Heart of Midlothian Football Club have confirmed that Tynecastle Park has been awarded UEFA’s highest stadium category.
Tynecastle (pictured ahead of kick-off against Celtic in the Specsavers Scottish Cup on Saturday by Nigel Duncan is now rated as a Category 4 stadium, a leap from the Category 2 status it previously held prior to this season.
It is the only football stadium outside of Glasgow, and one of five Scottish venues, alongside Hampden, Murrayfield, Ibrox and Celtic Park, to hold UEFA’s highest rank.
The status ensures that the Jambos’ home is fit to host European group stage football and allows it to be considered as a venue for other UEFA competitions in the future.
Andrew McKinlay, chief executive officer, said: “This is a fantastic feat for the club and it comes off the back of a tremendous amount of hard work undertaken by staff behind the scenes.
“While we all know how magnificent a stadium Tynecastle is, we were under no illusion of how big a task we faced to meet UEFA’s exacting standards in terms of hosting group stage European football.
“As soon as European football was secured towards the end of last season, club staff undertook a process of significant upgrades in and around the stadium and I cannot thank them enough for their efforts.”
He added: “The financial investment made in upgrading various facilities will pay dividends in the future and it opens Tynecastle’s potential for hosting matches across UEFA’s competitions.
“Above all else, this news means that Tynecastle will continue to play host to famous European nights under the floodlights and we hope that our fans will get to experience more of them in the near future as the first team continues its push for domestic success.”
Experienced news, business, arts, sport and travel journalist. Food critic and managing editor of a well-established food and travel website. Also a magazine editor of publications with circulations of up to 200,000 and managing director of a long-established PR/marketing company with a string of blue-chip clients in its CV. Former communications lecturer at a Scottish university and social media specialist for a string of successful and busy SMEs.
