Scotland national under-21 football team

Scotland under-21
AssociationScottish Football Association
Head coachScot Gemmill[1]
Most capsChristian Dailly (35)[2]
Top scorerFraser Hornby (10)[3]
First colours
Second colours
First international
 Czechoslovakia 0–0 Scotland 
(Plzeň, Czechoslovakia; 12 October 1976)
Biggest win
 Scotland 12–0 Gibraltar 
(Dundee, Scotland; 10 October 2025)[4]
Biggest defeat
 England 6–0 Scotland 
(13 August 2013)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances6 (first in 1980)
Best resultSemi-finalists (1982, 1992, 1996)

The Scotland national under-21 football team, controlled by the Scottish Football Association, is Scotland's national under 21 football team and is considered to be a feeder team for the Scotland national football team.

As a European under-21 team, Scotland compete in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which is usually held every other year. The team has qualified for the final stages of these Championships on six occasions, although not since 1996. There is no global tournament for under-21 national teams. Performance in the European Championship determines qualification for football at the Summer Olympics, which Scotland is unable to compete in.

History

Scotland played under-23 international matches, mainly friendlies against England and Wales, from 1955 until 1975.[5] Scotland first entered the UEFA competition for under-23 national teams in 1975–76. Scotland reached the quarter-finals, but were eliminated on a penalty shootout by the Netherlands. An under-21 team then came into existence, replacing the under-23 team, when UEFA reduced the age limit.[6]

Scotland under-21s have reached the last four of the European tournament three times (1982, 1992 and 1996), while appearing in the quarter-finals on three other occasions (1980, 1984 and 1988). The team qualified for the 1992 Summer Olympics and 1996 Summer Olympics, but were unable to compete due to Scotland not being independently represented in the International Olympic Committee.[7] The under-21 team has not qualified for a finals tournament since the late 1990s. They reached the playoff round for the 2004 and 2011 tournaments, but lost to Croatia[8] and Iceland[9] respectively.

In 2018, an under-21 squad returned to the Toulon Tournament.[10] Despite the loss to Turkey in a penalty-out for third-place.[11] Scotland did receive the tournament Fair Play Award.[12]

Competitive record

  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place   Tournament held on home soil  

UEFA European U-21 Championship Record

UEFA European Under-21 Championship record Qualification record
Year Round Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1976[a] Quarter-finals 2 1 0 1 2 2 4 4 0 0 11 2
1978 Did not qualify 4 2 1 1 5 4
1980 Quarter-finals 2 0 1 1 1 2 5 3 2 0 13 5
1982 Semi-finals 4 1 2 1 2 2 4 2 1 1 7 4
1984 Quarter-finals 2 1 0 1 3 4 6 4 2 0 11 6
1986 Did not qualify 4 1 1 2 1 4
1988 Quarter-finals 2 0 0 2 0 2 4 3 1 0 7 2
1990 Did not qualify 6 1 1 4 7 13
1992 Semi-finals 4 1 2 1 5 5 6 5 0 1 13 5
1994 Did not qualify 8 2 2 4 8 11
1996 Fourth place 4 1 0 3 5 6 8 7 0 1 16 4
1998 Did not qualify 10 2 1 7 10 20
2000 10 4 2 4 18 12
2002 6 2 2 2 6 6
2004 8 5 1 2 11 8
2006 10 1 3 6 6 17
2007 2 0 0 2 1 4
2009 8 5 1 2 17 6
2011 10 5 2 3 18 11
2013 8 3 4 1 16 9
2015 8 3 2 3 12 15
2017 10 2 2 6 8 17
2019 10 4 2 4 13 13
2021 10 5 3 2 16 5
2023 8 1 4 3 6 10
2025 10 5 1 4 19 11
2027 In Progress 6 3 1 2 18 7
Total Semi-finals 20 5 5 15 18 23 193 84 42 67 294 231

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided by a penalty shootout.

Other tournaments

Year Competition Result GP W D* L GS GA Ref
1977 Toulon Tournament 6th place 4 1 1 2 6 7 [13]
1991 Toulon Tournament Group Stage 3 2 1 0 5 3 [14]
1992 Toulon Tournament Group Stage 3 0 0 3 0 7 [15]
1993 Toulon Tournament Semi-finals 4 2 0 2 3 2 [16]
1994 Toulon Tournament Group Stage 3 1 1 1 3 3 [17]
1995 Toulon Tournament Semi-finals 4 2 0 2 4 7 [18]
1997 Toulon Tournament Group Stage 4 0 3 1 2 4 [19]
1999 Three Nations Tournament 1st place 2 1 1 0 2 1 [20]
2000 Three Nations Tournament 1st place 2 1 1 0 2 1 [21][22]
2018 Toulon Tournament 4th place 5 2 2 1 5 5 [23]

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided by a penalty shootout.

Head coaches

Archie Knox left his post as Scotland's National Youth Teams Coach on 30 August 2007 to take up a full-time with Bolton Wanderers as coaching co-ordinator, Maurice Malpas took temporary charge. In January 2008 the SFA appointed a new full-time coach in Billy Stark, who left his job as manager of Second Division side Queen's Park to take the position.[24] Stark resigned from the position in November 2014.[25]

Tenure Head coach/Manager
1975–1982 Andy Roxburgh
1982–1986 Walter Smith
1986–1993 Craig Brown
1993–1998 Tommy Craig[26]
1998–2002 Alex Smith[26][27]
2002–2005 Rainer Bonhof[27][28]
2005–2006 Maurice Malpas (caretaker)[29]
2006–2007 Archie Knox[30]
2007–2008 Maurice Malpas (caretaker)[31]
2008–2014 Billy Stark[24][25]
2014–2015 Ricky Sbragia (caretaker)[25]
2015 Danny Lennon (caretaker)[32]
2015–2016 Ricky Sbragia[33]
2016–present Scot Gemmill[1]

Players

Leading appearances

As of match played 18 November 2025[34]
Rank Name Years Clubs Appearances Goals GPG Ratio.
1 Christian Dailly 1990–1996 Dundee United 35 5 0.14
2 Steven Pressley 1993–1996 Rangers, Coventry City, Dundee United 27 1 0.04
3 Allan Campbell 2017–2020 Motherwell 24 1 0.04
4 Paul Hanlon 2009–2012 Hibernian 23 3 0.13
5 Craig Easton 1997–2001 Dundee United 22 2 0.09
5 Gary Naysmith 1996–1999 Heart of Midlothian 22 0 0
5 Glenn Middleton 2018–2022 Rangers 22 5 0.23
8 Shaun Maloney 2001–2005 Celtic 21 5 0.24
9 Stuart Armstrong 2010–2014 Dundee United 20 4 0.2
9 Jamie McCunnie 2001–2005 Dundee United, Ross County, Dunfermline Athletic 20 1 0.05
9 Jordan McGhee 2013–2017 Heart of Midlothian 20 0 0
9 Ross McCrorie 2016–2020 Rangers, Portsmouth, Aberdeen 20 1 0.05
9 Jeremiah Chilokoa-Mullen 2023–Present Leeds United, Inverness CT, Dunfermline Athletic 20 3 0.15

Note: Club(s) represents the clubs the player was with while he played for the Scotland under-21 team. Those players in bold are eligible to play for the team now.

Leading goalscorers

As of match played 18 November 2025[34]
Rank Name Years Clubs Appearances Goals GPG Ratio.
1 Fraser Hornby 2018–2020 Everton, Kortrijk, Reims 18 10 0.56
2 Jordan Rhodes 2011–2012 Huddersfield Town 8 8 1
2 Scott Booth 1990–1993 Aberdeen 15 8 0.53
4 Chris Maguire 2008–2010 Aberdeen 12 6 0.5
4 Jamie Murphy 2008–2010 Motherwell 13 6 0.46
4 Jim Hamilton 1995–1997 Dundee, Heart of Midlothian 14 6 0.43
4 Mark Burchill 1998–2001 Celtic 15 6 0.4
8 Steven Fletcher 2006–2008 Hibernian 7 5 0.71
8 Tony Watt 2012–2013 Celtic 9 5 0.56
8 Gerry Creaney 1990–1992 Celtic 12 5 0.42
8 Steven Thompson 1997–1999 Dundee United 12 5 0.42
8 Simon Lynch 2002–2003 Celtic 13 5 0.38
8 Steven Naismith 2005–2008 Kilmarnock, Rangers 16 5 0.31
8 Shaun Maloney 2001–2005 Celtic 21 5 0.24
8 Christian Dailly 1990–1996 Dundee United 35 5 0.14
8 Glenn Middleton 2018–2022 Rangers 22 5 0.23

Note: Club(s) represents the clubs the player was with while he played for the Scotland under-21 team. Those players in bold are eligible to play for the team now.

Eligibility

The team is for players born in the year 21 years before the starting year of each tournament. As each tournament normally takes two years to complete, players can continue to play for the under-21 team after their 22nd birthday. As long as they are eligible, players can play at any level, making it possible to play for the under-21s, senior side and then return to the under-21 side. It is now also possible to play for one country at youth level and another country at senior level (providing the player is eligible).[6] For instance, Nigel Quashie played for England under-21s and Scotland.[6] Until the late 1980s, teams were allowed to select some over-age players in the under-21 team,[35][36][37] similar to the present arrangement in football at the Summer Olympics.[38]

Current squad

The following players were selected for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification matches against Gibraltar and Bulgaria on 15 and 18 November 2025; respectively.[39]

Caps and goals updated as of 18 November 2025, after the match against Bulgaria.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Ruairidh Adams (2004-07-10) 10 July 2004 2 0 East Fife
12 1GK Liam McFarlane (2004-09-26) 26 September 2004 0 0 Alloa Athletic
20 1GK Woody Williamson (2006-07-07) 7 July 2006 0 0 Ipswich Town
1GK Rory Mahady (2006-08-16) 16 August 2006 1 0 Leeds United
2 2DF Ben McPherson (2004-03-19) 19 March 2004 9 0 Partick Thistle
4 2DF Colby Donovan (2006-09-07) 7 September 2006 1 0 Celtic
5 2DF Luke Graham (2004-02-11) 11 February 2004 1 0 Dundee
18 2DF Sam Cleall-Harding (2006-03-26) 26 March 2006 7 1 Airdrieonians
20 2DF Jeremiah Chilokoa-Mullen (2004-06-17) 17 June 2004 20 3 Dunfermline Athletic
22 2DF Connor Allan (2004-01-10) 10 January 2004 2 0 Falkirk
2DF Matthew Anderson (2004-01-25) 25 January 2004 12 0 Kortrijk
3 3MF Dylan Lobban (2005-08-26) 26 August 2005 2 0 Aberdeen
6 3MF Kyle Ure (2006-01-14) 14 January 2006 2 0 Ayr United
13 3MF Ryan Carr (2004-09-23) 23 September 2004 1 0 Ipswich Town
14 3MF David Watson (2005-02-12) 12 February 2005 12 1 Kilmarnock
15 3MF Taylor Steven (2004-09-17) 17 September 2004 3 1 Arbroath
16 3MF Kristi Montgomery (2004-05-31) 31 May 2004 1 0 Blackburn Rovers
19 3MF Ethan Sutherland (2006-04-25) 25 April 2006 0 0 Wolverhampton Wanderers
23 3MF Andy Tod (2006-02-26) 26 February 2006 2 0 Dunfermline Athletic
3MF Daniel Kelly (2005-10-03) 3 October 2005 7 0 Millwall
7 4FW Adedire Mebude (2004-05-28) 28 May 2004 18 4 Westerlo
8 4FW Barney Stewart (2004-04-07) 7 April 2004 2 0 Dunfermline Athletic
9 4FW James Wilson (2007-03-06) 6 March 2007 5 4 Heart of Midlothian
10 4FW Ryan Oné (2006-06-26) 26 June 2006 9 1 Sheffield United
11 4FW Emilio Lawrence (2005-09-20) 20 September 2005 5 4 Manchester City
17 4FW Rory Wilson (2006-01-05) 5 January 2006 4 0 Aston Villa

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Scotland under-21 squad within the last twelve months and remain eligible (current clubs shown).

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Callan McKenna (2006-12-22) 22 December 2006 0 0 Bournemouth v.  Portugal, 9 September 2025
GK Murray Johnson (2004-11-13) 13 November 2004 2 0 Hibernian v.  Republic of Ireland, March 2025WTH
DF Lenny Agbaire (2005-03-04) 4 March 2005 0 0 Rotherham United v.  Azerbaijan, 14 October 2025
DF Dylan Smith (2006-06-21) 21 June 2006 2 0 Ross County v.  Portugal, 9 September 2025
DF Adam Forrester (2005-03-31) 31 March 2005 2 0 Heart of Midlothian v.  Iceland, March 2025
DF Charlie McArthur (2005-05-12) 12 May 2005 2 0 Newcastle United v.  Iceland, March 2025
DF Ewan Wilson (2004-11-19) 19 November 2004 5 0 Motherwell v.  Iceland, March 2025
DF Josh Dede (2006-01-04) 4 January 2006 0 0 Middlesbrough v.  Republic of Ireland, March 2025WTH
MF Macaulay Tait (2005-08-27) 27 August 2005 0 0 Livingston v.  Azerbaijan, 14 October 2025
MF Rudi Molotnikov (2006-05-23) 23 May 2006 1 0 Hibernian v.  Azerbaijan, 14 October 2025
MF Findlay Curtis (2006-10-01) 1 October 2006 0 0 Rangers v.  Azerbaijan, 14 October 2025
MF Aidan Borland (2007-04-25) 25 April 2007 0 0 Aston Villa v.  Portugal, 9 September 2025
MF Cameron Gardner (2005-09-22) 22 September 2005 0 0 Grimsby Town v.  Portugal, 9 September 2025
MF Ts’oanelo Lets’osa (2004-06-06) 6 June 2004 0 0 Partick Thistle v.  Portugal, 9 September 2025
MF Cam Bragg (2005-04-10) 10 April 2005 2 0 Southampton v.  Iceland, March 2025
MF Finlay Pollock (2004-06-27) 27 June 2004 1 0 Heart of Midlothian v.  Iceland, March 2025
MF Jude Bonnar (2005-11-17) 17 November 2005 2 1 Ayr United v.  Iceland, March 2025
MF Bailey Rice (2006-10-04) 4 October 2006 2 0 Rangers v.  Iceland, March 2025
FW Miller Thomson (2004-07-20) 20 July 2004 5 1 Ross County v.  Azerbaijan, 14 October 2025
FW Robbie Ure (2004-02-24) 24 February 2004 0 0 IK Sirius v.  Portugal, 9 September 2025
FW Bobby Wales (2005-06-23) 23 June 2005 3 1 Swansea City v.  Iceland, March 2025
  • INJ Player withdrew from the squad for that game due to injury
  • SNR Player withdrew from the squad for that game after being promoted to the senior squad
  • WTH Player withdrew from the squad for that game for an unspecified reason

Past squads

Notes

  1. ^ Under-23 competition.

References

  1. ^ a b "Scotland U21: Coach Ricky Sbragia makes way for Scot Gemmill". BBC Sport. BBC. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  2. ^ "Alltime Club Records". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  3. ^ "San Marino U21s 0-7 Scotland U21s: Hornby sets scoring record in Euro qualifying thrashing". BBC Sport. BBC. 13 October 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  4. ^ "Scotland U21s score five in seven minutes to thrash Gibraltar 12-0". BBC Sport. BBC. 9 October 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  5. ^ "Results List". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  6. ^ a b c Abrahall, Csaba (January 2007). "Age of ascent". When Saturday Comes. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  7. ^ Gibbons, Glenn (5 February 2009). "Craig Brown battles to preserve Scottish football rights by opposing Team GB". The Scotsman. Retrieved 31 July 2010.
  8. ^ "Bonhof hails defeated Scots". BBC Sport. 18 November 2003. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  9. ^ "Coach Billy Stark proud of Scotland U21s development". BBC Sport. 17 November 2010. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  10. ^ "Scotland Under-21 squad announced for Toulon tournament". Scottish FA. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2022.
  11. ^ "Scotland finish fourth at the Toulon tournament after shoot-out defeat to Turkey". Scottish Football Association. 10 June 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  12. ^ "Individual and team awards seal successful Toulon trip". Scottish FA. 10 June 2018. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 1977". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  14. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 1991". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  15. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 1992". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  16. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 1993". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  17. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 1994". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  18. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 1995". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  19. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 1997". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  20. ^ "STRONG FEELINGS". Aberdeen Evening Express. 5 June 1999. Retrieved 1 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  21. ^ "U-21 Three Nations Tournament (Northern Ireland) 2000". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  22. ^ "Goalscorer Notman will demand transfer to find greater glory". Herald Scotland. 30 May 2000. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
    "All eyes are on Miller who proves different class against the Welsh". Herald Scotland. 1 June 2000. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  23. ^ "Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon 2018". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  24. ^ a b "Billy Stark". www.scottishfa.co.uk. Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  25. ^ a b c "Scotland: Billy Stark 'steps down' as under-21 coach". BBC Sport. 4 November 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  26. ^ a b "Football: Smith protects his youngsters". The Independent. 14 October 1998. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  27. ^ a b "Bonhof for Scotland job". BBC Sport. 10 July 2002. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  28. ^ "Bonhof chose to leave Scots U-21s". BBC Sport. 26 November 2005. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  29. ^ "Malpas is the new Motherwell boss". BBC Sport. 17 May 2006. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  30. ^ "Knox lands Scotland under-21 role". BBC Sport. 3 July 2006. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  31. ^ "Malpas considering career change". BBC Sport. 3 January 2008. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  32. ^ "Danny Lennon in temporary charge of Scotland under-21s". BBC Sport. 18 February 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  33. ^ "Ricky Sbragia is new Scotland Under-21 head coach". BBC Sport. 12 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  34. ^ a b "Alltime Player Records". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  35. ^ Paul, Ian (20 January 1984). "Scotland to warm up against France". The Herald. Herald & Times Group. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  36. ^ Reynolds, Jim (6 February 1980). "Archibald is only over-age player in Stein's squad". The Herald. Herald & Times Group. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  37. ^ Traynor, Jim (7 March 1989). "Young ones take on French mantle". The Herald. Herald & Times Group. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  38. ^ "UEFA defends decision to keep over-age stars out of Olympics". The Argus Press. 3 February 1996. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  39. ^ "Scotland Men's Under-21 squad named for Gibraltar and Bulgaria". Scottish FA. 4 November 2025. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
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