The Glasgow Lions were the first amateur American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 team to be founded in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. They were founded in 1984, and disbanded after the 1996 season owing to a competitive imbalance in their league.

In 1985 they played the Edinburgh Eagles, beating them 29-12 in an away game at Meadowbank Stadium, in front of a crowd of 3,471. This was the first intercity game of American football in Europe.

Their semi-contact junior flag football

Flag football

Flag football is a version of Canadian football or American football that is popular worldwide. The basic rules of the game are similar to those of the mainstream game , but instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier to end...

 program continued beyond that point, playing until 2001, still dominating Scottish football. On the 1st of November 1987 the Glasgow Lions Junior Squad, Champions of Scotland, travelled to Leicester to play the Lie-chester Panthers in the 'Battle of Britain', the first international junior kitted match ever. The Junior Lions won the match and the side were entrenched in American football folklore forever- Scottish and British Champions.

The players were:

10 Peter Tonner QB
11 Scott Couper WR
12 Gareth Cowie QB
20 Paul McLauchlan Safety
21 John Tonner CB
26 Mark Stewart CB
28 James Connolly QB
29 John Logan TE
32 William Carroll RB
33 Ricardo Corvi RB
34 Mark Donaldson KR/Safety
39 Brian Carlton DE
44 Gerry Barlow RB
45 Kenny Matthews CB
52 Rab Russell LB
54 Crawford Irwin G/DT
55 James Dougall C/LB
58 Alan Howatt G/LB
68 Alan Steel T/DE/K/All round genius
74 Wain Mun Lee
84 Andrew McGowan
86 Stephen Paul DE
87 Brendan Farrelly WR
88 Andrew Edwards WR
95 Gary McAleese TE/DE

Head Coach: Jim Ferrans
Secretary: Kenny Milroy
Kitman: Willie Lothian
Mascot: Zelda

The Lions competed in a number of different British and Scottish leagues during their existence. Lions Wide receiver

Wide receiver

A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...

 Scott Couper

Scott Couper

Scott Couper is an American football player from Scotland. Nicknamed "Scoops", he played at wide receiver, most notably for the Scottish Claymores of NFL Europe.-Career:...

 turned professional in 1995 with the Scottish Claymores

Scottish Claymores

The Scottish Claymores were an American football team from Scotland. The franchise played in the World League of American Football between 1995 and 2004, initially playing all home games at Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh and latterly sharing home games with Hampden Park, Glasgow...

and ran 5yd hitches for them over 10 seasons.