Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C. in European football

Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C. played their first official match in European competition on 16 July 2015.^[1] This made the club the first (and as of 2024, only) club from the Highlands to represent the area in European football.^[2]

Inverness Caledonian Thistle in European football

Inverness CT coming onto the pitch at Stadionul Marin Anastasovici, Giurgiu
Club	Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C.
Seasons played	1
Most appearances	13 Players (2)
First entry	2015–16 UEFA Europa League
Latest entry	2015–16 UEFA Europa League
Titles
Europa League	0 (Best: Second Qualifying Round

Inverness' best run in European competition was their debut against Astra Giurgiu of Romania where they narrowly lost 1–0 on aggregate thanks to a Constantin Budescu free kick in Inverness,^[3] denying an all British tie in the following round against English Premier League side, West Ham United.^[4][5]

Inverness first qualified for Europe with a 3rd-placed finish, and a Scottish Cup title in the 2014–15 season following a 1–0 away victory over Dundee in the League, with the Scottish Cup title moving them forward a round. However, they narrowly missed out on an earlier European debut in the 2012–13 season, after a crushing 1–0 defeat against rivals, Ross County on the final day of the season forced Inverness out of the top 3, and missing European qualification by 2 points.^[6]

Inverness again nearly qualified for Europe, in 2023 via the Scottish Cup, where they lost the final 3–1 to Celtic. Had they won, they would've entered the Europa League Play-Off and would have been guaranteed Group Stage football in either the Europa League or Europa Conference League.

Matches

2015–16 UEFA Europa League

On 22 June 2015, Inverness were drawn against Romanian Liga I side, Astra Giurgiu in the Second Qualifying Round of the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League, their maiden season in UEFA competition. On 16 July, in front of a near sell-out crowd, Inverness lost 1–0 courtesy of a Constantin Budescu free kick slipping through the gloves of debutant goalkeeper, Owain Fôn Williams, who had only arrived from League Two side, Tranmere Rovers that morning. On 22 July, Inverness were held to a 0–0 draw in Giurgiu, with Ryan Christie nearly levelling the aggregate just before half time, but unfortunately, it wasn't enough to progress to the next round where Premier League side, West Ham United would have been the opponent in what would be their final season at the Boleyn Ground.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Astra Giurgiu

16 July 2015 Second Qualifying Round	Inverness Caledonian Thistle	0 – 1	Astra Giurgiu	Inverness
19:45		Report	Budescu 24'	Stadium: Caledonian Stadium Attendance: 5,534 Referee: Henry Johnsen

Astra Giurgiu v Inverness Caledonian Thistle

22 July 2015 Second Qualifying Round	Astra Giurgiu	0 – 0 (1 – 0 agg.)	Inverness Caledonian Thistle	Giurgiu
19:00		Report		Stadium: Stadionul Marin Anastasovici Attendance: 3,067 Referee: Artyom Kuchin

Statistics

Note: Inverness scores are listed first.

List of Inverness CT games in European Competitions
Season	Competition	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Other	Agg.	[a]	Notes
2015–16	Europa League	QR2	Astra Giurgiu	0–1	0–0		0–1

By competition

Competition	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
UEFA Europa League	2	0	1	1	0	1	–1
Total	2	0	1	1	0	1	–1

By country

Country	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win%	Ref
Romania	2	0	1	1	0	1	–1	0.00

1. Round or group progressed () or eliminated ()

Player statistics

Top 10 Appearances

Players in bold are still active for the club. Correct as of 22 July 2015 (vs. Astra Giurgiu).

#	Player	Apps.	Comps.
1=	Owain Fôn Williams	2	UEL
	Gary Warren
	Nat Wedderburn
	Danny Devine
	Josh Meekings
	David Raven
	Greg Tansey
	Aaron Doran
	Ross Draper
	Danny Williams
	Ryan Christie
	Dani López
	Richie Foran
2	Jordan Roberts	1

Top 10 Goalscorers

No Inverness CT players as of 22 July 2015 have scored in Europe.