Ross County Football Club 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 ...

club based in

Dingwall Dingwall ( sco, Dingwal, gd, Inbhir Pheofharain ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest cas ...

, Scotland. They play all of their home matches at Victoria Park in Dingwall. The club currently play 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 Scottis ...

, being promoted after winning the

Scottish Championship The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish Champio ...

in the 2018–19 season. Prior to the 1994–95 season they played in the

Highland Football League The Scottish Highland Football League (SHFL, commonly known as the Highland League) is a senior football league based in the north of Scotland. The league sits at level 5 on the Scottish football league system, acting as a feeder to the Scotti ...

, a competition they won three times. They have also won the

Scottish First Division The Scottish Football League First Division was the second tier in the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The First Division was introduced in 1975–76 to replace the old Scottish Football League Division Two, as ...

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

, Third Division (once each) and the

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...

on three occasions. In 2010, they reached the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,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 existe ...

. Nicknamed ''The Staggies'', County's colours are dark blue, red and white.

History

The club was formed in 1929 in what was then

Ross and Cromarty Ross and Cromarty ( gd, Ros agus Cromba), sometimes referred to as Ross-shire and Cromartyshire, is a variously defined area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There is a registration county and a lieutenancy area in current use, the lat ...

after the previous local club from the North of Scotland Junior League Dingwall Victoria United (the 'Dingwall Vics') successfully applied for

membership. The club was subsequently renamed Ross County. Playing in the Highland League from 1929, they won the championship on three occasions, first in 1967, then in 1991 and 1992. They also gained a reputation for their good performances in the early rounds of the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Forfar Athletic Forfar Athletic Football Club are a Scottish semi-professional football club from the town of Forfar, Angus. They are members of the Scottish Professional Football League and currently play in Scottish League Two. They play their home games ...

, and were elected to the Scottish Football League three days later. At the beginning of season 1994–95 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 sout ...

was restructured into four tiers, and, following a vote on 11 January 1994, County were allocated one of the two vacancies in the new 10-club

Division Three The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 and again from 1958 until 1992. When the FA Premier League was formed, the division become the fourth tier level. In 2004, following the fo ...

. County gathered 57 votes. They were joined by a new club created as a result of a merger of two teams to form

Inverness Caledonian Thistle Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club, commonly known as Caley Thistle, is a professional football club based in Inverness, Scotland. The team currently competes in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional Fo ...

, who amassed 68 votes. In 1998–99, Ross County were crowned Champions of the Third Division and thereby won promotion to the Second Division, where they finished in third place. This resulted in promotion to the First Division thanks to a reorganisation of the League, with the Premier League being expanded from ten clubs to twelve. After seven seasons in the First Division Ross County were relegated back to the Second Division in 2006–07. They won the Second Division in 2007–08, and were promoted back to the First Division. Ross County finished their first season back in the First Division in 8th place. Their manager for a very short spell until October 2005, was former

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histor ...

and Hearts manager John Robertson. He left the club on 24 October 2005, due to differences of opinion on a number of fundamental issues with the chairman. Gardner Spiers, a former

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), a ...

coach, was appointed

caretaker manager In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a care ...

, but he too left in April 2006 after being told he would not be considered for appointment on a permanent basis. Director of Football George Adams took temporary charge before former

Motherwell Motherwell ( sco, Mitherwall, gd, Tobar na Màthar) is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lana ...

player Scott Leitch was appointed on 18 April 2006. Ross County won their first ever nationwide trophy when they won the

Scottish Challenge Cup The Scottish Professional Football League Challenge Cup, Leitch, after winning the Challenge Cup but suffering relegation, stood down at the end of the 2006–07 season, almost exactly one year after his appointment. Former

Partick Thistle Partick Thistle Football Club are a professional football club from Glasgow, Scotland. Despite their name, the club are based at Firhill Stadium in the Maryhill area of the city, and have not played in Partick since 1908. The club have been m ...

manager Dick Campbell was announced as his replacement in May 2007. However, after a good run of results to start their Division 2 campaign, Campbell and the Ross County board decided to part company on 2 October 2007.

Derek Adams Derek Watt Adams (born 25 June 1975) is a Scottish football manager and former player who is currently manager of Morecambe. Adams played professionally for six clubs, including Aberdeen and Motherwell, where he made over 300 league appearances ...

(son of George Adams) took over as caretaker, and was confirmed as permanent manager a month later after the side's good form continued. County again reached the final of the

Scottish Challenge Cup The Scottish Professional Football League Challenge Cup,Airdrie United Airdrieonians Football Club is a Scottish professional football team in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, who are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League One. They were formed in 2002 as Airdrie United ...

McDiarmid Park McDiarmid Park is a stadium in Perth, Scotland, used mainly for association football. It has been the home ground of Scottish Premiership side St Johnstone since its opening in 1989. The stadium has an all-seated capacity of . As well as St Jo ...

. Unlike two years previously, County lost in a penalty shootout where four penalties were missed. Ross County also reached the

final in April 2011 in which they beat Queen of the South 2–0. RossCountyFC League Performance

In November 2010 Derek Adams left to become

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 ...

's assistant at Hibernian. Former

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 Foo ...

player Willie McStay was appointed as his replacement in November 2010. McStay's tenure was short – lasting only 9 games.

Jimmy Calderwood James Calderwood (born 28 February 1955) is a Scottish former football player and manager. Calderwood played for Birmingham City and Dutch clubs Sparta Rotterdam, Willem II Tilburg, Roda JC and Heracles Almelo. After retiring as a player, Calderw ...

was then appointed until the end of the 2010–11 season. In May 2011, it was announced that Derek Adams was to return as manager. On 23 March 2010, they defeated

Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football clubs in Scotland. The league was founded in 1998, when it broke away from the Scottish Football League (SFL). It was abolished in 2013, when t ...

club Hibernian 2–1 in a

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,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 Foo ...

on Saturday 10 April 2010. In one of the biggest upsets in cup history, Ross County won 2–0 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 ...

and reached the final of the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,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 popu ...

to watch the game. In the

2010 Scottish Cup Final The 2010 Scottish Cup Final was the 125th final of the Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition, the Scottish Cup. The match took place on 15 May 2010, at Hampden Park, Glasgow and was contested by first time finalists Ross Coun ...

on 15 May 2010, County lost 0–3 to

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 ...

. The match was watched by more than 17,000 Ross County fans. Ross County secured promotion to the Scottish Premier League for the first time on 10 April 2012 when their nearest rival to the title

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

failed to beat Queen of the South. During this push to promotion, Ross County embarked on a 40-game undefeated run in league football, which continued into the Scottish Premier League. The run was ended by St Johnstone on 22 September 2012. The Staggies parted company with George and

on 28 August 2014 following a poor start to the 2014–15 campaign. Jim McIntyre was appointed manager on 9 September 2014, with Billy Dodds as his assistant. On 13 March 2016, Ross County won their first ever major trophy when they beat Hibernian 2–1 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 con ...

of the

2015–16 Scottish League Cup The 2015–16 Scottish League Cup was the 70th season of Scotland's second-most prestigious football knockout competition. It is also known as The Scottish League Cup presented by Utilita for sponsorship reasons. Ross County defeated Hibernia ...

. The team's fortunes declined after this success, and they were relegated at the end of the 2017–18 season. The club secured an immediate return to the Scottish Premiership after a 4–0 win at home to Queen of the South on 26 April 2019 saw them lift the

2018–19 Scottish Championship The 2018–19 Scottish Championship (known as the Ladbrokes Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the 24th season in the current format of 10 teams in the second tier of Scottish football. The fixtures were published on 15 June 2018, with the ...

Kit history

Rivalry

Their main rivals are fellow Highlanders,

, with whom they contest the

Highland derby The Highland derby is a football rivalry that is based in the Scottish Highlands. It is contested between the only two full-time SPFL clubs in the Highland council area, Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Ross County. The city of Inverness and ...

. This, unlike many rivalries, is generally friendly as both sets of fans live and work together given their close geographic locations. Due to the geographical proximity of the clubs and despite the rivalry, Inverness CT have signed many former Ross County players over the years, including Barry Wilson,

Stuart Golabek Stuart Golabek (born 5 November 1974 in Inverness) is a Scottish retired professional footballer who last played for Highland League side Brora Rangers. Career Golabek began his career with Highland League side Clachnacuddin, before moving ...

Roy McBain Roy Adam McBain (born 7 November 1974 in Aberdeen) is a Scottish football player and coach who currently works at Turriff United in the Highland League as a player/assistant manager. Career McBain began his career with Dundee United, making ...

, Graham Bayne,

Richard Hastings Richard Cory Hastings (born 18 May 1977) is a former Canadian soccer player and current manager of Highland League side Inverurie Loco Works. He played for Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Ross County, Grazer AK, MVV Maastricht, Hamilton Aca ...

, Steven Hislop, John Rankin,

Andrew Barrowman Andrew Barrowman (born 27 November 1984) is a Scottish retired professional footballer, who played as a striker. A journeyman, Barrowman played for 15 different sides during his career, including Rangers, Ross County and Dunfermline Athlet ...

, Lionel Djebi-Zadi and Don Cowie. Many former Inverness CT players have also "crossed the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually someth ...

" in the opposite direction, most notably Grant Munro,

Michael Fraser Michael Fraser may refer to: * Michael Fraser (footballer) (born 1983), Scottish football goalkeeper * Michael Fraser (basketball) (born 1984), Canadian basketball player * Michael Fraser, Baron Fraser of Kilmorack (1915–1996), British Conservativ ...

, Ross Tokely and Coll Donaldson in recent years. Both Stuart Golabek and Andy Barrowman had two spells at County each, with the former also having two spells at ICT. A notable player is Iain Vigurs, who is one of (if not the first) few player(s) to cross the bridge more than twice, having spent two spells with both County and Caley Thistle.

Nickname

The club's nickname is the ''Staggies'', taken from their badge which is a Caberfeidh, or Stag's Head. This in turn was taken from the regimental badge of the

Seaforth Highlanders The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, mainly associated with large areas of the northern Highlands of Scotland. The regiment existed from 1881 to 1961, and saw service ...

, the regiment in which many locals had fought and died during the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Mascot

Ross County's mascot, due to their affiliation with the stag crest of the Seaforth Highlanders, is a stag named Rosco, a play on the club's name.

Club records

* First league goal scored: William D Herd 1994 v

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath (; sco, Coudenbeith) is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 189 ...

* Record all-time attendance: 8,000 approx v Rangers (

(

18 November 2017) * Record win: 11–0 v St Cuthbert Wanderers ( 1993–94 Scottish Cup first round) * Record defeat: 0–7 v

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. ...

( 1961–62 Scottish Cup third round) * Club record signing: £100,000 – Ross Draper from

, 9 August 2017 * Club record sale: Undisclosed – Liam Boyce to

Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home grou ...

, 20 June 2017

Honours

League

* First Division/

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 ...

(second tier) ** Winners (2): 2011–12, 2018–19 *

(third tier) ** Winners (1): 2007–08 * Third Division (fourth tier) ** Winners (1): 1998–99 *

** Winners (3): 1966–67,

1990–91 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...

, 1991–92 ** ''Runners-up (2)'': 1967–68, 1972–73 *

North Caledonian Football League The North Caledonian Football Association is a football association operating throughout the Highlands and Islands of Scotland and is a recognised body of the Scottish Football Association (SFA) and as such has its senior football competitions of ...

** Winners (2): 1965–66, 1996–97

Cup

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 existe ...

: ** Winners (1): 2015–16 *

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,2009–10 *

** Winners (3): 2006–07,

2010–11 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. ...

, 2018–19 ** ''Runners-up (2)'': 2004–05, 2008–09 * Qualifying Cup (North) ** Winners (1): 1993–94 ** ''Runners-up (5)'': 1933–34, 1965–66, 1969–70, 1972–73, 1973–74 *

North of Scotland Cup The North of Scotland Cup is a knock-out tournament for football teams in membership of the North of Scotland Football Association. The teams involved are based in the Highlands and Moray and membership consists of senior clubs from the Scotti ...

** Winners (6): 1929–30, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1991–92, 2006–07, 2018–19 *

Highland League Cup The Highland League Cup is a knock-out tournament contested since 1946 by football clubs in the Highland Football League. Brora Rangers are the current holders, while Keith Keith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Keith (given ...

**Winners (4): 1949–50, 1968–69, 1978–79, 1991–92

Youth

SPFL Development League The SPFL Development League was the top level of youth football in Scotland, which was contested in various formats between 1998 and 2018. History A youth league was founded as the Scottish Premier under-18 League in 1998. Clubs fielded under-1 ...

(Under-20) ** Winners (1): 2016–17

Players

Current squad

On loan

Managers

Club staff

Coaching staff

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control Football in Highland (council area) Former Highland Football League teams Ross and Cromarty Association football clubs established in 1929 1929 establishments in Scotland Scottish Premier League teams Scottish Football League teams Scottish Challenge Cup winners Scottish Professional Football League teams Scottish League Cup winners