Knightswood British Legion to host Glasgow’s Subbuteo International Open this weekend

Glasgow Table Soccer Association (Subbuteo) is welcoming almost 50 players from across the UK on February 11th and 12th for its annual International Open.

The event has attracted some of the top players across the country, a few of whom are in the top 100 players in the world. The event takes place at Knightswood British Legion between 10am and 4pm each day. The GTSA is also celebrating is 50th year anniversary, with a number of the original membership still playing.

The club, which originally folded in 1993 as games consoles took over and the Subbuteo brand began to struggle was eventually re-formed in January 2008. The great game began to recover, especially in Italy as new companies came in manufacturing better figures, bases and playing surfaces.

Bases were much flatter and this changed some aspects of the game, including “spinning” the player which is now very difficult to do with flat bases. Whilst figures can still be painted players often prefer to use micro decals of strips which can give any detail of any team from any country in any year.

The GTSA has a membership of around 20 players whose ages range from mid-teens through to mid-seventies with most being in the 50+ bracket. Club member, David Jack, who joined in June 2022, said: “ The members are very welcoming and supportive. There is usually someone around on a the club night to help explain the rules and teach techniques. It would be great to see more people coming along, especially younger people.”

The club meets on a Monday night from 7.30pm-10.30pm in the Knightswood British Legion in Cairntoul Drive with an entry fee of £2 payable at the door.