CELTIC have officially reopened their iconic Barrowfield training base after a multi-million pound transformation.
Two years ago, the Parkhead club announced plans for the largest infrastructure investment since the redevelopment of Celtic Park back in the 1990s.
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Work on the project began in February 2024 and 18 months on, the redevelopment is complete.
The Celtic first team currently train at Lennoxtown on the outskirts of Glasgow and have done so since moving there in 2007.
Prior to that they trained at Barrowfield, just a stone’s throw away from Parkhead and with the stadium in full view.
The East End location saw club greats like Billy McNeill, Jimmy Johnstone and Paul McStay grace its grass, and more modern heroes such as Henrik Larsson also trained there.
Since the move, Barrowfield has housed some of the younger academy teams and played host to some of Celtic’s community projects.
But now it will be the permanent home of the academy and the Celtic Women‘s team.
The main focus of the revamp was the large indoor dome, which is the largest of its kind in Scotland and allows for training and matches in all weathers.
Also new on the site is a state of the art gym, a medical centre, a classroom/learning centre and new changing rooms.
The changing rooms also bestow a unique honour on four current Hoops stars.
Callum McGregor, Kieran Tierney and James Forrest – all of whom came through the Celtic youth academy – have had a changing room named after them.
Women’s team captain Kelly Clark has also been given the same honour.
In terms of pitches, the indoor dome has a synthetic surface while the outdoor pitches are a mixture of grass (two) and artificial (one).
A statement from the club said: “Celtic Football Club is delighted to announce that the new state of the art Training Centre at Barrowfield is now complete, and the facility is now fully open for use by our Women’s team and Academies.
“The complex, which sits proudly in the heart of Glasgow’s East End, re-emphasises Celtic’s strategy of maintaining a strong commitment to both developing our own players and investing in women’s football, with the project representing the largest infrastructure investment by the Club since the redevelopment of Celtic Park in the late 1990s.”
Celtic chairman Peter Lawwell pointed to the facility connects both the past and the future of the club.
He said: “We are sure that the new Barrowfield development will prove to be a really important milestone in the Club’s future.
“Celtic’s history is characterised by so many young players coming through the Club’s own development system, gracing the first-team and playing such an important role in our many successes throughout the years.
“We want to improve further in this area and through the new facility, we will be striving for even more success, with the new high-quality centre giving our Academies and Women’s team every opportunity to flourish.
“While we had opportunities to develop facilities elsewhere, Celtic was born and has been raised in the East End of the City. It was very important for us that we maintained this important presence in the local community, in a place dear to our hearts and a place where so many Celtic legends have been made.”
Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers added: “I think it’s really important for our women and the young players to have a facility that allows them to develop, especially in the more difficult winter months.
“Being indoors means greater coaching time and a stronger focus on development for the young players. It’s a great facility that players and staff can really look forward to being in.
“Players who come through your own system always give you that little bit more, that extra one percent. It’s vital that we have these players in our squad.”
And chief executive Michael Nicholson said: “The new Barrowfield Centre will be vital in achieving two key elements of the club’s strategy, namely supporting young player development and delivering investment in women’s football.
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“We are sure these new, high-quality facilities will be crucial in delivering real benefit to the Club for years to come across both the boys and girls academy structures and our women’s first team environment.
“So many Celtic heroes have followed the path from Barrowfield, through our academies to the Celtic first team and now, in this new setting, we hope to give our young players and Celtic FC Women even greater opportunities to excel and deliver continued success to the club and our supporters.”
With Barrowfield providing a new home to the Celtic Women’s team, in their fifth year as a professional outfit, manager Elena Sadiku said there is no excuse now for the squad to be the best it can be.
She said: “In terms of doing your best and being fully prepared as a team, it’s important to keep the quality high in everything we do – whether that’s media, analysis, or training sessions.
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“Facilities like this leave no excuses for anyone; they make sure we deliver the best performances and are properly prepared for games.
“As head coach, having all of this means we can give the players the best preparation possible – to help them develop, get results at the weekend, and, most importantly, to create the conditions where the standards are high and they have to meet them. Overall, there are no excuses to be the best we can be.”
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