# 1938–39 in Scottish football

The 1938–39 season was the 66th season of competitive football in Scotland and the 49th season of the Scottish Football League. Due to the World War II the league was not officially competed for again until the 1946–47 season.

## Scottish League Division One

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Rangers | 38 | 25 | 9 | 4 | 112 | 55 | +57 | 59 |
| 2 | Celtic | 38 | 20 | 8 | 10 | 99 | 53 | +46 | 48 |
| 3 | Aberdeen | 38 | 20 | 6 | 12 | 91 | 61 | +30 | 46 |
| 4 | Heart of Midlothian | 38 | 20 | 5 | 13 | 98 | 70 | +28 | 45 |
| 5 | Falkirk | 38 | 19 | 7 | 12 | 73 | 63 | +10 | 45 |
| 6 | Queen of the South | 38 | 17 | 9 | 12 | 70 | 64 | +6 | 43 |
| 7 | Hamilton Academical | 38 | 18 | 5 | 15 | 67 | 71 | −4 | 41 |
| 8 | St Johnstone | 38 | 17 | 6 | 15 | 85 | 83 | +2 | 40 |
| 9 | Clyde | 38 | 17 | 5 | 16 | 78 | 70 | +8 | 39 |
| 10 | Kilmarnock | 38 | 15 | 9 | 14 | 73 | 86 | −13 | 39 |
| 11 | Partick Thistle | 38 | 17 | 4 | 17 | 74 | 87 | −13 | 38 |
| 12 | Motherwell | 38 | 16 | 5 | 17 | 82 | 86 | −4 | 37 |
| 13 | Hibernian | 38 | 14 | 7 | 17 | 68 | 69 | −1 | 35 |
| 14 | Ayr United | 38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 76 | 83 | −7 | 35 |
| 15 | Third Lanark | 38 | 12 | 8 | 18 | 80 | 96 | −16 | 32 |
| 16 | Albion Rovers | 38 | 12 | 6 | 20 | 65 | 90 | −25 | 30 |
| 17 | Arbroath | 38 | 11 | 8 | 19 | 54 | 75 | −21 | 30 |
| 18 | St Mirren | 38 | 11 | 7 | 20 | 57 | 80 | −23 | 29 |
| 19 | Queen's Park | 38 | 11 | 5 | 22 | 57 | 83 | −26 | 27 |
| 20 | Raith Rovers | 38 | 10 | 2 | 26 | 65 | 99 | −34 | 22 |
* 1 2 3 4 Team remained in Division One for the abandoned 1939–40 season, but was not included in Division A when the official competitions resumed in 1946–47.
* ↑ Team was relegated to Division Two for the abandoned 1939–40 season, but were included in Division A when the official competitions resumed in 1946–47.
* ↑ Team relegated to Division Two in 1939–40 and was also in Division B in 1946–47.
Champions: Rangers

## Scottish League Division Two

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Cowdenbeath | 34 | 28 | 4 | 2 | 120 | 45 | +75 | 60 |
| 2 | Alloa Athletic | 34 | 22 | 4 | 8 | 91 | 46 | +45 | 48 |
| 3 | East Fife | 34 | 21 | 6 | 7 | 99 | 61 | +38 | 48 |
| 4 | Airdrieonians | 34 | 21 | 5 | 8 | 85 | 57 | +28 | 47 |
| 5 | Dunfermline Athletic | 34 | 18 | 5 | 11 | 99 | 78 | +21 | 41 |
| 6 | Dundee | 34 | 15 | 7 | 12 | 99 | 63 | +36 | 37 |
| 7 | St Bernard's | 38 | 15 | 6 | 17 | 39 | 39 | 0 | 36 |
| 8 | Stenhousemuir | 34 | 15 | 5 | 14 | 74 | 69 | +5 | 35 |
| 9 | Dundee United | 34 | 15 | 3 | 16 | 78 | 69 | +9 | 33 |
| 10 | Brechin City | 34 | 11 | 9 | 14 | 82 | 106 | −24 | 31 |
| 11 | Dumbarton | 34 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 68 | 76 | −8 | 30 |
| 12 | Morton | 34 | 11 | 6 | 17 | 74 | 88 | −14 | 28 |
| 13 | King's Park | 34 | 12 | 2 | 20 | 87 | 92 | −5 | 26 |
| 14 | Montrose | 34 | 10 | 5 | 19 | 82 | 96 | −14 | 25 |
| 15 | Forfar Athletic | 34 | 11 | 3 | 20 | 74 | 138 | −64 | 25 |
| 16 | Leith Athletic | 34 | 10 | 4 | 20 | 57 | 83 | −26 | 24 |
| 17 | East Stirlingshire | 34 | 9 | 4 | 21 | 89 | 130 | −41 | 22 |
| 18 | Edinburgh City | 34 | 6 | 4 | 24 | 58 | 119 | −61 | 16 |
* 1 2 Team was promoted to Division One for the abandoned 1939–40 season, but was not included in Division A when the official competitions resumed in 1946–47.
* 1 2 Team did not return to the league when official competitions resumed in 1946–47.
* 1 2 3 4 5 6 Team was included in Division C in 1946–47.
* ↑ Team was included in Division A in 1946–47.

## Scottish Cup

Clyde were winners of the Scottish Cup after a 4–0 win over Motherwell.

## Other Honours
### National

| Competition | Winner | Score | Runner-up |
| Scottish Qualifying Cup - North | Clachnacuddin | 5 – 3 | Babcock & Wilcox |
| Scottish Qualifying Cup - South | Penicuik Athletic | 5 – 3 | St Cuthbert Wanderers |

### County

| Competition | Winner | Score | Runner-up |
| Aberdeenshire Cup | Buckie Thistle | 7 – 6 * | Peterhead |
| Ayrshire Cup | Ayr United | 5 – 3 * | Kilmarnock |
| East of Scotland Shield | Hibernian | 3 – 1 | Hearts |
| Fife Cup | Dunfermline Athletic | 1 – 1 | Raith Rovers |
| Forfarshire Cup | Arbroath | 2 – 0 | Dundee United |
| Glasgow Cup | Celtic | 3 – 0 | Clyde |
| Lanarkshire Cup | Hamilton | 5 – 1 | Airdrie |
| Perthshire Cup | Blairgowrie | 10 – 6 * | Breadalbane |
| Renfrewshire Cup | Morton | 2 – 1 | St Mirren |
| Southern Counties Cup | Stranraer | 8 – 5 | Solway Star |
* * - aggregate over two legs

### Highland League

Top Three :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Clachnacuddin | 26 | 18 | 3 | 5 | 88 | 46 | +42 | 39 |
| 2 | Buckie Thistle | 26 | 17 | 2 | 7 | 82 | 47 | +35 | 36 |
| 3 | Elgin City | 26 | 14 | 3 | 9 | 75 | 57 | +18 | 31 |

## Junior Cup

Rutherglen Glencairn were winners of the Junior Cup after a 1–0 win over Shawfield in the final.

## Scotland national team

| Date | Venue | Opponents | Score | Competition | Scotland scorer(s) |
| 8 October 1938 | Windsor Park, Belfast (A) | Northern Ireland | 2–0 | BHC | Jimmy Delaney, Tommy Walker |
| 9 November 1938 | Tynecastle Park, Edinburgh (H) | Wales | 3–2 | BHC | Tommy Walker (2), Torrance Gillick |
| 7 December 1938 | Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow (H) | Hungary | 3–1 | Friendly | Tommy Walker (pen.), Andy Black, Torrance Gillick |
| 15 April 1939 | Hampden Park, Glasgow (H) | England | 1–2 | BHC | James Dougall |
Scotland were joint winners of the 1939 British Home Championship with England and Wales
Key:
* (H) = Home match
* (A) = Away match
* BHC = British Home Championship