# 1897–98 in Scottish football

The season of 1897–98 in Scottish football was the 25th season of competitive football in Scotland and the eighth season of the Scottish Football League.

## League competitions
### Scottish Division One

Celtic are champions of the Scottish Division One.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Celtic (C) | 18 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 56 | 13 | +43 | 33 |
| 2 | Rangers | 18 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 71 | 15 | +56 | 29 |
| 3 | Hibernian | 18 | 10 | 2 | 6 | 47 | 29 | +18 | 22 |
| 4 | Heart of Midlothian | 18 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 54 | 33 | +21 | 20 |
| 5 | St Mirren | 18 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 30 | 36 | −6 | 18 |
| 5 | Third Lanark | 18 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 37 | 38 | −1 | 18 |
| 7 | Dundee | 18 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 29 | 36 | −7 | 13 |
| 8 | Partick Thistle | 18 | 6 | 1 | 11 | 34 | 64 | −30 | 13 |
| 9 | St Bernard's | 18 | 4 | 1 | 13 | 35 | 67 | −32 | 9 |
| 10 | Clyde | 18 | 1 | 3 | 14 | 21 | 83 | −62 | 5 |
* 1 2 Dundee and Partick Thistle finished level on points but Dundee won a play-off match to determine ranking positions.

### Scottish Division Two

Kilmarnock won the Scottish Division Two but were not promoted.
| Pos | Team v t e | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Kilmarnock (C) | 18 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 64 | 29 | +35 | 29 | |
| 2 | Port Glasgow Athletic | 18 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 66 | 36 | +30 | 25 | |
| 3 | Morton | 18 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 47 | 38 | +9 | 22 | |
| 4 | Leith Athletic | 18 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 40 | 39 | +1 | 20 | |
| 5 | Abercorn | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 33 | 41 | −8 | 16 | |
| 5 | Ayr | 18 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 36 | 43 | −7 | 16 | |
| 5 | Linthouse | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 38 | 39 | −1 | 16 | |
| 8 | Airdrieonians | 18 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 45 | 56 | −11 | 14 | |
| 9 | Hamilton Academical | 14 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 26 | 32 | −6 | 12 | |
| 10 | Motherwell | 18 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 31 | 56 | −25 | 10 | |
| - | Renton (R) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 19 | −17 | 0 | Resigned |
* ↑ Hamilton Academical took Renton's place in the league and fulfilled the club's remaining fixtures.
* ↑ Renton resigned after playing four games.

## Other honours
### Cup honours
#### National

| Competition | Winner | Score | Runner-up |
| Scottish Cup | Rangers | 2 – 0 | Kilmarnock |
| Scottish Qualifying Cup | Port Glasgow Athletic | 4 – 1 | East Stirlingshire |
| Scottish Junior Cup | Dalziel Rovers | 2 – 1 | Parkhead |

#### County

| Competition | Winner | Score | Runner-up |
| Aberdeenshire Cup | Aberdeen | 3 – 2 | Orion |
| Ayrshire Cup | Kilmarnock | 9 – 3 | Galston |
| Border Cup | Peebles Rovers | 4 – 3 | Kelso |
| Dumbartonshire Cup | Dumbarton | 3 – 2 | Vale of Leven |
| East of Scotland Shield | Hearts | 2 – 0 | Leith Athletic |
| Fife Cup | Raith Rovers | 3 – 1 | Alloa Athletic |
| Forfarshire Cup | Dundee Wanderers | 7 – 5 | Arbroath |
| Glasgow Cup | Rangers | 4 – 0 | Queen's Park |
| Lanarkshire Cup | Airdrie | 3 – 2 | Motherwell |
| Linlithgowshire Cup | Bo'ness | 3 – 0 | Armadale Volunteers |
| North of Scotland Cup | Clachnacuddin | 12 – 1 | Inverness Citadel |
| Perthshire Cup | Fair City Athletic | 3 – 2 | Rob Roy |
| Renfrewshire Cup | St Mirren | 2 – 0 | Port Glasgow Athletic |
| Southern Counties Cup | Dumfries | 2 – 1 | Dumfries Hibs |
| Stirlingshire Cup | Camelon | 6 – 5 | Falkirk |

### Non-league honours

Highland League
Top three :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Clachnacuddin | 16 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 74 | 8 | +66 | 31 |
| 2 | Inverness Caledonian | 16 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 49 | 20 | +29 | 27 |
| 3 | Elgin City | 13 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 44 | 30 | +14 | 18 |
Other Senior Leagues
| Division | Winner |
| Border League | Selkirk |
| Central League | unfinished |
| Central Combination | East Stirlingshire |
| Northern League | Victoria United |
| Perthshire League | Scone |
| Scottish Combination | Rangers 'A' |
| Southern Counties League | unfinished |

## Scotland national team

| Date | Venue | Opponents | Score | Competition | Scotland scorer(s) |
| 19 March | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | Wales | 5–2 | BHC | James Gillespie (3), James McKee (2) |
| 26 March | Solitude Ground, Belfast (A) | Ireland | 3–0 | BHC | Thomas Robertson, Robert Smyth McColl, William Stewart |
| 2 April | Celtic Park, Glasgow (H) | England | 1–3 | BHC | James Millar |
Key:
* (A) = Away match
* (H) = Home match
* BHC = British Home Championship
| Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| England (C) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 6 |
| Scotland | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 4 |
| Ireland | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 2 |
| Wales | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 9 | −7 | 0 |

## Other national teams
### Scottish League XI

| Date | Venue | Opponents | Score | Scotland scorer(s) |
| 29 January | Carolina Port, Dundee (H) | Irish League XI | 5–0 | Hugh Morgan, Bernard Breslin, Robert Hamilton (2), James Gillespie |
| 9 April | Villa Park, Birmingham (A) | Football League XI | 2–1 | Robert Hamilton (2) |