| Season | 2011–12 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 23 July 2011 – 13 May 2012 |
| Champions | Celtic 7thPremier League title 43rdScottish title |
| Relegated | Dunfermline AthleticRangers |
| Champions League | Celtic Motherwell |
| Europa League | Hearts Dundee United St Johnstone |
| Matches | 228 |
| Goals | 601 (2.64 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Gary Hooper (24) |
| Biggest home win | Celtic 5–0St Mirren (26 November 2011) Rangers 5–0Dundee United (2 May 2012) Celtic 5–0Hearts (13 May 2012) |
| Biggest away win | Kilmarnock 0–6Celtic (7 April 2012) |
| Highest scoring | Kilmarnock 3–6Inverness CT (5 November 2011) |
| Longest winning run | 17 games[1] Celtic |
| Longest unbeaten run | 21 games[1] Celtic |
| Longest winless run | 11 games[1] St Mirren |
| Longest losing run | 5 games[1] Dunfermline Athletic |
| Highest attendance | 58,875[2] Celtic vHearts (13 May 2012) |
| Lowest attendance | 1,607[2] St Johnstone vAberdeen (13 December 2011) |
| Average attendance | 13,861[3] |
2012–13 → | |
The2011–12 Scottish Premier League was the fourteenth season of theScottish Premier League, the highest division ofScottish football, since its inception in 1998. The season started on 23 July 2011[4] and ended on 13 May 2012.
A total of twelve teams contested the league: eleven sides that competed in the2010–11 SPL and one club promoted from theFirst Division. The new entry was First Division championsDunfermline Athletic, who replaced relegatedHamilton Academical.
Since Scotland climbed from sixteenth to fifteenth place in theUEFA association coefficient rankings at the end of the 2010–11 season,[5] the league re-gained an additional third qualifying round berth for theUEFA Champions League. However, it lost that berth again the following season. Despite finishing in the second qualifying position for the2012–13 UEFA Champions League, theeventual liquidation of the company which ownedRangers allowedMotherwell to take their place in the competition for the first time in the club's history.
On 7 April,Celtic won the title after a 6–0 away win againstKilmarnock atRugby Park. It was their first title in four years.[6][7]
The team ending the 2010–11 season at the bottom of the table,Hamilton Academical, were relegated to the2011–12 Scottish First Division. Hamilton were replaced byDunfermline Athletic, champions of the First Division.
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined underFIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | Craig Brown | Russell Anderson | adidas | Team Recruitment |
| Celtic | Neil Lennon | Scott Brown | Nike | Tennents |
| Dundee United | Peter Houston | Jon Daly | Nike | Calor |
| Dunfermline | Jim Jefferies | Austin McCann | Puma | The Purvis Group |
| Hearts | Paulo Sergio | Marius Zaliukas | Umbro | Wonga.com |
| Hibernian | Pat Fenlon | Ian Murray | Puma | Crabbie's |
| Inverness CT | Terry Butcher | Richie Foran | Erreà | Orion Group |
| Kilmarnock | Kenny Shiels | Manuel Pascali | Killie 1869 | verve.net |
| Motherwell | Stuart McCall | Stephen Craigan | Puma | Cash Converters |
| Rangers | Ally McCoist | Steven Davis | Umbro | Tennents |
| St Johnstone | Steve Lomas | Jody Morris | Joma | GS Brown Construction |
| St Mirren | Danny Lennon | Jim Goodwin | diadora | diadora |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rangers | Walter Smith | End of contract | 15 May 2011[8] | Pre-season | Ally McCoist | 1 June 2011[9] |
| Heart of Midlothian | Jim Jefferies | Contract terminated | 2 August 2011[10] | 9th | Paulo Sergio | 3 August 2011[11] |
| St Johnstone | Derek McInnes | Signed byBristol City | 19 October 2011[12] | 4th | Steve Lomas | 3 November 2011[13] |
| Hibernian | Colin Calderwood | Contract terminated | 6 November 2011[14] | 9th | Pat Fenlon | 25 November 2011[15] |
| Dunfermline | Jim McIntyre | Contract terminated | 16 March 2012[16] | 12th | Jim Jefferies | 20 March 2012[17] |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celtic(C) | 38 | 30 | 3 | 5 | 84 | 21 | +63 | 93 | Qualification for theChampions League third qualifying round |
| 2 | Rangers(D, R) | 38 | 26 | 5 | 7 | 77 | 28 | +49 | 73 | Administratively relegated to theThird Division and disqualified from theChampions League third qualifying round[a] |
| 3 | Motherwell | 38 | 18 | 8 | 12 | 49 | 44 | +5 | 62 | Qualification for theChampions League third qualifying round |
| 4 | Dundee United | 38 | 16 | 11 | 11 | 62 | 50 | +12 | 59 | Qualification for theEuropa League third qualifying round |
| 5 | Heart of Midlothian | 38 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 45 | 43 | +2 | 52 | Qualification for theEuropa League play-off round[b] |
| 6 | St Johnstone | 38 | 14 | 8 | 16 | 43 | 50 | −7 | 50 | Qualification for theEuropa League second qualifying round[b] |
| 7 | Kilmarnock | 38 | 11 | 14 | 13 | 44 | 61 | −17 | 47 | |
| 8 | St Mirren | 38 | 9 | 16 | 13 | 39 | 51 | −12 | 43 | |
| 9 | Aberdeen | 38 | 9 | 14 | 15 | 36 | 44 | −8 | 41 | |
| 10 | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 38 | 10 | 9 | 19 | 42 | 60 | −18 | 39 | |
| 11 | Hibernian | 38 | 8 | 9 | 21 | 40 | 67 | −27 | 33 | |
| 12 | Dunfermline Athletic(R) | 38 | 5 | 10 | 23 | 40 | 82 | −42 | 25 | Relegation to theFirst Division |
Teams play each other twice, once at home, once away
| Home \ Away | ABE | CEL | DUN | DNF | HOM | HIB | INV | KIL | MOT | RAN | STJ | STM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | 0–1 | 3–1 | 4–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | |
| Celtic | 2–1 | 5–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 5–0 | |
| Dundee United | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | |
| Dunfermline Athletic | 3–3 | 0–3 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 0–4 | 0–3 | 0–0 | |
| Heart of Midlothian | 3–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 4–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 2–0 | |
| Hibernian | 0–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 1–2 | |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 2–1 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | |
| Kilmarnock | 2–0 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 3–6 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | |
| Motherwell | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 4–3 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 0–3 | 1–1 | |
| Rangers | 2–0 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | |
| St Johnstone | 1–2 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | |
| St Mirren | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 |
Teams play every other team once (either at home or away)
| Home \ Away | ABE | CEL | DUN | DNF | HOM | HIB | INV | KIL | MOT | RAN | STJ | STM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Celtic | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | |||||||
| Dundee United | 3–0 | 3–0 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Dunfermline Athletic | 1–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–4 | 1–1 | ||||||
| Heart of Midlothian | 3–0 | 0–4 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 5–2 | |||||||
| Hibernian | 0–0 | 0–5 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 0–0 | |||||||
| Kilmarnock | 0–6 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Motherwell | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 3–2 | |||||||
| Rangers | 1–1 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | ||||||
| St Johnstone | 1–5 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | |||||||
| St Mirren | 1–1 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 0–0 | 0–3 |
After 33 matches, the league splits into two sections of six teams each, with teams playing every other team in their section once (either at home or away). The exact matches are determined upon the league table at the time of the split.
Top six[edit]
Source:BBC Sport Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win. | Bottom six[edit]
Source:BBC Sport Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
|
| Rank | Scorer | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celtic | 24 | |
| 2 | Dundee United | 19 | |
| 3 | Motherwell | 14 | |
| Rangers | 14 | ||
| St Johnstone | 14 | ||
| 6 | St Mirren | 13 | |
| 7 | Hibernian | 12 | |
| Kilmarnock | 12 | ||
| Hearts | 12 | ||
| Celtic | 12 | ||
| Rangers | 12 |
| Rank | Player | Team | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celtic | 21 | |
| 2 | Rangers | 17 | |
| 3 | Motherwell | 15 | |
| 4 | Dundee United | 13 | |
| St Mirren | 13 | ||
| 6 | St Johnstone | 10 | |
| 7 | Kilmarnock | 9 | |
| 8 | Hearts | 8 | |
| 9 | Aberdeen | 6 | |
| Inverness CT | 6 |
| Month | Manager | Player | Young Player |
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| April |