Any remaining credibility of the inter-league matches was finally destroyed by a 5–0 defeat against the Football League at Maine Road in 1974. The Scottish League team only contained a few players who had any realistic hope of playing regularly for the Scotland national team, while the Football League had picked a strong side. Two years later, less than 10,000 fans attended a low-key return match at Hampden and the fixture was put into abeyance. The Scottish League XI played out a creditable 1–1 draw in 1978 against an Italian league team in Verona, as preparation for the 1978 FIFA World Cup. Games were played against both Irish leagues in 1980, but no inter-league matches have been played by the Scottish League since then.