Hibernian Football Club (), commonly known as Hibs, is a professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club based in the

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

area of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland. The club plays in the

Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish ...

, the top tier of the

Scottish Professional Football League The Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) is the national men's association football league in Scotland. The league was formed in June 2013 following a merger between the Scottish Premier League and the Scottish Football League. As ...

(SPFL). The club was founded in 1875 by members of Edinburgh's Irish community, and named after the Roman word for Ireland. Nowadays, while the Irish heritage of Hibernian is still reflected in the name, colours and badge, support for the club is now based more on geography than ethnicity or religion. Their local rivals are Heart of Midlothian, with whom they contest the

Edinburgh derby The Edinburgh derby is an informal title given to any football match played between Scottish clubs Heart of Midlothian (Hearts) and Hibernian (Hibs), the two oldest professional clubs based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The two clubs have a fierce r ...

. Home matches are played at

Easter Road Easter Road is a football stadium located in the Leith area of Edinburgh, Scotland, which is the home ground of Scottish Premiership club Hibernian (Hibs). The stadium currently has an all-seated capacity of , which makes it the fifth-larges ...

, which has been in use since 1893, when the club joined the

Scottish Football League The Scottish Football League (SFL) was a 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 km south ...

. The name of the club is regularly shortened to ''Hibs'', with the team also being known as ''The Hibees'' (pronounced ) and supporters known as ''Hibbies''. Another nickname is ''The Cabbage'', derived from the shortened

rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymin ...

for Hibs (" Cabbage and Ribs"). Hibernian have won the

Scottish league championship The Scottish League Championship (currently the Tennents League Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic rugby union league system within Scotland. Operated by the Scottish Rugby Union, the championship was founded in 1973 as the fi ...

four times, most recently in

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes m ...

. Three of those four championships were won between 1948 and 1952, when the club had the services of

The Famous Five ''The Famous Five'' is a series of children's Adventure fiction, adventure novels and short stories written by English author Enid Blyton. The first book, ''Five on a Treasure Island'', was published in 1942. The novels feature the adventures ...

, a notable

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

line. The club have won the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,1887 Events January–March * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Har ...

1902 Events January * January 1 ** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world's f ...

, and

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, with the latter victory ending a notorious drought. Hibs have also won the

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay 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 existen ...

three times, in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

, and

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

. Hibernian reached the semi-final of the first ever

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

in 1955–56, becoming the first British side to participate in European competition; they reached the same stage of the

Inter-Cities Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, sometimes referred to as the European Fairs Cup, Fairs Cities' Cup, or simply as the Fairs Cup, was a European Association football, football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecess ...

in 1960–61.

History

Foundation and early history (1875–1939)

The club was founded in 1875 by Irishmen living in the

Cowgate The Cowgate (Scots language, Scots: The Cougait) is a street in Edinburgh, Scotland, located about southeast of Edinburgh Castle, within the city's World Heritage Site. The street is part of the lower level of Edinburgh's Old Town, Edinburgh, ...

area of

. The name ''Hibernian'' (deriving from

Hibernia ''Hibernia'' () is the Classical Latin name for Ireland. The name ''Hibernia'' was taken from Greek geographical accounts. During his exploration of northwest Europe (c. 320 BC), Pytheas of Massalia called the island ''Iérnē'' (written ). ...

, an ancient name for Ireland), the colour green, the

Gaelic harp The Celtic harp is a triangular frame harp traditional to the Celtic nations of northwest Europe. It is known as in Irish, in Scottish Gaelic, in Breton and in Welsh. In Ireland and Scotland, it was a wire-strung instrument requiring great ...

and the

Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

phrase ''

Erin Go Bragh Erin go Bragh ( ), sometimes Erin go Braugh, is the anglicisation of an Irish language phrase, , and is used to express allegiance to Ireland. It is most often translated as "Ireland Forever." Origin ''Erin go Bragh'' is an anglicisation of ...

'' (meaning ''Ireland Forever'') were adopted as symbols early on. Founder Fr. Edward Joseph Hannan was the first president of the club and Michael Whelahan its first team captain.

James Connolly James Connolly ( ga, Séamas Ó Conghaile; 5 June 1868 – 12 May 1916) was an Irish republican, socialist and trade union leader. Born to Irish parents in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, Scotland, Connolly left school for working life at the a ...

, the famous

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

and

Irish Republican Irish republicanism ( ga, poblachtánachas Éireannach) is the political movement for the unity and independence of Ireland under a republic. Irish republicans view British rule in any part of Ireland as inherently illegitimate. The develop ...

leader, was a Hibs fan, while the club were "closely identified" with the

Irish Home Rule Movement The Irish Home Rule movement was a movement that campaigned for self-government (or "home rule") for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was the dominant political movement of Irish nationalism from 1870 to the e ...

during the 1880s. There was some

sectarian Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...

resistance initially to an Irish club participating in

Scottish football Association football ( sco, fitbaa, gd, ball-coise) 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 Scot ...

, but Hibs established themselves as a force in Scottish football in the 1880s. Hibs were the first club from the east coast of Scotland to win a major trophy, the 1887 Scottish Cup. They went on to defeat

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

, who had reached the semi-finals of the 1887 FA Cup, in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

described as the '' Association Football Championship of the World Decider''. Mismanagement over the next few years led to Hibs becoming homeless and the club temporarily ceased operating in 1891. A lease on the

site was acquired in late 1892 and Hibs played its first match at Easter Road on 4 February 1893. Despite this interruption, the club today views the period since 1875 as one continued history and therefore counts the honours won between 1875 and 1891, including the 1887 Scottish Cup. The club were admitted to the

in 1893, although they had to win the Second Division twice before being elected into the First Division in 1895. A significant change at this time was that players were no longer required to be members of the Catholic Young Men's Society. Hibs are not seen today as being an Irish or

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

institution, as it was in the early years of its history. For instance, the

Irish harp The Celtic harp is a triangular frame harp traditional to the Celtic nations of northwest Europe. It is known as in Irish, in Scottish Gaelic, in Breton and in Welsh. In Ireland and Scotland, it was a wire-strung instrument requiring great ...

was only re-introduced to the club badge when it was last re-designed in 2000. This design reflects the three pillars of the club's identity: Ireland, Edinburgh (the

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

) and

(the ship). Geography rather than ethnicity or religion is now seen as the primary reason for supporting Hibs, who draw most of their support from the north and east of Edinburgh. Hibs had some success after being reformed, winning the 1902 Scottish Cup and their first league championship a year later. After this, however, the club endured a long barren spell. The club lost its placing in the league, and were

relegated In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...

for the first time in 1931, although they were promoted back to the top division two years later. The notorious Scottish Cup drought began as they reached three cup finals, two in consecutive years, but lost each of them.

The Famous Five (1939–1959)

Hibs' most successful era was in the decade following the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, when it was "among the foremost clubs in Britain". The

line of

Gordon Smith Gordon Smith may refer to: In politics *Gordon H. Smith (born 1952), former U.S. Senator from Oregon, and current Area Authority for the LDS Church * Gordon Elsworth Smith (1918–2005), Canadian politician * Gordon Smith (academic) (1927–2009), ...

Bobby Johnstone Robert Johnstone (7 September 1929 – 22 August 2001) was a Scottish footballer, who played for Selkirk, Hibernian, Manchester City, Oldham Athletic and Witton Albion. Johnstone also represented Scotland and the Scottish League. Johnstone ...

Lawrie Reilly Lawrance Reilly (28 October 1928 – 22 July 2013) was a Scottish footballer. He was one of the " Famous Five", the Hibernian forward line during the late 1940s and early 1950s, along with Bobby Johnstone, Gordon Smith, Eddie Turnbull, and W ...

Eddie Turnbull Edward Hunter Turnbull (12 April 1923 – 30 April 2011) was a Scottish professional football player and manager. He played as a forward for Hibernian and Scotland, forming part of the Hibs " Famous Five" forward line. He then had successful sp ...

and

Willie Ormond William Esplin Ormond (23 February 1927 – 4 May 1984) was a Scottish football player and manager. As a player, Ormond was well known as one of Hibernian's Famous Five forward line, winning three league championships in the late 1940s an ...

, collectively known as

the Famous Five ''The Famous Five'' is a series of children's Adventure fiction, adventure novels and short stories written by English author Enid Blyton. The first book, ''Five on a Treasure Island'', was published in 1942. The novels feature the adventures ...

, was "regarded as the finest ever seen in Scottish football". Each of the Famous Five scored more than 100 goals for Hibs. The north stand at

is now named in their honour. Smith was signed by Hibs in 1941, while Ormond, Turnbull, Reilly and Johnstone were all signed during 1946. Of the five, only Ormond cost Hibs a transfer fee, £1200 from

Stenhousemuir Stenhousemuir (; gd, Featha Thaigh nan Clach) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies within the Falkirk (council area), Falkirk council area of Scotland. The town is north-northwest of Falkirk and directly adjoins to Larbert in ...

. Reilly, Johnstone, Smith and Turnbull were all signed from youth or junior leagues. In the first season of competitive football after the Second World War, Hibs reached the 1947 Scottish Cup Final. They took an early lead in the match, but went on to lose 2–1 to

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

. With Reilly added to the first team in 1947–48, Hibs won the

for the first time since 1903. This was achieved despite the death of team manager

Willie McCartney Willie McCartney (date of birth unknown — 24 January 1948) was a Scotland, Scottish association football, football referee and manager (association football), manager. He managed both of the Edinburgh derby rivals, Heart of Midlothian F.C ...

in January 1948. McCartney was succeeded by Hugh Shaw, who added Johnstone to the first team during 1948. Hibs finished third in the league in 1948–49. In a

against Nithsdale Wanderers on 21 April 1949, Hibs included all of the famous five players in the same team for the first time. They then made their collective competitive debut on 15 October 1949, in a 2–0 win against Queen of the South. They improved on their season from the year before, by finishing second in the league to Rangers by one point. 1950–51 was the high point of the Famous Five era. With other internationalists such as

Tommy Younger Thomas Younger (10 April 1930 – 13 January 1984) was a Scottish footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Hibernian, Liverpool, Falkirk, Leeds United, Stoke City and the Scotland national team. Career Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Younger s ...

and

Bobby Combe James Robert Combe (29 January 1924 – 19 January 1991) was a Scottish footballer, who played for Hibernian and was player/manager of Dumbarton for one season. He also represented Scotland and the Scottish Football League XI. A schoolboy inter ...

, Hibs won the league by 10 points (when two points were awarded for each win). They reached the

1950 Scottish League Cup Final The 1950 Scottish League Cup Final was played on 28 October 1950, at Hampden Park in Glasgow and was the final of the fifth Scottish League Cup competition. The final was contested by Hibernian and Motherwell. Motherwell won the match 3–0 t ...

. Turnbull had scored a hattrick in the semi-final but was unavailable for the final.

Jimmy Bradley Jimmy Bradley (21 March 1927 – 26 November 2008) was a Scottish footballer, who played for Hibernian, Third Lanark, Shrewsbury Town, Headington United, Gravesend & Northfleet and Dumbarton. Bradley made only first team appearance for Hibern ...

started at left wing with Ormond moved to inside left. Motherwell beat them 3–0. Hibs retained the league championship in 1951–52, this time winning by four points. Hibs were narrowly denied a third consecutive title in 1952–53 on the last day of the season. A late Rangers equaliser against Queen of the South took the title to Ibrox on

goal average A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines. A goal is roughly similar to a purpose or ai ...

. The Famous Five forward line remained in place until March 1955, when Johnstone was sold to

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

. Despite only finishing fifth in the Scottish League in 1955, Hibs were invited to participate in the first season of the

, which was not strictly based on league positions at that time. Eighteen clubs who were thought would generate interest across Europe and who also had the

floodlights A floodlight is a broad-beamed, gas discharge lamp#High-intensity discharge lamps, high-intensity artificial light. They are often used to illuminate outdoor playing fields while an outdoor sports event is Night game, being held during low-li ...

necessary to play games at night, were invited to participate. Floodlights had been used at

for the first time in a

against Hearts on 18 October 1954. Hibs became the first British club in Europe because the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

secretary

Alan Hardaker Alan Hardaker OBE (29 July 1912Biographical details
such as date of birth, wife's ...

persuaded

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

, the English champions, not to enter. Hibs played their first tie against

Rot-Weiss Essen Rot-Weiss Essen is a German association football club based in Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club currently plays in the 3. Liga, at the Stadion an der Hafenstraße. The team won the DFB-Pokal in 1953, and the German championship in 195 ...

, winning 4–0 in the

Georg-Melches-Stadion Georg-Melches-Stadion was a stadium in Essen, Germany. It was built in 1923, renovated to the former state in 1939, 1948 and 1954 and had a capacity of 30,000. Due to safety reasons this was reduced to 15,000 from 1994 onwards. It was used, mo ...

and drawing 1–1 at Easter Road. They defeated

Djurgårdens IF Djurgårdens Idrottsförening, commonly known simply as Djurgårdens IF, Djurgården (), and (especially locally) Djurgår'n (), Dif or DIF – is a Swedish sports association with several sections, located in Stockholm. Name The club is named ...

to reach the semi-final, but in that tie they were defeated 3–0 on

aggregate Aggregate or aggregates may refer to: Computing and mathematics * collection of objects that are bound together by a root entity, otherwise known as an aggregate root. The aggregate root guarantees the consistency of changes being made within the ...

Stade Reims Stade de Reims () is a French professional football club based in Reims. The club was formed in 1910 and plays in Ligue 1, the top level of Football in France, having been promoted from Ligue 2 in 2018. Reims plays home matches at the Stade Aug ...

, who had the famous France international player

Raymond Kopa Raymond Kopa (né Kopaszewski; 13 October 1931 – 3 March 2017) was a French professional footballer, integral to the France national team of the 1950s. At club level he was part of the legendary Real Madrid team of the 1950s, winning three Eu ...

in their side. Reims lost 4–3 to

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

Turnbull's Tornadoes (1960–1989)

Hibs frequently participated in the

Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, sometimes referred to as the European Fairs Cup, Fairs Cities' Cup, or simply as the Fairs Cup, was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecessor to the UEFA Cup (no ...

during the 1960s, winning ties against

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

and

Napoli Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

. However, the club achieved little domestically until former player

was persuaded to return to Easter Road as

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

in 1971. The team, popularly known as ''Turnbull's Tornadoes'', finished second in the league in 1974 and 1975, and won the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

in 1972. The club also won the

Drybrough Cup The Drybrough Cup was a Scottish annual football tournament. It was held from 1971 until 1974, and was revived from 1979 to 1980. It was open to the four highest-scoring teams from Division 1, and the four highest-scoring teams from Division 2. Th ...

in 1972 and 1973, and recorded a 7–0 win over

rivals Hearts at Tynecastle on 1 January 1973. Performances went into decline after the mid-1970s, as Hibs were replaced by the New Firm of

and

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...

as the main challengers to the

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

. Turnbull resigned as manager and Hibs were

, for the second time in their history, in 1980. They were immediately

promoted Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

back to the

Scottish Premier Division The Scottish Football League Premier Division was, from 1975 until 1998, the top division of the Scottish Football League and the entire Scottish football league system. It lay above the Scottish Football League First, Second and (from 1994) Th ...

in 1981, but the club struggled during the 1980s, failing to qualify for European competition until 1989.

1990s: Attempted takeover by Hearts

After mismanagement during the late 1980s, Hibs were on the brink of financial ruin in 1990. Wallace Mercer, the chairman of Hearts, proposed a merger of the two clubs, but the Hibs fans believed that the proposal was more like a

hostile takeover In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company (the ''target'') by another (the ''acquirer'' or ''bidder''). In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to ...

. They formed the ''Hands off Hibs'' group to campaign for the continued existence of the club. This succeeded when a prominent local businessman, Kwik-Fit owner Sir

Tom Farmer Sir Thomas Farmer, (born 10 July 1940) is a Scottish entrepreneur. Early life One of seven siblings in a devoutly Catholic family, in 1964 Farmer founded his own tyre retailing business which he sold in 1969 for £450,000. Farmer retired to ...

, acquired a controlling interest in Hibs. The fans were able to persuade Farmer to take control despite the fact that he had no great interest in football. Farmer was persuaded in part by the fact that a relative of his had been involved in the rescue of Hibs from financial ruin in the early 1890s. After the attempted takeover by Mercer, Hibs had a few good years in the early 1990s, winning the 1991 Scottish League Cup Final and finishing in the top five in the league in 1993, 1994 and 1995. Soon after

Alex McLeish Alexander McLeish (born 21 January 1959) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player. He played as a defender for Aberdeen during their 1980s glory years, making nearly 500 League appearances for the club, and won 77 caps for ...

was appointed as

in 1998, Hibs were

to the First Division, but immediately won promotion back to the

SPL SPL may refer to: Association football * Saudi Professional League * Scottish Premier League * SportPesa Premier League, Kenya * Singapore Premier League * RoboCup Standard Platform League, matches between autonomous robots Computing Program ...

in 1999.

2000s: "Golden generation"

Hibs enjoyed a good season in 2000–01 as they finished third in the league and reached the 2001 Scottish Cup Final, which was lost 3–0 to

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 Fo ...

. Manager

departed for Rangers in December 2001; team

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Franck Sauzée Franck Gaston Henri Sauzée (born 28 October 1965) is a French former professional footballer and manager. He played 39 times for the France national team between 1988 and 1993, scoring nine goals and captaining the team several times. He achiev ...

was appointed as the new manager, despite the fact that he had no previous coaching experience. A terrible run of form followed and Sauzée was fired after being in charge for 69 days.

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...

manager

Bobby Williamson Robert Williamson (born 13 August 1961 in Glasgow) is a Scottish football player and manager. Williamson played as a striker for Clydebank, Rangers, West Bromwich Albion, Rotherham United and Kilmarnock. He then became a manager at Kilma ...

was then hired, but he proved to be unpopular with Hibs supporters. However, a " golden generation" of exciting young players emerged, including

Garry O'Connor Garry Lawrence John O'Connor (born 7 May 1983) is a Scottish former professional footballer. He played for Hibernian, Peterhead, Lokomotiv Moscow, Barnsley, Tom Tomsk, Birmingham City, Greenock Morton and represented Scotland. O'Connor began ...

Derek Riordan Derek George Riordan (born 16 January 1983) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a striker. He has been capped three times by the Scotland national team. Riordan started his career with Hibernian in 2001 and had a brief spell o ...

Kevin Thomson Kevin Thomson (born 14 October 1984) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player. Thomson played as a midfielder for Hibernian (three spells), Rangers, Middlesbrough and Dundee and represented Scotland. Thomson began his car ...

and

Scott Brown Scott Brown may refer to: Sportsmen *Scott Brown (American football), American college football coach of Kentucky State * Scott Brown (baseball) (born 1956), former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds *Scott Brown (footballer, bor ...

. These players featured heavily as Hibs eliminated both halves of the

to reach the 2004 Scottish League Cup Final, only to lose 2–0 to

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

. Williamson departed near the end of that season to manage

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...

and was replaced by

Tony Mowbray Anthony Mark Mowbray (born 22 November 1963) is an English former professional footballer who is currently the manager of Sunderland. Mowbray played for Middlesbrough, Celtic and Ipswich Town as a defender. He began his coaching career with Ip ...

. Hibs finished third in his first season as manager, while Mowbray won the

SFWA Manager of the Year The Scottish Football Writers' Association Manager of the Year (often called the SFWA Manager of the Year, or simply the Scottish Manager of the Year) award is given to the manager in Scottish football who is seen to have been the best manager of ...

award.

Mowbray left Hibs in October 2006 to manage

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...

, and was replaced by former player John Collins. The team won the 2007 Scottish League Cup Final under his management, but the club sold

and

Steven Whittaker Steven Gordon Whittaker (born 16 June 1984) is a Scottish former professional footballer and coach, who is currently an assistant manager with Fleetwood Town. He played as a defender. Whittaker began his career with Hibernian and made over 17 ...

for fees totalling more than £8 million. Collins resigned later that year, frustrated by the lack of funds provided to sign new players. Former Hibs player

Mixu Paatelainen Mika-Matti Petteri Paatelainen (born 3 February 1967) is a Finnish former professional football player and the head coach of Veikkausliiga club HIFK. He scored 18 goals in 70 appearances for the Finnish national team, which makes him Finland's ...

was hired to replace Collins, but he left after the end of his first full season. Another former Hibernian player, John Hughes, was soon appointed in place of Paatelainen. Hughes, who made high-profile signings such as

Anthony Stokes Anthony Christopher Stokes (born 25 July 1988) is an Irish professional footballer, who plays as a striker. He was also an Irish international, having played at the under-21, team B and Republic of Ireland national football team. He began hi ...

and

Liam Miller Liam William Peter Miller (13 February 1981 – 9 February 2018) was an Irish professional footballer. Miller began his career with Celtic and was later loaned to Aarhus in 2001. He returned to Celtic Park and broke into the first-team squa ...

, led Hibs to a good start to the 2009–10 season.

2010s: Scottish Cup success

Hibs finished fourth in 2010 and qualified for the

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...

, but a poor start to the 2010–11 season led to John Hughes leaving the club. Hughes was replaced by

Colin Calderwood Colin Calderwood (born 20 January 1965) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player. He is the assistant manager at Northampton Town. As a player, he was a centre-back who notably played in the Premier League for Tottenham Hots ...

, who was himself sacked a year later. The club avoided relegation in 2011–12 and reached the

2012 Scottish Cup Final The 2012 Scottish Cup Final was the 127th final of the Scottish Cup. The match took place at Hampden Park on 19 May 2012 and was contested by the Edinburgh derby rivals, Hibernian (Hibs) and Heart of Midlothian (Hearts). It was Hibs' 12th Scot ...

under new manager

Pat Fenlon Patrick Fenlon (born 15 March 1969) is an Irish football coach and former player. Fenlon played as a midfielder for St Patrick's Athletic, Bohemians, Linfield, Shamrock Rovers and Shelbourne. As a manager he won five League of Ireland titles ...

, but this was lost 5–1 to Hearts. Fenlon largely rebuilt the team after this defeat. This resulted in an improved league position in

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

and the team reaching the

2013 Scottish Cup Final The 2013 Scottish Cup Final was the 128th final of the Scottish Cup, the most prestigious knockout football competition in Scotland. The match took place at Hampden Park on 26 May 2013 and was contested by Hibernian and Celtic. It was the first ...

, which was lost 3–0 to league champions Celtic. Hibs qualified for the

2013–14 UEFA Europa League The 2013–14 UEFA Europa League was the 43rd season of Europe's secondary club association football, football tournament organised by UEFA, and the fifth season under its current title. The 2014 UEFA Europa League Final was played between Sevil ...

, but they suffered a Scottish record defeat in European competition (9–0 on aggregate against

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...

). Fenlon resigned on 1 November and was replaced by

Terry Butcher Terry Ian Butcher (born 28 December 1958) is an English football manager and former player. He works as an academy coach for Ipswich Town. During his playing career as a defender, Butcher captained the England national team, winning 77 caps ...

. A run of 13 games without a win to finish the

2013–14 Scottish Premiership The 2013–14 Scottish Premiership was the first season of the Scottish Premiership, the highest division of Scottish football. The season began on 2 August 2013 and concluded on 11 May 2014. This was the first season of the competition being p ...

season meant that Hibs fell into a relegation play-off, which was lost after a

penalty shootout The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pen ...

against

Hamilton Academical Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish association football, football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championshi ...

. Butcher was sacked in June and was replaced by

Alan Stubbs Alan Stubbs (born 6 October 1971) is an English football manager and former professional footballer As a player he was a centre-back who played top flight football for every club he played for. He played in the Premier League with Bolton Wand ...

. He was unable to lead the team to promotion, but the 2015–16 season saw considerable cup success. The team reached the League Cup final, which was lost to Ross County. This was followed by victory in the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,cup final The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football ev ...

win against Rangers. Soon after the cup win, Stubbs resigned as Hibs manager to take charge at

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...

and was replaced by

Neil Lennon Neil Francis Lennon (born 25 June 1971) is a Northern Irish football coach and former player. During his playing career he represented English clubs Manchester City, Crewe Alexandra and Leicester City. Lennon moved to Celtic in 2000, where he ...

, who led the team to promotion by winning the 2016–17 Scottish Championship. In their first season back in the top flight, Hibs finished fourth in the Premiership and qualified for the

. Lennon left the club in January 2019 and was replaced by

Paul Heckingbottom Paul Heckingbottom (born 17 July 1977) is an English football coach and former player who is currently manager of Championship side Sheffield United. Heckingbottom played as a defender for several English clubs, including Sunderland, Scarboro ...

, who only held the post for seven months. Jack Ross was appointed on 15 November 2019.

2020s

Hibs finished seventh in a 2019–20 league season that was curtailed by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. In the following season they finished third in the league and reached the

2021 Scottish Cup Final The 2021 Scottish Cup Final was the 136th final of the Scottish Cup and the final of the 2020–21 Scottish Cup, the most prestigious knockout football competition in Scotland. The match was played on 22 May 2021 at Hampden Park, Glasgow. St ...

, but this was lost 1–0 to

St Johnstone St Johnstone Football Club is a professional association football club in Perth, Scotland which is a member of the Scottish Premiership for the 2022–23 season. The club's name is derived from St John's Toun ''aka'' Saint Johnstoun – an old ...

. Ross guided Hibs to the League Cup final later that year, but was sacked 10 days before the final after a run of seven defeats in nine league games.

Colours and badge

The predominant club colours are green and white, which have been used since the formation of the club in 1875. The

strip Strip or Stripping may refer to: Places * Aouzou Strip, a strip of land following the northern border of Chad that had been claimed and occupied by Libya * Caprivi Strip, narrow strip of land extending from the Okavango Region of Namibia to ...

typically has a green body, white sleeves, and a white collar. The shorts are normally white, although green has been used in recent seasons. The socks are green, usually with some white detail. Hibs have used yellow, purple, black, white, and a dark green in recent seasons for their alternate kits. In 1977, Hibs became the first club in Scotland to bear sponsorship on their shirts. This arrangement prompted television companies to threaten a boycott of Hibs games if they used the sponsored kit, which resulted in the club using an alternate kit for the first time. Hibs wore green and white hooped shirts during the 1870s, which was the inspiration for the style later adopted by

. Hibs then wore all-green shirts from 1879 until 1938, when white sleeves were added to the shirts. This was similar in style to

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

, who had added white sleeves to their red shirts earlier in the 1930s. The colour of the shorts was changed to a green which matched the shirts in 2004, to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of a friendly win in October 1964 against

. Green shorts were used in that match to avoid a colour clash with the all-white colours of Real Madrid. Hibs also used green shorts in the 2006–07, 2007–08 and 2008–09 seasons. For the 2012–13 season, Hibs changed the primary colour of the shirts to a darker "bottle" green, instead of the normal emerald green. A darker green had been used until the 1930s. For the 2014–15 season, Hibs removed the traditional white sleeves from their home kit, as they changed to a darker green shirt in commemoration of the Famous Five forward line. The badge used to identify the club has changed frequently over the years, which has reflected an ongoing debate about its identity. This debate has centred on whether its Irish heritage should be proudly displayed, or ignored for fear of being accused of

ism. The

was first removed in the 1950s, then re-introduced to the club badge when it was last re-designed in 2000.

Scottish Football Museum The Scottish Football Museum is Scotland’s national museum of association football, located in Hampden Park in Glasgow. The Museum The museum houses over 2000 objects of football memorabilia, including the world's oldest cap and match ticket fr ...

director Ged O'Brien said in 2001, that the current design shows that Hibs "are comfortable with all the strands of their tradition – it has Leith, Edinburgh and Ireland in it." As well as the harp representing Ireland, the present badge includes a ship (for the

port of Leith A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ha ...

) and a castle (as in

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...

Stadium

Hibs played on The Meadows for the first two years of their history, before moving to grounds in Newington (Mayfield Park) and Bonnington Road,

(

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

), in different spells between 1877 and 1879. After the lease on Mayfield Park expired, Hibs moved to a ground known as

Hibernian Park Hibernian Park was the home ground of the Scottish football club Hibernian from 1880 until the club's dissolution in 1891. When the club was reformed in 1892, the club took out on a lease on a site which became known as Easter Road. Hibernian Pa ...

, on what is now Bothwell Street in Leith. Hibs failed to secure the ground lease and a builder started constructing houses on the site in 1890. Hibs obtained a lease on a site that is now known as

in 1892 and have played their home matches there since February 1893. Before the

Taylor Report The Hillsborough Stadium Disaster Inquiry report is the report of an inquiry which was overseen by Lord Justice Taylor, into the causes of the Hillsborough disaster in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, on 15 April 1989, as a result of which, ...

demanded that the stadium be all-seated, Easter Road had vast banks of terracing on three sides, which meant that it could hold crowds in excess of 60,000. The record attendance of 65,860, which is also a record for a football match played in Edinburgh, was set by an Edinburgh derby played on 2 January 1950. Such vast crowds were drawn by the success of

. The pitch was noted for its pronounced slope, but this was removed in 2000. The ground is currently all-seated and has a capacity of . Easter Road is a modern stadium, with all four of its stands having been built since 1995. The most recent redevelopment was the construction of a new East Stand in 2010.

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

have played seven of their home matches at Easter Road, between 1998 and 2017. Scotland women played their first match at Easter Road in August 2019, a Euro 2021 qualifying match against

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

. The ground has hosted one international not involving the Scotland teams, a friendly played between

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

preceding the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

. Easter Road has also sometimes been used as a neutral venue for

semi-final matches and once hosted a

Scottish Challenge Cup The Scottish Professional Football League Challenge Cup, Hibs have a traditional local rivalry in

with Hearts; the derby match between the two clubs is one of the oldest rivalries in world football.

Graham Spiers Graham Spiers is a Scottish sports journalist who writes for the Scottish edition of ''The Times'' newspaper. He has won Scotland's Sports Journalist of the Year award four times. Spiers grew up in Edinburgh, Fife and Glasgow, and attended the ...

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 each other in two

Scottish Cup finals 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 ...

, in

1896 Events January–March * 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 that Wil ...

and

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, both of which were won by Hearts. The 1896 match is also notable for being the only Scottish Cup Final to be played outside

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. Both clubs have been champions of Scotland four times, although Hearts have the better record in derby matches. 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 background lies behind the rivalry, that aspect is "muted" and is a "pale reflection" of the

sectarianism in Glasgow Sectarianism in Glasgow takes the form of long-standing religious and political sectarian rivalry between Catholics and Protestants. It is particularly reinforced by the fierce rivalry between Celtic F.C. and Rangers F.C., the two largest Scotti ...

. Although the clubs are inescapable rivals, the rivalry is mainly "good-natured" and has had beneficial effects.

Supporters and culture

Hibernian are one of only two full-time professional football clubs in Edinburgh, which is the capital of and second largest city in Scotland. The club had the fourth largest average attendance in the Scottish leagues during the 2019–20 season (16,728). In the period after the Second World War, Hibs attracted average attendances in excess of 20,000, peaking at 31,567 in the 1951–52 season. Since

was redeveloped into an

all-seater stadium An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football and Ame ...

in the mid-1990s, average attendance has varied between a high of 18,124 in 2017–18 and a low of 9,150 in 2003–04. There has been a significant increase in recent seasons, inspired by the Scottish Cup victory in 2016 and promotion in 2017. In the 1980s and 1990s, a minority of the club's supporters had a reputation as one of Britain's most prominent casuals groups, known as the Capital City Service.

Literature

The works of author

Irvine Welsh Irvine Welsh (born 27 September 1958) is a Scottish novelist, playwright and short story writer. His 1993 novel '' Trainspotting'' was made into a film of the same name. He has also written plays and screenplays, and directed several short fil ...

, particularly ''

Trainspotting Trainspotting may refer to: * Trainspotting (hobby), an amateur interest in railways/railroads * ''Trainspotting'' (novel), a 1993 novel by Irvine Welsh ** ''Trainspotting'' (film), a 1996 film based on the novel *** ''Trainspotting'' (soundtr ...

'', contain several references to Hibernian. The team is often mentioned in casual conversation and is the team many of his characters support. Visual references to Hibs are noticeable in

Danny Boyle Daniel Francis Boyle (born 20 October 1956) is an English director and producer. He is known for his work on films including ''Shallow Grave'', '' Trainspotting'' and its sequel ''T2 Trainspotting'', '' The Beach'', '' 28 Days Later'', '' Su ...

's film adaptation of ''

''; Francis Begbie wears a Hibs shirt while he plays

five-a-side football Five-a-side football is a version of minifootball, in which each team fields five players (four outfield players and a goalkeeper). Other differences from football include a smaller pitch, smaller goals, and a reduced game duration. Matches are ...

, while many Hibs posters and pictures can be seen on the walls of Mark Renton's bedroom. In the final short story of Welsh's ''

The Acid House ''The Acid House'' is a 1994 book by Irvine Welsh Irvine Welsh (born 27 September 1958) is a Scottish novelist, playwright and short story writer. His 1993 novel '' Trainspotting'' was made into a film of the same name. He has also written ...

'', Coco Bryce, a boy from the "Hibs

firm A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

" Capital City Service, is struck by lightning while under the influence of

LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), also known colloquially as acid, is a potent psychedelic drug. Effects typically include intensified thoughts, emotions, and sensory perception. At sufficiently high dosages LSD manifests primarily mental, vi ...

in a Pilton park. His soul is then transferred to the body of an unborn child from one of the more affluent areas of Edinburgh. The appearances by Hibs in the

and

Scottish Cup finals are described in Welsh's novels '' A Decent Ride'' and ''Dead Men's Trousers'' respectively. Hibernian are also frequently referred to in the

Inspector Rebus The ''Inspector Rebus'' books are a series of detective novels by the Scottish author Sir Ian Rankin. The novels, centred on Detective Inspector John Rebus, are mostly based in and around Edinburgh. They are considered an important contribu ...

series of

detective novels Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...

Ian Rankin Sir Ian James Rankin (born 28 April 1960) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels. Early life Rankin was born in Cardenden, Fife. His father, James, owned a grocery shop, and his mother, Isobel, worked in a schoo ...

. Rankin has stated that Rebus is a

Raith Rovers Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the Scottish Championship as a member of the Scottish Professional Football Leag ...

supporter but he is a Hibs fan in the 2000s television adaptation of the series. Ironically, that version of Rebus is played by a Hearts supporter,

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'' at Royal National Theatre. He portrayed th ...

. DS

Siobhan Clarke This is a list of characters from the ''Inspector Rebus'' series of detective novels by the Scottish writer Ian Rankin. They are all fictional characters that have appeared in more than one novel in the series. A number of the characters appe ...

, his colleague in the later books, is a "loyal supporter" of Hibs.

Music

The Hibs anthem " Glory, Glory to the Hibees" was written and performed by the Scottish comedian,

Hector Nicol Hector Nicol (9 November 1920 – 2 July 1985) was a Scottish comedian, singer and actor. Acting career Nicol starred in few shows during his career. His most notable role was that of a dying gangster in the BBC Television play ''Just a Boys' ...

. Former

Marillion Marillion are a British rock music, rock band, formed in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, in 1979. They emerged from the post-punk music scene in Britain and existed as a bridge between the styles of punk rock and classic progressive rock, becomin ...

singer

Fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...

is a Hibs fan;

is mentioned in the song "Lucky", from the album '' Internal Exile''.

The Proclaimers ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

are lifelong Hibs fans, and were heavily involved with the 'Hands off Hibs' campaign to save the club in 1990. '' Sunshine on Leith'' has become a Hibs anthem, which is traditionally played after big victories at

and the finals of cup competitions. In their song "Cap in Hand", from the ''Sunshine on Leith'' album, The Proclaimers make a reference to the Hibs player

Andy Goram Andrew Lewis Goram (13 April 1964 – 2 July 2022) was a Scottish footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Born in Bury, Lancashire, England, he started his career with Oldham Athletic and Hibernian, but he is best remembered for playing for Ra ...

: The song "Joyful Kilmarnock Blues", from the first album released by The Proclaimers, is about a Hibs victory away from home.

Ownership and finances

Although the football club was formed in 1875, it was not incorporated until 1903.Hibernian FC was registered on 11 April 1903 with

Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the company registrars of the United Kingdom, falling under the remit of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. All forms of companies (as permitted by the Companies Act) are i ...

as The Hibernian Football Club Limited, company number SC005323. The club remained a private company until 1988, when it was publicly listed on the

London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...

. This public listing, combined with poor financial performance, made Hibs vulnerable to an attempted takeover in 1990 by Hearts chairman Wallace Mercer. This attempt was averted when Mercer was unable to acquire the 75% shareholding needed to liquidate the company. The club's parent company, Forth Investments plc, entered receivership in 1991 and Sir

acquired control of the club from the receiver for £3 million. Farmer funded redevelopments of

and financial losses made by Hibs, although he delegated control to other figures such as Rod Petrie. In December 2014, the club said it intended to sell up to 51% ownership of the club to its supporters. By November 2017, supporters had increased their shareholding in the club to 34%. The majority ownership of the club was sold in July 2019 to Peruvian-born US-based businessman Ronald Gordon, who became the executive chairman.

Players

First team squad

On loan

Academy squads

Women's team

The club that became the Hibernian women's team was first founded in 1997 by Iain Johnston and Paul Johnston, but for the initial two seasons of its existence the club was under the auspices of Preston Athletic. The name changed to Hibernian Ladies in 1999 and they became one of the leading women's teams in Scotland. Hibernian won the Women's Scottish Cup in 2010, for the fifth time in eight years. Their success in the national cup competition was contrasted to the male affiliate, who went over a century without winning the equivalent competition until their victory in

. Hibernian Ladies won domestic cup doubles in 2016, 2017 and 2018. Ahead of the 2020 season, the club was rebranded as Hibernian Women and players were offered their first part-time professional contracts. The women's first team was fully integrated into the men's club in July 2022, with the youth sides still being run by the Hibernian Community Foundation.

Club officials

First team coaching staff

Board of directors

Backroom staff

Noted players

Arthur Duncan Arthur Duncan (born September 25, 1933) is an American tap dancer, also called an "Entertainer's Entertainer,"“About the International Tap Dance Hall of Fame: Biographies,” American Tap Dance Foundation, accessed April 27, 2022. known for hi ...

holds the record for most league appearances for Hibs, with 446. All of

–

and

– scored more than 100 league goals for Hibs. Hibernian players have been

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...

at full international level for 26 different national teams, with 67 Hibernian players appearing for

. Hibernian rank fifth amongst all clubs in providing players for Scotland, behind the

, Queen's Park and Hearts. James Lundie and James McGhee were the first Hibs players to play for Scotland, in an 1886 British Home Championship match against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

holds the record for most international caps earned while a Hibs player, making 38 appearances for Scotland between 1949 and 1957. In 1959, Hibs forward

Joe Baker Joseph Henry Baker (17 July 1940 – 6 October 2003) was an England international footballer. Born in Woolton in Liverpool, England, he spent virtually his entire childhood growing up in Motherwell, Scotland. He is notable for being the first ...

became the first player who had not previously played for an English club to win a cap for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. To mark the club's 135th birthday, the club created a

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

in 2010. The first group of nominees, including 13 former players, were inducted at a dinner later that year.

Noted managers

From 1875 until 1903, Hibs were managed by a

committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

, although

Dan McMichael Dan McMichael (c. 1860 – 6 February 1919) was an Irish manager, treasurer, secretary and physiotherapist of the Scottish football club Hibernian during the late 19th century and early 20th century. He was also a sprinter in his youthMackay, ...

, who also acted as treasurer, secretary and physiotherapist, was effectively the manager when the club won the 1902 Scottish Cup and the

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 19 – The first west–east transatlantic radio broadcast is made from the United States to England (the first east–west broadcast having been ...

league championship.

took charge of part of the league-winning 1947–48 season, but he collapsed and died after a Scottish Cup match in January 1948. Hugh Shaw inherited that team, and went on to win three league championships in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

won the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,2015–16, ending a 114-year drought in that competition.

Alex Miller Alex Miller (born 4 July 1949) is a Scottish football manager and former player. As a player, he had a 15-year career with Rangers, winning several trophies. As a manager, he won the 1991–92 Scottish League Cup with Hibernian. He subsequen ...

and John Collins all won one

each. Bobby Templeton,

Bertie Auld Robert Auld (23 March 1938 – 14 November 2021) was a Scottish football player and manager. He was a member of Celtic's Lisbon Lions, who won the 1967 European Cup Final. As a player, he made more than 200 appearances in the Scottish League f ...

and

all won second tier championships.

Honours

Major honours

Scottish league The Scottish Football League (SFL) was a league featuring professional and semi-professional association football, football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers F.C., Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, wh ...

, first tierFrom 1890 to 1975, the top division of the

Scottish football league system The Scottish football league system is a series of generally connected leagues for Scottish football clubs. The Scottish system is more complicated than many other national league systems, consisting of several completely separate systems or 'gra ...

was known as

Division One The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...

, or briefly as

Division A Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics * Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military * Division (military), a formation typically consistin ...

. From 1975 to 1998, the top division was the Premier Division and from 1998 to 2013, it was known as the

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

. Since 2013, the top tier has been known as the Premiership. **Winners (4):

1902–03 Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

, 1947–48, 1950–51, 1951–52 **Runners-up (6): 1896–97, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1952–53, 1973–74, 1974–75 *

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup, **Winners (3): 1886–87, 1901–02, 2015–16 **Runners-up (12): 1895–96, 1913–14, 1922–23, 1923–24, 1946–47, 1957–58, 1971–72, 1978–79, 2000–01, 2011–12,

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...

**Winners (3): 1972–73, 1991–92, 2006–07 **Runners-up (8): 1950–51, 1968–69, 1974–75, 1985–86, 1993–94, 2003–04, 2015–16, 2021–22

Other honours

, second tier:From 1893 to 1975, Division Two was the second tier of league football. With the introduction of the Premier Division in 1975, the second tier became known as the First Division. Since 2013, the second tier has been named the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

. 1893–94, 1894–95, 1932–33, 1980–81, 1998–99, 2016–17 *

: 1972, 1973 * Summer Cup: 1941, 1964 * Southern League Cup:The Southern League Cup was a regional competition held during the

. 1943–44 * East of Scotland Shield: 49 times *

Rosebery Charity Cup The Rosebery Charity Cup was a football competition organised for senior clubs from the East of Scotland. History The tournament was organised by and named for an early patron of Scottish football Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery and ...

: 22 times * Wilson Cup: 14 times *

Glasgow Merchants Charity Cup The Glasgow Merchants' Charity Cup was a knockout football tournament open to teams from in and around Glasgow and later on in the tournament's history, teams from outwith Glasgow. Invitations were made and sent out by the Glasgow Charity Cup ...

: 1902 *

Edinburgh Football League The Edinburgh Football League was formed in 1894 in Scotland as one of several supplementary football leagues that were created in order to increase the number of fixtures for Scottish Football League clubs. It changed its name to the East o ...

: 1901–02 * North-Eastern Cup: 1910–11 *Dunedin Cup: 1921, 1929

UEFA ranking

Records

Attendance

*Highest single game attendance: 65,860 vs Hearts, 2 January 1950 *Highest average home attendance: 31,567 in the 1951–52 season *Highest attendance for any match involving Hibs: 143,570 vs Rangers at

Hampden Park Hampden Park (Scottish Gaelic: ''Pàirc Hampden''), often referred to as Hampden, is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The -capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland. It is the no ...

, 27 March 1948

Single game

*Biggest victory: 22–1 vs Black Watch Highlanders, 3 September 1881 *Biggest competitive victory: 15–1 vs

Peebles Rovers Peebles Rovers Football Club is a Scottish football club based in Peebles, Scottish Borders. Originally founded in 1888 as Greenside Rovers, the club changed their name to Peebles Rovers in the May of 1890. This is at odds with the official ...

, 11 February 1961 *Biggest league victory: 11–1 vs Airdrie, 24 October 1959 and vs

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, 6 November 1965 *Biggest defeat: 0–10 vs Rangers, 24 December 1898

Caps and appearances

*Most competitive appearances:

, 636 *Most league appearances:

, 449 *Most capped player:

, 38 for

Goals

*Most competitive goals:

, 303 *Most league goals:

, 187 *Most competitive goals in a season:

, 46 in 1959–60 *Most league goals in a season:

, 42 in 1959–60

Transfers

*Record fee paid: Undisclosed fee for

Martin Boyle Martin Callie Boyle (born 25 April 1993) is a professional footballer who plays for Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership. Born in Scotland, he represents the Australia national team. He is a right sided winger who is also capable of playing ...

to Al Faisaly in 2022 *Record fee received: £4,400,000 for

from

in 2007

Notes

References

;Sources * * * *

External links

* * {{Authority control Football clubs in Scotland Association football clubs established in 1875 Football clubs in Edinburgh United Soccer Association imported teams Leith Scottish Premier League teams 1875 establishments in Scotland Scottish Football League teams Scottish Cup winners East of Scotland Football League teams Irish diaspora sports clubs in Scotland Scottish Professional Football League teams Scottish League Cup winners