coach of Serie A club AS Roma, Roma but will leave on 30 June 2025, followin ...

and

Ottmar Hitzfeld Ottmar Hitzfeld (; born 12 January 1949) is a German former professional football player and a former manager. He accumulated a total of 18 major titles, mostly in his tenures with Grasshopper Club Zürich, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich. ...

were all linked with the vacancy. Anderton, who had been making the approaches for these coaches, was sacked by Romanov on 31 October 2005.Hearts in turmoil as duo depart

, 31 October 2005. Foulkes, who had helped to bring Romanov to the club in the first place, resigned in protest at Anderton's dismissal. Romanov replaced both of them with his son, Roman Romanov. This proved to be a feature of his time at the club, going through nine permanent managers in seven years. The next managerial change after those came on 1 August 2011 when Jim Jefferies was sacked during his second spell at the club and replaced by former

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,

boss Paulo Sérgio. Romanov stated that his ultimate aim was for Hearts to win the Champions League. Hearts competed in the Champions League during season 2006–07 but progressed only as far the second qualifying round before dropping down to the

. Since then Hearts have been unable to split the

for a second time to earn a Champions League place. Hearts target became finishing third or above in the SPL. Romanov also owned the Lithuanian club

FBK Kaunas Kauno futbolo ir beisbolo klubas, commonly known as FBK Kaunas, was a Lithuanian football club from the city of Kaunas. History Banga Kaunas (1960–1993) The roots of the club can be traced back to 1960 when Banga Kaunas was founded and they p ...

and Belarusian club FC Partizan Minsk. Several players were loaned by FBK Kaunas to Hearts when Romanov acquired control of the club. The club began experiencing severe financial problems in November 2011, which meant they were unable to pay the players' wages, and the club was put up for sale. The squad's October salaries were late and the November wages were paid twenty-nine days late, just one day before their December salaries were due. The December pay failed to arrive on time, and a complaint was lodged with the

Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the Scottish football league system, top-level league competition for professional Association football, football clubs in Scotland. The league was founded in 1998, when it broke away from the Scottish Foo ...

by the players' union. During this period the club advised fringe players they were free to leave the club. On 4 January 2012 the SPL ordered Hearts to pay all outstanding wages by 11 January 2012 and insisted that January's wages had to be paid on time on 16 January. Hearts paid all outstanding wages that day following the sale of Eggert Jónsson to

Wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

. On 17 January, the day after Hearts' wages were due to be paid, it was revealed all players had been paid. Despite this, the SPL issued a statement saying Hearts had failed to pay all players on 16 January and an emergency board meeting had been called; Hearts refuted this, saying payment of the remuneration had been made to all players. On 7 November 2012, Hearts were issued with a winding-up order by the Court of Session in Edinburgh after failing to pay a tax bill on time. In early June 2013, during the close season, a Hearts media statement stated that they would need to raise £500,000 in capital to keep the club up and running during the break between seasons. With no match day income coming in and a lack of finance from owner Romanov, the club were left in a position where they had to put their whole squad up for sale. On 17 June 2013, Heart of Midlothian began the process of entering into

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

with debts of £25 million, owing recently bankrupt

£15 million. On 18 June 2013, a Scandinavian consortium offered to pay the club £500,000 immediately in return for a share of any future transfer income from up to 12 players; this was rejected by Hearts. The process of entering administration began on 19 June 2013 when the club's parent company, Ukio Bankas Investment Group (UBIG), filed papers at the Court of Session on Edinburgh for accountancy firm BDO to be named as administrators.

Administration

On 17 June 2013 Hearts announced that they had lodged court papers stating their intention to enter administration, and on 19 June 2013 the administrators BDO were appointed to run the club. This meant that the club was unable to register players over 21 until February 2014 at the earliest. As long as they were still in administration they would not be able to bring in players of any age. As well as the signing embargo, Hearts were to be deducted a third of the previous season's points tally which meant the club would start the 2013–2014 season with −15 points. During this period the BDO administrator Trevor Birch pleaded with Hearts fans to purchase season tickets and stated that they needed to sell at least another 3000 season tickets to raise another £800,000 to keep the club running and avoiding liquidation. The fans met this number and took total season ticket sales beyond the 10,000 mark, giving the club more survival time. A deadline of 12 July 2013 was set for interested parties to put in formal bids for the club; there were three bids entered for the club which were received from the supporters group "The Foundation of Hearts", the second from a new company called "HMFC limited" which was backed by American firm Club Sports 9 and a third from former Livingston FC owner Angelo Massone through Five Star Football Limited. On 15 August 2013, "The Foundation of Hearts" were given preferred bidders status to make a CVA with Hearts' creditors. The money that the foundation used to purchase the club came from monthly donations from fans; the foundation received an interest-free loan from a wealthy fan, which was to be paid back using the monthly direct debts from the fans. On 2 December, Hearts' creditors agreed to the CVA deal proposed by "The Foundation of Hearts". The club's relegation from the

Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, also known as the William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Scotland and the highest level of the Scottish football league system. Th ...

was confirmed on 5 April 2014. Hearts won 4–2 away to

, but St Mirren beat

3–2, making it impossible for Hearts to catch up. On Monday 12 May 2014, The Ann Budge fronted Bidco 1874 took control of Heart of Midlothian Plc, thus bringing to an end to Vladimir Romanov's involvement with the club. Budge, who fronted and financed the Bidco 1874 group which took over the reins at the club, became an unpaid executive chairwoman of the club. The Bidco group planned to hold the club for a possible five years, before the fans backed Foundation of Hearts supporters group take control. The Foundation put in £1 million for the running of the club until the final legal exit of administration. The Foundation then paid a further £2.6 million (£2.5m to cover the loan given by Bidco1874 Ltd to Hearts to finance the Creditors' Voluntary Agreement + £100,000 for the shares) to take 75% of the shares in the club and with that the running and decision making within the club. In addition, the Foundation also committed itself to provide a further £2.8m (£1.4m per year for two years) working capital for the club. Funding for the deal came from 8000+ people donating cash via a monthly direct debit. The club officially exited

on 11 June 2014, also bringing to an end the signing embargo that had been imposed upon the club a year earlier.

Post administration

Hearts earned an immediate return to the

by clinching the 2014–15 Scottish Championship title with seven games remaining. Hearts remained undefeated for the first 20 league matches before a 3–2 home defeat to

Falkirk Falkirk ( ; ; ) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a resident population of 32,422 at the ...

ended that run. They won the title, winning 29 of 36 games, scoring 96 goals, conceding just 26 goals with a points total of 91. They finished the season 21 points ahead nearest challengers city-rivals Hibernian and 24 points ahead of third placed Rangers. The season included handing

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath () is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 1890. According to a 20 ...

a joint club record defeat 10–0. At the PFA Scotland Awards, Hearts had six players named in Championship Team of the Year, two Young Player of the Year nominees, three Championship Player of the Year nominees, and Neilson shortlisted for Manager of the Year. This period of renewed stability unravelled in the years following 2015. Despite finishing as runners up in the 2019 Scottish Cup final, the club could only achieve mid-table placings in

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

and

. This decline took a turn for the worse in 2019–20, and Hearts were relegated after finishing bottom of the

, having won only four matches across the course of the season (which had been truncated due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

). Their relegation was confirmed in June 2020, after league reconstruction talks instigated by Budge collapsed. The club confirmed that they would be pursuing legal action against the SPFL following their demotion to the

Scottish Championship The Scottish Championship known as the William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional association footb ...

. The legal action failed, as a

arbitration panel ruled that the SPFL had acted within its powers. Robbie Neilson was appointed as Hearts manager for a second time in June 2020, signing a three-year deal. Former manager Jim Jefferies was recruited as an advisor to the board and manager in July. In August 2020, Andrew McKinlay was appointed as the club's new Chief Executive. In June 2021, club captain Steven Naismith announced his retirement from football, taking up the role of Football Development Manager, focusing on the development of youth players "making their way towards the first team". On 30 August 2021, Ann Budge officially transferred the club's shares to the Foundation of Hearts, meaning Hearts officially became the biggest fan owned club in the United Kingdom. Hearts won the 2020–21 Scottish Championship, finishing ahead of second-placed

by 12 points. This confirmed their return to the Scottish Premiership. In their first

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

back in the top flight, Hearts finished third and secured European group stage football in the

UEFA Conference League The UEFA Conference League (UECL), usually known simply as the Conference League, is an annual football competition organised since 2021 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It is the thir ...

. The following season, 2022–23, Hearts secured a fourth-placed finish. After finishing third in the 2023–24 season they returned to European football – initially entering the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

final play-off stage, however they failed to advance and dropped into the UEFA Conference League league stage. After gaining a single point in their first six league games (the worst start to a season in the club's history), manager Steven Naismith was sacked on 22 September 2024, with Neil Critchley replacing him as head coach a month later.

Colours and badge

The original Hearts football strip was all white shirts and trousers with maroon trimmings, and a heart sewn onto the chest. For one season they played in red, white and blue stripes. These were the colours of a club called St. Andrew, who had taken their name and colours from the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

, that Hearts had absorbed. Since then the predominant club colours have been maroon and white. The strip typically has a maroon top and a white collar, although the strip was predominantly white in the 2010–11 season. The shorts are normally white, although maroon was used in the 2008–09 season. The socks are normally maroon with some white detail. Hearts' current home kit is all maroon. The badge is a heart, based on the Heart of Midlothian mosaic on the

. There is a tradition to spit on the mosaic when passing, harking back to the days when the city gaol stood there. For the 2014–15 season the club chose to commemorate 100 years since McCrae's Battalion with not only a commemorative strip, of maroon shirt, white shorts and black socks, but with a commemorative badge as well. The club chose to have no sponsor on the home top as a mark of respect to those who had joined the regiment.

Kit manufacturers and sponsors

Stadium

Hearts initially played at The Meadows, Powburn and

Powderhall Powderhall is an area lying between Broughton Road and Warriston Road in the north of Edinburgh, the Scottish capital. Until recently it was best known for Powderhall Stadium, a greyhound racing track, which has now closed. The stadium also p ...

before moving to the

Gorgie Gorgie ( ) is a densely populated area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located to the west of the city centre, and borders Murrayfield, Ardmillan and Dalry, Edinburgh, Dalry. Name The name is thought to be British language (Celtic), Brythonic in ...

area in 1881. In 1886, they moved to their current site,

, named for the Tynecastle Tollhouse at the entrance to the grounds of Merchiston. The stadium has hosted nine full

international matches. For most of the 20th century, Tynecastle was a mostly terraced ground, with a seated main stand that was designed by

Archibald Leitch Archibald Keir Leitch (27 April 1865 – 25 April 1939) was a Scottish architect, most famous for his work designing association football, football stadiums throughout Great Britain and Ireland. Early work Born in Glasgow, Leitch's early work w ...

and opened in 1919. The terraced sections were replaced by the Gorgie, Wheatfield and Roseburn Stands in the mid-1990s, making Tynecastle an all-seated stadium. In 2017, the main stand was demolished and replaced by a brand new stand which increased the ground's capacity to 20,099. While this work was undertaken, Hearts played some of their home league matches at the nearby

Murrayfield Stadium Murrayfield Stadium is a rugby union stadium located in the Murrayfield area of Edinburgh, Scotland. The stadium is owned by the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) who has its headquarters based at the stadium, and is the national stadium of the Scotla ...

Rivalry

Hearts have a traditional local rivalry in

with Hibs; the

match between the two clubs is one of the oldest rivalries in world football. Graham Spiers has described it as "one of the jewels of the Scottish game". The clubs first met on Christmas Day 1875, when Hearts won 1–0, in the first match ever contested by Hibs. The two clubs became distinguished in Edinburgh after a five-game struggle for the Edinburgh Football Association Cup in 1878, which Hearts finally won with a 3–2 victory after four successive draws. The clubs have met twice in a Cup Final, in the 1896 Scottish Cup final, which Hearts won 3–1 and the 2012 Scottish Cup final which Hearts won 5–1. The 1896 final is also notable for being the only Scottish Cup Final to be played outside

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. Hearts have the better record in derbies. Approximately half of all derbies have been played in local competitions and friendlies. Hibs recorded the biggest derby win in a competitive match when they won 7–0 at Tynecastle on New Year's Day 1973. While it has been noted that religious, ethnic or political background lies behind the rivalry, that aspect has been described as minor in relation to the sectarianism in Glasgow. In practice geography has been the main factor in establishing the support bases of the Edinburgh rivals: support for Hibs has always been founded in

Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...

and the surrounding areas in the north and east of the city, whereas the rest of Edinburgh has tended towards Hearts. Although the clubs are inescapable rivals, the rivalry is mainly "good-natured" and has had beneficial effects due to the demographic diversities; considering both of the clubs' territories have a variety of neighbourhoods that differ economically, politically, denominationally, or all three at once.

Supporters and culture

Heart of Midlothian are one of two full-time professional football clubs in

. Hearts' average attendance during the 2022–23 season was 18,525. Important matches (particularly the

, European fixtures, and games against the

) always see Tynecastle at or very close to full capacity.

Songs and chants

"The Hearts Song" was written and performed by Scottish comedian Hector Nicol, a St Mirren fan. A new modernised version of "The Hearts Song", performed by Colin Chisholm and the Glasgow Branch, has been played before matches at Tynecastle in recent seasons, though the original version returned for the 2019–20 season. In the 2020–21 season the modern version once again replaced the old version. The folk anthem "There Will Always Be Heart of Midlothian" by Neil Grant has been played regularly at Tynecastle Park since 2018. At the request of the Foundation of Hearts, Neil performed the rousing track live at Tynecastle during the Ladbrokes Premiership match against St Johnstone on 26 January 2019. The track gained additional exposure after being played on the BBC's popular '' Off the Ball'' radio series.

In popular culture

Celebrity fans of Hearts include

Stephen Hendry Stephen Gordon Hendry (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish retired professional snooker player and a current Sports commentator, commentator and pundit. One of the most successful players in snooker history, he turned professional in 1985, ag ...

Ronnie Corbett Ronald Balfour Corbett (4 December 1930 – 31 March 2016) was a Scottish actor, broadcaster, comedian and writer. He had a long association with Ronnie Barker in the BBC television comedy sketch show ''The Two Ronnies''. He achieved promine ...

Ken Stott Kenneth Campbell Stott (born 19 October 1954) is a Scottish stage, television and film actor who won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 1995 in the play ''Broken Glass (play), Broken Glass'' at Royal National Thea ...

Alex Salmond Alexander Elliot Anderson Salmond ( ; 31 December 1954 – 12 October 2024) was a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland from 2007 to 2014. A prominent figure in the Scottish nationalist movement, he was Leader of the Sc ...

, Sir Chris Hoy,

Wattie Buchan Walter David "Wattie" Buchan (born 24 July 1957) is a Scottish punk rock musician, best known as the lead vocalist for the Exploited. Early life Buchan was born in Edinburgh on 24 July 1957. He served in the British Army as a soldier prior to ...

Eilidh Doyle Eilidh Doyle (pronounced AY-lee ; née Child; born 20 February 1987) is a retired British track and field athlete. Originally running as Eilidh Child, she specialised in the 400 metres hurdles outdoors, and the 400 metres flat indoors, as well a ...

, Lee McGregor, Andrew Oldcorn,

Gavin Hastings Andrew Gavin Hastings, (born 3 January 1962) is a Scottish former rugby union player. A fullback, he is widely regarded to be one of the best ever Scottish rugby players and was one of the outstanding players of his generation, winning 61 c ...

, Martin Geissler,

Nicky Campbell Nicholas Andrew Argyll Campbell OBE (born Nicholas Lackey; 10 April 1961) is a Scottish broadcaster and journalist. He has worked in television and radio since 1981 and as a network presenter with BBC Radio since 1987. Early life Campbell wa ...

, Tom Wilson, Grant Hutchison and

Scott Hutchison Scott John Hutchison (20 November 1981 – 9 May 2018) was a Scottish singer, songwriter, guitarist and artist. He was the founding member and primary songwriter of the indie rock band Frightened Rabbit, with whom he recorded five studio albums ...

. Grove Street and the Ballas, two rival gangs in the 2004 video game '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'', dress in green and maroon clothes respectively. Since ''

Grand Theft Auto ''Grand Theft Auto'' (''GTA'') is an action-adventure video game series created by David Jones and Mike Dailly. Later titles were developed under the oversight of brothers Dan and Sam Houser, Leslie Benzies and Aaron Garbut. It is prima ...

'' developer

Rockstar North Rockstar North (Rockstar Games UK Limited; formerly DMA Design Limited) is a British video game developer and a studio of Rockstar Games based in Edinburgh. The studio is best known for creating the ''Lemmings'' and ''Grand Theft Auto'' series ...

is based in Edinburgh, fans believe this to be a reference to Hearts and their Edinburgh derby rivals Hibernian. Hearts were featured in the American comedy-drama series ''

Succession Succession is the act or process of following in order or sequence. Governance and politics *Order of succession, in politics, the ascension to power by one ruler, official, or monarch after the death, resignation, or removal from office of ...

'' (in the episodes "

" and " DC") as part of a storyline in which Roman Roy buys the team to impress his Scottish-born billionaire father Logan Roy, only to discover that Logan actually supports Hearts' rivals Hibernian. In the 2022 film '' Aftersun'', Sophie ( Frankie Corio) can be seen wearing a 1998–99 Hearts shirt on more than one occasion.

Player of the year

*2012–13 Marius Žaliūkas *2013–14 Jamie MacDonald *2014–15 Jamie Walker *2015–16 Arnaud Djoum *2016–17 Jamie Walker *2017–18 Christophe Berra *2018–19 Steven Naismith *2020–21 Craig Gordon *2021–22 Craig Gordon *2022–23 Lawrence Shankland *2023–24 Lawrence Shankland *2024–25 James Penrice

European record

UEFA coefficient

''Correct as of 21 May 2025.''

Honours

Major honours

and predecessors (1890–present): **Champions (4): 1894–95, 1896–97, 1957–58, 1959–60 **Runners–up (14): 1893–94, 1898–99, 1903–04, 1905–06 Scottish First Division, 1905–06, 1914–15 Scottish First Division, 1914–15, 1937–38 Scottish First Division, 1937–38, 1953–54 Scottish First Division, 1953–54, 1956–57 Scottish First Division, 1956–57, 1958–59 Scottish First Division, 1958–59, 1964–65 Scottish First Division, 1964–65, 1985–86 Scottish Premier Division, 1985–86, 1987–88 Scottish Premier Division, 1987–88, 1991–92 Scottish Premier Division, 1991–92, 2005–06 Scottish Premier League, 2005–06 *

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup, also known as the Premier Sports 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 ...

(1947–present): **Winners (4): 1954–55 Scottish League Cup, 1954–55, 1958–59 Scottish League Cup, 1958–59, 1959–60 Scottish League Cup, 1959–60, 1962–63 Scottish League Cup, 1962–63 **Runners–up (3): 1961–62 Scottish League Cup, 1961–62, 1996–97 Scottish League Cup, 1996–97, 2012–13 Scottish League Cup, 2012–13

Minor honours

*List of winners of the Scottish Championship and predecessors, Scottish Championship (second tier, 1893–present): **Winners (3): 1979–80 Scottish First Division, 1979–80, 2014–15 Scottish Championship, 2014–15, 2020–21 Scottish Championship, 2020–21 **Runners–up (2): 1977–78 Scottish First Division, 1977–78, 1982–83 Scottish First Division, 1982–83 *1919 Victory Cup, Victory Cup (1919) **Runners–up: 1919 *Inter City Football League (1899–1904): 1901–02, 1902–03 (2, record) *Edinburgh Football League/East of Scotland League (1894–1908): 1894–95, 1895–96, 1896–97, 1897–98, 1898–99, 1899–1900, 1903–04 (7, record)East of Scotland League
Scottish Football Historical Archive, 5 August 2020 *Edinburgh Football League, North-Eastern Cup (1908–1914): 1909–10, 1912–13 (2, record) * Rosebery Charity Cup (1882–1945): 32 times (record)Rosebery Charity Cup
Scottish Football Historical Archive, 18 July 2020 *Wilson Cup (football), Wilson Cup (1906–1946): 21 times (record) *East of Scotland Shield (1875–1990): 48 times *Dunedin Cup (1909–1933): 13 times (record) *Festival Cup (2003–2004): 2003, 2004 *Football World Championship: **Winners: 1901–02 World Championship (football), 1902 **Runners–up: 1895 World Championship (football), 1895

Club records

;Attendance *Highest home attendance: 53,396 v Rangers, 13 February 1932, Scottish Cup, Tynecastle *Highest average home attendance: 28,195, 1948–49 season (15 games) ;Single game *Biggest win: 21–0 vs Anchor, EFA Cup, 1880 *Biggest defeat: 1–8 vs Vale of Leven F.C., Vale of Leven, Scottish Cup, 1888 ;Caps and appearances *Most capped players: Craig Gordon, 75 (for

) *Youngest competitive player: Scott Robinson (footballer), Scott Robinson made his debut aged 16 years, 1 month and 14 days old. *Most appearances: Gary Mackay, 640 (515 L, 58 SC, 46 LC, 21 E) 1980 – 1997 *Most league appearances: Gary Mackay, 515 *Most honours: John Cumming, 2 League titles, 1 Scottish Cup, 4 League Cups, 1954–1962 ;Goals *Most league goals: John Robertson (footballer, born 1964), John Robertson, 214, 1983–1998 *Most goals in a season: Barney Battles Jr., 44, 1930–31 season ;Transfers *Highest transfer fee paid: Mirsad Bešlija, £850,000, K.R.C. Genk, Racing Genk, 2006 *Highest transfer fee received: £9m for Craig Gordon from

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

in 2007 (British record fee paid for a goalkeeper at the time)

Players

Current squad

Retired numbers

(posthumous)

Development and under-20s squad

''For more information on reserves and under-20s, see Heart of Midlothian F.C. Reserves and Academy

Hearts Women squad

''For more information on Hearts Women squad, see ''

Club staff

Corporate staff

Coaching staff

Hearts Women staff

''For more information on Hearts Women staff, see ''

Managers

* Peter Fairley (1901–1903) * William Waugh (1903–1908) * James McGhee (1908–1909) * John McCartney (footballer, born 1866), John McCartney (1910–1919) * Willie McCartney (1919–1935) * David Pratt (footballer), David Pratt (1935–1937) * Frank Moss (footballer, born 1909), Frank Moss (1937–1940) * David McLean (footballer, born 1884), David McLean (1941–1951) * Tommy Walker (1951–1966) * John Harvey (1966–1970) * Bobby Seith (1970–1974) * John Hagart (1974–1977) * Willie Ormond (1977–1980) * Bobby Moncur (1980–1981) * Tony Ford (footballer, born 1944), Tony Ford (1981) * Alex MacDonald (1982–1986) * Sandy Jardine and Alex MacDonald (1986–1988) * Alex MacDonald (1988–1990) * Joe Jordan (1990–1993) *

(1993–1994) * Tommy McLean (1994–1995) * Jim Jefferies (1995–2000) *

(2000–2004) * John Robertson (footballer, born 1964), John Robertson (2004–2005) *

(2005) * Graham Rix (2005–2006) * Valdas Ivanauskas (2006–2007) * Anatoliy Korobochka (2007–2008) * Stephen Frail (2008) * Csaba László (footballer, born 1964), Csaba Laszlo (2008–2010) * Jim Jefferies (2010–2011) * Paulo Sérgio (2011–2012) * John McGlynn (Scottish footballer), John McGlynn (2012–2013) * Gary Locke (Scottish footballer), Gary Locke (2013–2014) * Robbie Neilson (2014–2016) * Ian Cathro (2016–2017) *

(2017–2019) * Daniel Stendel (2019–2020) * Robbie Neilson (2020–2023) * Steven Naismith (2023–2024) * Neil Critchley (2024–2025) * Derek McInnes (2025–)

Hearts Women

In 2009, Hearts took over Musselburgh Windsor Ladies Football Club, changing their name to Hearts Ladies FC. They currently play in the Scottish Women's Premier League under the name Heart of Midlothian W.F.C., Hearts Women. The team play their home games at Oriam, The Oriam, Riccarton.

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heart Of Midlothian F.C. Heart of Midlothian F.C., Football clubs in Edinburgh Football clubs in Scotland Association football clubs established in 1874 Scottish Premier League teams 1874 establishments in Scotland Gorgie Scottish Football League teams Scottish Football League founder members Scottish Cup winners East of Scotland Football League teams Scottish Professional Football League teams Scottish League Cup winners Companies that have entered administration in the United Kingdom