Celtic’s American Adventure continues, 1970-2004

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The Celtic Star

·17 July 2024

Celtic’s American Adventure continues, 1970-2004

Ahead of Celtic’s latest US visit, read the history of the club’s previous American tours. You can read about visits 1-5 to HERE.

READ THIS…Celtic in action in The United States, Canada, Bermuda and Mexico

Today, learn more about visits 6-10 for the Celts.

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6 – CELTIC IN THE USA – 1970

Just days after the 1970 European Cup Final, Celtic went to the USA, Canada and Bermuda. Playing seven games, Celtic won four, drew two and lost one.

Most matches were played against European sides: Manchester Utd, Bari and Eintracht Frankfurt.

The second Bari game – part of the Toronto Cup – was abandoned in farcical circumstances. Bari had three men sent off and then the rest walked off the pitch when Celtic won an 87th minute penalty.

7 – CELTIC IN THE USA – 1981

Celtic went to the USA to play in the NASL Transatlantic Cup. Playing in New York and Seattle, the Bhoys lost their first two games but beat Southampton 2-1.

A Celtic team far from being match fit lost to New York Cosmos and Seattle Sounders, although they did beat Southampton who were also touring the US.

8 – CELTIC IN THE USA – 2001

20 years later, Celtic were again back in the USA. The Bhoys played twice in Florida, winning both of the matches.

The Bhoys were based in Tampa, and played a closed-doors game against University of South Florida Bulls before drawing 2-2 with Tampa Bay Mutiny.

This mid-season break must have helped Celtic. They returned home to win a first Treble since 1969.

9 – CELTIC IN THE USA – 2003

Two years later, Celtic took part in a two-game US tour. Playing in Seattle and Cleveland, Celtic lost one and won one.

These games were held as part of The Champions World tournament. Playing in Seattle – at the Seattle Seahawks Stadium – Celtic went down to 4-0 to Manchester United.

However the second game was much better. In another American Football stadium – the Brown’s Stadium, home to the Cleveland Browns – Celtic beat Boca Juniors 2-0.

10 – CELTIC IN THE USA – 2004

Celtic returned to the USA in 2004, playing four games as part of another Champions

Arjen Robben of Chelsea is pursued by Stilian Petrov of Celtic during the Champion’s World Series match between Celtic and Chelsea at Qwest Field on July 24, 2004 in Seattle. (Photo by Ben Radford/Getty Images)

World tournament. Despite being in America, all of the Bhoys’ matches took place against European teams.

This was less than successful for Celtic. They were defeated 4-2 by Chelsea, 5-1 by Liverpool and 1-0 by Roma. However Philadelphia proved to be the happiest ground as Celtic beat Man United 2-1.

Tomorrow, read more about other times Celtic have visited the US on The Celtic Star.

Matthew Marr

Follow Matthew on Twitter @hailhailhistory

Click on cover to order hardback copy for only £10 plus postage.

Matthew’s debut Celtic book titled ‘The Bould Bhoys – Glory to their name’ was published by Celtic Star Books last year and is available to order HERE. This brilliant book is also available on Amazon Kindle for just £3.49 and includes all photo sections that appear in the hardback edition.