| Season: | 2004–05 |
| Dates: | 6 August 2004 – 21 May 2005 |
| Continentalcup3 Qualifiers: | None |
| League Topscorer: | John Hartson (25) |
| Matches: | 228 |
| Total Goals: | 595 |
| Biggest Home Win: | Celtic 6–0 Dunfermline (12 March) |
| Biggest Away Win: | Livingston 0–4 Celtic (13 April) |
| Nextseason: | 2005–06 |
The 2004–05 Scottish Premier League was won by Rangers, who claimed the title on the final day of the season by a single point from Celtic, who had gone into the final fixtures leading and were still ahead in the closing minutes of their last game against Motherwell until they conceded two goals (both scored by striker Scott McDonald),[1] costing them the title with Rangers winning their match against Hibernian in Edinburgh.[2] The dramatic events became known in popular culture as 'Helicopter Sunday' due to the aircraft ceremonially delivering the championship trophy changing direction in mid-flight as the identity of its winners altered suddenly.[3]
As league champions, Rangers qualified for the UEFA Champions League group stage, with runners-up Celtic also qualifying to the third qualifying round. Third-placed Hibernian qualified for the UEFA Cup, as did Dundee United, who took the Scottish Cup place despite losing the final to Celtic.
Dundee were relegated, and Scottish First Division winners Falkirk were promoted.
John Hartson was the top scorer with 25 goals for Celtic, whose manager Martin O'Neill stepped down at the end of the season after five years and a host of major trophies.
Promoted from First Division to Premier League
Relegated from Premier League to First Division
| Aberdeen | Celtic | Dundee | Dundee United | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittodrie Stadium | Celtic Park | Dens Park | Tannadice Park | |
| Capacity: 20,866[4] | Capacity: 60,411[5] | Capacity: 11,506[6] | Capacity: 14,223[7] | |
| Dunfermline Athletic | Heart of Midlothian | |||
| East End Park | Tynecastle Park | |||
| Capacity: 12,509[8] | Capacity: 17,420[9] | |||
| Hibernian | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | |||
| Easter Road | Caledonian Stadium[10] | |||
| Capacity: 16,531[11] | Capacity: 7,500[12] | |||
| Kilmarnock | Livingston | Motherwell | Rangers | |
| Rugby Park | Almondvale Stadium | Fir Park | Ibrox Stadium | |
| Capacity: 17,889[13] | Capacity: 10,016[14] | Capacity: 13,677[15] | Capacity: 50,817[16] | |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Date of vacancy | Manner of departure | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | Steve Paterson | 24 May 2004 | Sacked | Pre-season | Jimmy Calderwood | 28 May 2004 | |
| Dunfermline Athletic | Jimmy Calderwood | 28 May 2004 | Signed by Aberdeen | David Hay | 17 June 2004 | ||
| Livingston | David Hay | 1 June 2004 | Contract Expired | Allan Preston | 4 June 2004 | ||
| Heart of Midlothian | Craig Levein | 29 October 2004 | Signed by Leicester City | 6th | John Robertson | 3 November 2004 | |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | John Robertson | 3 November 2004 | Signed by Heart of Midlothian | 9th | Craig Brewster | 25 November 2004 | |
| Livingston | Allan Preston | 25 November 2004 | Sacked | 12th | Richard Gough | 30 November 2004 | |
| Dundee United | Ian McCall | 14 March 2005 | Sacked | 12th | Gordon Chisholm | 14 March 2005 (interim) 14 May 2005 (permanent) | |
| Dunfermline Athletic | David Hay | 3 May 2005 | Sacked | 12th | Jim Leishman | 3 May 2005 | |
| Heart of Midlothian | John Robertson | 9 May 2005 | Sacked | 5th | Steven Pressley John McGlynn (joint caretakers) | 11 May 2005 |
During matches 1–22 each team played every other team twice (home and away).
During matches 23–33 each team played every other team once (either at home or away).
During matches 34–38 each team played every other team in their half of the table once.
Source: SPL official website
The average attendances for SPL clubs during the 2004–05 season are shown below:
| Team | Average | |
|---|---|---|
| Celtic | 57,906 | |
| Rangers | 48,676 | |
| Aberdeen | 13,576 | |
| Hibernian | 12,541 | |
| Hearts | 12,219 | |
| Dundee United | 8,210 | |
| Motherwell | 6,960 | |
| Dundee | 6,879 | |
| Dunfermline Athletic | 6,192 | |
| Kilmarnock | 5,930 | |
| Livingston | 5,157 | |
| Inverness CT | 4,067 |
Source: SPL official website
See main article: Scottish Premier League monthly awards.
| Month | Manager | Player | Young Player | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August | Jimmy Calderwood (Aberdeen) | Alan Thompson (Celtic) | Alexander Diamond (Aberdeen) | |
| September | Terry Butcher (Motherwell) |  Scott McDonald (Motherwell) | Derek Riordan (Hibernian) | |
| October | John Robertson (Inverness CT) |  Fernando Ricksen (Rangers) | Steven Fletcher (Hibernian) | |
| November | Alex McLeish (Rangers) |  Nacho Novo (Rangers) | Derek Riordan (Hibernian) | |
| December | Tony Mowbray (Hibernian) |  Aiden McGeady (Celtic) | Derek Riordan (Hibernian) | |
| January | Martin O'Neill (Celtic) | Chris Sutton (Celtic) | Derek Riordan (Hibernian) | |
| February | Alex McLeish (Rangers) |  Dado Pršo (Rangers) | Lee Miller (Hearts) | |
| March | Craig Brewster (Inverness CT) | Craig Bellamy (Celtic) | Aiden McGeady (Celtic) | |
| April | Gordon Chisholm (Dundee United) |  Burton O'Brien (Livingston) | Lee Miller (Hearts) | |
| May | Tony Mowbray (Hibernian) | Dado Pršo (Rangers) | Derek Riordan (Hibernian) |
