Battle of the Greens – Celtic and rivals wearing green and white hoops

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·28 de novembro de 2025

Battle of the Greens – Celtic and rivals wearing green and white hoops

Celtic are the most famous wearers of green-and-white hoops – but this season, some other clubs have gained publicity for this top too. In a nod to their earlier histories, both Hibernian and QPR have worn a shirt like this…

The Bould Bhoys – Celtic FC 1890/91. Photo The Celtic Wiki

Celtic’s first ever top was an all-white shirt but the club soon switched to wearing green-and-white stripes. This was the club’s image until August 1903, when they decided to make the change to their now recognisable uniform.

Vídeos OneFootball

Celtic’s green-and-white hoops are recognised all around the world. And over the years, the Bhoys have faced many clubs that have also had this look at some stage.

Odin Holm scores his team’s second goal during the Celtic v Buckie Thistle – Scottish Cup match at Celtic Park on January 21, 2024. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

In 2024, the Bhoys took on another wearers of green-and-white hoops. Highland League team Buckie Thistle came to Parkhead for a Scottish Cup match, although on that occasion obviously had to wear their away top.

Over the years, the Bhoys have also played other teams that wear the same shirt design as Scotland’s league champions.

Arguably the most significant of these is Junior side, St Anthony’s, who play in Govan. The Ants also wear the hoops and many people wrongly assume it is in tribute to Celtic.

In fact, St Anthony’s wore the hoops before the Celts. Some people actually believe that when Celtic first switched to wearing hoops they had actually been inspired by the St Anthony’s top.

A Bhoys XI has once met the Ants on the pitch. In 1913, a Celtic select went to Govan where they won 4-1 in a friendly fixture.

Celtic have also faced clubs that more famously wear green-and-white hoops. Perhaps the side with most global recognition is Sporting Clube de Portugale, often referred to as Sporting Lisbon.

02/11/83 UEFA CUP 2nd ROUND 2nd LEG CELTIC V SPORTING LISBON (5-0) (5-2 agg)Celtic’s Tommy Burns (right) opens the scoring with a header past Bela Katzirz

Celtic have met the Portuguese team at different times but the most renowned was in 1983 in the UEFA Cup. With the Bhoys 2-0 down from the first leg, Celtic Park celebrated a fantastic 5-0 comeback.

Just across the Irish Sea, Shamrock Rovers are another team whose strip emulates the Celts. Glasgow’s green-and-white have met the Dublin side in various friendlies, and also in the European Cup.

SSE Airtricity League Premier Division, Richmond Park, Dublin 21/4/2023 St. Patrick s Athletic vs Shamrock Rovers Rovers Johnny Kenny celebrates scoring the first goal of the game Johnny Kenny celebrates scoring the first goal 21/4/2023 INPHO/Ryan Byrne

In 1986, Celtic went to Milltown and gained only a narrow 1-0 lead. However, the 2-0 scoreline in the second leg ensured the Bhoys eased into the next round.

Two other Irish teams have also worn the famous hoops. The most renowned of these are Belfast Celtic, a side which ultimately fell victim to extreme sectarianism in the north of Ireland.

Belfast Celtic

Before then, they faced their Glasgow equivalents on various occasions, starting in 1897 with a 4-0 win for the Scots at Solitude in Belfast. The last game between the two seems to have been a 1952 friendly, which ended 3-2 to the Glasgow Bhoys.

Another Belfast team is, despite the name, Donegal Celtic. Based in west Belfast at Donegal Celtic Park – sometimes known as Suffolk Road – they were formed in 1970. Glasgow Celtic met this Celtic in 2008. A Scottish side made up mainly of young players but also some first team men – such as Riordan and Graveson – won 1-0 in Ireland.

As well as these, there are also other sides that Celtic have played who don’t now usually wear green-and-white hoops – but have done at some point in their history.

Perhaps the most obvious of these is Hibernian, a team Celtic have faced numerous times across the years.

The Edinburgh side – whose Scottish Cup success in 1887 helped inspire Celtic’s establishment – are obviously older than Celtic, and wear all-green tops.

However, their first jersey was all-white, and then in the late-1870s they switched to hoops, before adopting their modern style. To mark 150 years since their formation, Hibs introduced a special hooped top earlier this season.

Another example is Yeovil Town. The Somerset side have had green in their shirts going back to the 1890s, including when they beat Celtic 2-0 in a 1950 friendly.

Yeovil Town

From 2003 until 2020, they played in green-and-white hoops. This was inspired by Celtic’s run to the UEFA Cup Final, with their chairman saying he hoped that Celtic’s “success rubs off on us.”

Celtic have met QPR at different times in friendly matches, including a 5-1 win for the Bhoys at Loftus Road in 2007. From the 1890s until the 1920s, the London Rangers wore green hoops, something they have replicated in more recent times for an away shirt, including this season.

Perhaps the team that Celtic would least like to think of as replicating their famous tops are Rapid Vienna.

SOCCER – BL, Rapid, training.VIENNA, AUSTRIA,21.NOV.23 – SOCCER – ADMIRAL Bundesliga, SK Rapid Wien, training. Image shows Nicolas Kuehn Rapid. GEPA pictures/ Armin Rauthner

The Austrian team wore all-green shirts when meeting Celtic in the 1984 Cup-Winners’ Cup, a tie that ended in huge controversy. They have also had green-and-white hoops, including in the early-1980s and mid-2000s.

Celtic have faced multiple other clubs that have briefly wore green-and-white hoops, whether as a home or away jersey. This includes Greuthur Furth, Jabolonec, Ferencvaros, Merthyr Tydfil and Sheffield Wednesday.

Real Betis are another example, with a strong Celtic connection. The Spanish team famously wear green-and-white stripes although have had hooped tops too.

Players of Real Betis pose for a team photograph prior to the UEFA Europa League 2025/26 League Phase MD5 match between Real Betis Balompie and FC Utrecht at La Cartuja de Sevilla on November 27, 2025 in Seville, Spain. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

In fact, their colours were inspired by Celtic. One of the Seville side’s founders had lived in Scotland where he became a Celtic fan, and so this played a part in the choice of colours for the new Real Betis.

A less well-known hooped team that Celtic have faced is St Gallen. The Swiss side currently wear an all-green shirt, however at different times have had green-and-white hoops. The Bhoys drew 0-0 with them in a 2019 friendly.

In addition to all these teams, numerous others have had green-and-white hoops, although they have not faced Celtic. Examples of this are Panathanaikos, Santos Laguna, Bloemfontein Celtic, Eriskay and Catholic United (the childhood team of Cameron Carter-Vickers).

CELTIC by KELLY, Sir ROBERT: Hardcover (1971) 1st Edition | MAPLE RIDGE BOOKS

The latter team have hoops because of a 1968 gift from the Bhoys. The English team wrote to Celtic chairman Robert Kelly asking if he could provide them strips to wear in a cup final, and the subsequent donation ensured they would forever remain hoops wearers.

Go Ahead Eagles European Kit with a nod to their first opponents, Celtic back in 1965.

Another team has a Celtic-related reason for wearing the hoops. Dutch side Go Ahead Eagles first played in European football in 1965, losing to the Bhoys. To commemorate the 60th anniversary of this, in 2025 they introduced a special away strip with green-and-white hoops.

It’s always great to see green-and-white hoops being worn around the world. But the version from Glasgow’s east end will always be the best and most important of these.

Matthew Marr

Follow Matthew on X – https://x.com/hailhailhistory

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