Scottish Rugby’s chief operating officer Dominic McKay made his sales pitch to Scottish Football Association delegates yesterday, declaring BT Murrayfield as the perfect venue to host Scotland matches and major cup games.
McKay revealed that the SFA had approached the body to investigate the possibility of using the national rugby stadium for major football events when the current lease at Hampden runs out in 2020, with a decision having to be made on whether or not to renew the 20-year lease by March of next year.
Scottish Rugby face competition from Celtic, Rangers and of course, Hampden, but McKay is confident that the largest entertainment venue in the country ticks all of the boxes the SFA are looking to fill.
“The decision is entirely up to our friends at the Scottish FA, what we’re doing is putting our best foot forward to say we’ve got an outstanding stadium here at BT Murrayfield,” said McKay.
“It’s the largest stadium in Scotland and has a proud history of hosting football events, rugby events and music concerts.
“So we think a really perfect stage in some respects to host any events that the Scottish FA maybe want to move.
“It’s really a decision for them in due course but we want to put our best foot forward.”
McKay pointed to the superior fan experience, transport links and commercial opportunities that Murrayfield can offer as the main selling points working in its favour.
“In terms of the space we have around the stadium and our ability to use that on a match-day means we have supporters coming in two hours before kick-off and maybe spending an hour after kick-off having a beer or socialising,” he said.
“It’s all about families as well for us, families and people coming into our games. The way we use our space here on a match-day is pretty special.
“We’re fortunate we’ve got great transport links. It’s so easy to get into the stadium by train, by tram or car. You can walk from the centre of town, maybe stop in at a few hostelries along the way and then come to then game.
“It’s a big thing for us that we’re close to the city and it’s accessible by all forms of transport.
“What we have also said is that we believe, by having a large stadium, that it offers an opportunity for the SFA to generate more money than ever before to reinvest back into the grassroots of football.
“I think that is something which perhaps sets our bid apart from others.”
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