Scotland Sports – The 11 Most Popular Sports in Scotland
Wondering what sports the Scots like to play?
Discover everything about the most popular sports in Scotland in this post. ⛳️
The Most Popular Scottish Sports
Find below Scotland national sports, ranked by popularity:
| Rank | Sport |
|---|---|
| 1 | Football |
| 2 | Golf |
| 3 | Rugby union |
| 4 | Tennis |
| 5 | Basketball |
| 6 | Motorsports |
| 7 | Shinty |
| 8 | Water polo |
| 9 | Cycling |
| 10 | Curling |
| 11 | Snooker |
So there you have them, the most popular Scotland sports! Keep reading below for more information about each sport in Scotland.
What is the National Sport of Scotland?
The national sport of Scotland is Golf. Many sports could be the national sport of Scotland, but, while unofficial, golf takes it all. The sport has been played in the country for more than 6 centuries, and Scotland is widely known as the Home of Golf.
Learn More About Scotland Popular Sports
Scotland is a country that is a member of the United Kingdom. It is located in the northern part of the island, and it is only bordered by England. It is home to many modern sports. While its largest city is Glasgow, its capital city is Edinburgh, which counts more than 488,000 inhabitants (but more than 901,000 if you include the metropolitan area).
An interesting part of the country that I wanted to tackle is its most popular sports. In light of that, I have listed all Scotland popular sports, and I hope you will love them:
Football
The most popular sport in Scotland is, by far and away, football. Like in lots of other countries, nothing comes close to football. The first international match ever played was between Scotland and England, in 1872. Even though it ended as a 0-0 draw, the sport has only been growing more and more ever since. Now, there is a rivalry between the British and the Scottish.
The national football team is supported by its special fans, the Tartan Army. The team is not very good on an international scale, to say the least.
Famous Scottish Football players: Kenny Dalglish, Denis Law, Jim Baxter, Gordon Strachan, Alex McLeish, Graeme Souness, Jim Leighton, Colin Hendry, Willie Miller, Archie Gemmill, James McFadden, Ally McCoist, Sir Alex Ferguson, Andrew Robertson, Billy McNeill
Golf
The second most popular sport in Scotland is golf. Scotland literally invented golf. The country is nicknamed the Home of Golf, and the first courses, clubs, and rules were established in the country. Because of this, golf is a major national pastime, and everyone can enjoy the sport: you do not have to be rich or famous to play golf in Scotland.
There are now more than 550 courses in Scotland, and the oldest course in the world, the Old course at St. Andrews, is in the country.
Number of Golf licensed players in Scotland: 180,281
Famous Scottish Golf players: Paul Lawrie, Tom Morris, Sr., Colin Montgomerie, Sandy Lyle, Andrew Coltart, Steven O’Hara, Andrew Oldcorn, Stephen McAllister, James Braid, Donald Ross
Rugby union
The third most popular sport in Scotland is rugby union. Rugby union is a major sport in all United Kingdom countries, and Scotland is no exception to that. The sport has a long and rich history in the country, and the first international rugby union game was also played by the Scottish team, against the Brits. It was, like football, played on a cricket ground.
Scotland has one of the best rugby union teams in the world (currently ranked 7th). It counts in the annual Six Nations Championship and has been part of every single Rugby World Cup since its creation.
Famous Scottish Rugby union players: Gregor Townsend, Gavin Hastings, Finn Russell, Blair Kinghorn, George Horne, Zander Fagerson, John Rutherford, Fraser Brown, Richie Gray
Tennis
The fourth most popular Scottish sport is tennis. While Scotland officially competes as Great Britain in tennis, it is home to some of the best players in the world, most notoriously Andy Murray. He is by far the best player representing Britain, and he is one of the top-ranked players in the world. Doubles players like Colin Fleming and Jamie Murray are also Scottish and saw a lot of success.
Tennis was brought to Scotland by the French… in the Middle Ages! It only blew up after the success of Andy Murray though.
Number of Tennis licensed players in Scotland: 47,657
Famous Scottish Tennis players: Andy Murray, Jamie Murray, Jamie Baker, Leslie Balfour-Melville, Patrick Bowes-Lyon, Colin Fleming, Cameron Norrie, Harold Mahony, Jonny O’Mara, Louis Greig
Basketball
The fifth most popular sport in Scotland is basketball. Scotland did not invent basketball, but its creator, James Naismith, was a Canadian of Scottish origins.
The governing body of basketball in Scotland is Basketball Scotland, and it was very recently founded in 2005. The sport is on the rise and is widely appreciated by the youth of the country. It could very well be even more popular in the upcoming years.
There are lots of national leagues, including the Scottish Basketball Championship and the Scottish Basketball Championship Women, and also regional leagues like the Strathclyde Basketball League and the Highland Basketball League.
Famous Scottish Basketball players: Robert Archibald, Kieron Achara, Steve Leven, Graham Hunter, Gareth Murray, Dan Wardrope, Andrew Joseph Steven, Tommy Nisbet, Paul Stewart
Motorsports
The sixth most popular sport in Scotland is motorsports. Scotland is a very successful country in several motorsports. It is one of only five countries on the planet to have produced 2-wheeled, 3-wheeled and 4-wheeled World Champions. The country has been very successful in lots of championships like Formula One, the World Rally Championship, Le Mans 24 hours, and the British Touring Car Championship.
Several Formula One drivers have come from Scotland, since the beginning of the competition in 1950. The most famous of them is Jim Clark, who won 2 World Championships.
Famous Scottish Motorsports players: Jonathan Adam, Jim Clark, David Coulthard, Bill McGovern, Ian Forrest, Marino Franchitti, Chris Hoy, Leslie Thorne, Susie Wolff, Andrew Kirkaldy
Shinty
The seventh most popular Scotland sport is shinty. Perhaps you have never heard of shinty, but it is quite popular in Scotland. In fact, it was recently suggested as a national sport, but it never happened. It is played with sticks and a ball, and it is quite similar to field hockey.
The sport is the traditional game of the Scottish Highlands, and it is still largely played nowadays. The most famous clubs are in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Perth, and Fife, as well as most universities.
Famous Scottish Shinty players: Ronald Ross, Gary Innes, John Rosanne Barr, Ross Cowie
Water polo
The eighth most popular sport in Scotland is water polo. Water polo is yet another sport that was invented in Scotland. Its original rules were written by William Wilson in Aberdeen in 1877. As a matter of fact, it is based on a game played in the rivers Dee and Don in Aberdeen. The first water polo game took place in Glasgow. After that, Scotland was successful in the discipline in the early Olympic Games.
There are now many amateur clubs throughout the country, but the country remains far behind others in terms of facilities.
Famous Scottish Water polo players: George Cornet, William Peacock, Jack Ferguson
Cycling
The ninth most popular sport in Scotland is cycling. Cycling is majorly an amateur sport in Scotland, but it attracts tons of fans. There are also 99 clubs throughout the country.
As for the competitive scene, Scotland has historically been better at track cycling than road racing. This is mostly due to the fact that there are no road races within the country.
Scotland has produced quite a few spectacular cyclists, like Robert Millar, who finished 4th at the 1984 Tour de France.
Famous Scottish Cycling players: Robert Millar, Sir Chris Hoy, Graeme Obree, David Millar, Ken Laidlaw, Billy Bilsland, Brian Smith, Craig Maclean, Mark Beaumont, Jason McIntyre
Curling
The tenth most popular sport in Scotland is curling. This might sound like a broken record, but… Scotland invented curling. The sport is not as popular in the country as in Canada for instance, but it remains more popular in Scotland than in any other European country.
The men’s national curling team has won 32 World Championship medals, including 5 golds, and it is the world’s second most successful curling team. The women’s national team is also very good, as it won the World Championships twice in 2002 and 2013.
Number of Curling licensed players in Scotland: 14,000
Famous Scottish Curling players: Eve Muirhead, David Murdoch, Jackie Lockhart, Hammy McMillan, Kelly Wood, Tom Brewster, Peter Smith, Ewan MacDonald, Lorna Vevers
Snooker
The eleventh and last most popular sport in Scotland is snooker. Last but not least, snooker is a niche sport with a very strong fan base.
Over the decades, Scotland has produced some of the best players in the world, most notoriously Stephen Hendry, one of the all-time greatest. He has won the World Snooker Championship a record number of 7 times, including 5 times in a row starting in 1992. Other fantastic players include John Higgins (currently the best Scottish player) and Stephen Maguire.
Famous Scottish Snooker players: Stephen Hendry, John Higgins, Alan McManus, Anthony McGill, Stephen Maguire, Graeme Dott, Jamie Burnett, Drew Henry, Jim Donnelly, John Rea
So there you have them, these were all the most popular sports in Scotland. I hope you enjoyed them and that you learned something new today.
In case you want to learn more about sports in other countries, feel free to keep reading, as I still have lots of things to tell you about:
More Sport Facts!
Loved these Scotland sports facts? Want to see what sports are the most popular in other countries?
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