Scottish FA opts to keep games in Glasgow

The Scottish FA will be staying at Hampden after agreeing to buy the national stadium from Queen's Park.

A deal has been struck to pay the League Two club £5m for the Glasgow ground.

The SFA was contemplating moving to Murrayfield, the home of Scottish Rugby, once its Hampden lease expires in 2020.

But instead it will now take ownership of the ground in two years' time.

Half of the money to complete the cash takeover was pledged by Scottish businessman Lord Willie Haughey, with Queen's Park set to move their matches to Lesser Hampden.

While the Glasgow side will receive £5m for the deal, it is believed the total cost to the SFA will be in the region of £19m because of liabilities going back to when the stadium was redeveloped in 1998.

SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell has promised that the body will now look at improving the stadium, which has been criticised by supporters during the process.

"Our mission is to inspire a nation to love the game and having a home that we can call our own is an important part of that," he said.

"While we are now committed to Hampden Park we also recognise that it needs to change. We have heard the fans' views throughout the process and agree with them that we need to improve access, transport links and the overall experience. We are committed to doing that.

"With that in mind, we need all of Scotland to pull together to make it Scotland's national stadium. We have heard many voice their support for the stadium. We need collective action, driven by the Scottish FA, to ensure it remains the beating heart of Scottish football."

The SFA commissioned a feasibility study to assess all the options and rejected a proposal in January from Celtic and Rangers to share hosting of internationals and domestic cup matches.

But various hurdles, including the cost of such a deal, ensured it was not a foregone conclusion.

The board met for several hours on 29 August but were unable to come to a conclusion and asked both bidders to provide more information before making a final decision.

"Today's announcement has been the conclusion of a four-year process to review our national stadium beyond 2020," said SFA president Alan McRae.

"It was a hugely difficult decision and I would like to place on record our thanks to Scottish Rugby for their professionalism throughout the process.

You can read the full article from BBC Sport HERE