Hamilton Academical F.C.

Hamilton Academical, commonly known as Hamilton Accies, is a Scottish football club based in South Lanarkshire. They currently feature in the Scottish Premier League.

Hamilton were established in 1894 from Hamilton Academy. They were promoted to the old First Division in the 1905-1906 season. They reached the final of the Scottish Cup in 1911 and 1935.

In 1971 Hamilton Academical became the first football club in the UK to recruit players from behind the Iron Curtain. They gained promotion to the Premier Division in Scotland twice (in 1986 and 1988) but couldn’t enjoy long spells. But in 1996 they were relegated to the third tier of Scottish football for the first time in their history.

But since the 2001-2002 season Hamilton Academical have been progressing in leaps and bounds. They returned to Hamilton to a stadium just yards away from the old site and also managed to secure a place in Division One for the 2004-2005 season. They gained promotion to the Scottish Premier League in 2007-2008.

Hamilton Academical play their home matches at the New Douglas Park that can accomodate 6,096 spectators. They bear the nickname “The Accies”.