In pictures: Ardbeg’s swamp football tournament

Although the play was cleaner than some of that seen in the premiership, the players in the Ardbeg World Swamp Football Championship were certainly the dirtiest.

At the football tournament held in Edinburgh’s St. Andrew’s Square, eight teams of thoroughly unprofessional football players gathered to celebrate Ardbeg Day on 31 May.

In between drams of Ardbeg Corryvreckan and Uigedail, and a tasting of the new Ardbeg Auriverdes by Ardbeg’s head of whisky creation Dr Bill Lumsden, 10-minute matches of some of the muddiest football Edinburgh’s ever seen delighted onlookers and supporters.

Teams hailed from Gordon & MacPhail, The Whiski Rooms, The Whisky Exchange, Royal Mile Whiskies, The Soho Whisky Club, Luvians Wine Shop, Cambridge Wine Merchants and a motley crew of journalists and PRs featuring SB‘s editor Becky Paskin.

After a thrilling tournament full of mud-slinging and dirty tackling, the victors were the admittedly unprepared Cambridge Wine Merchants who played valiantly.

The absolute filth of the day however cannot be described in words. Flick through the following pages for a glimpse of what the tournament was like.

The team from Elements of Islay waste no time in getting their hands dirty. It was better to just embrace the mud.
Photo: Colin Hattersley Photography

The Whiski Rooms in Edinburgh took on The Beasties (journalists and PRs). Everyone was surprisingly jubilant despite the Whisky Rooms thrasing the Beasties by 11-1.
Photo: Colin Hattersley Photography

Spoke too soon. SB‘s Becky Paskin and Imbibe‘s Laura Foster got their own back on The Whiski Rooms.
Photo: Colin Hattersley Photography

Unless you’ve played swamp football before, you have no idea how difficult it is to stay on your feet, let alone kick the ball. Fouls were common.
Photo: Colin Hattersley Photography

Dr Bill Lumsden, despite not daring to get himself dirty on the pitch, led several very enjoyable tastings of Ardbeg whiskies, including the new Ardbeg Auriverdes.

By the end of the day the tournament had descended into a mud-slinging match for Royal Mile Whiskies, while Imbibe‘s Laura Foster decided on taking a relaxing mud bath mid-game as cheering crowds looked on.

The deserved victors from Cambridge Wine Merchants lift the Ardbeg trophy, which we are assured is made of fake gold.