Celtic doesn’t have the muscle for multi-club ownership. Our rivals certainly don’t.

One of the consistent themes we often revisit on this blog is the gap between reality and the media’s perception of it. Today, that issue has once again been brought into focus, as a couple of national newspapers published a bizarre story suggesting that Celtic and the Ibrox club could benefit from a multi-club ownership model.

The idea that this is something both clubs should pursue is absurd, especially when you consider that the club across town can barely manage to run a single entity effectively.

Where do these ridiculous ideas even come from? It’s as if there’s some secret competition to come up with the most outlandish ways for the Ibrox club to burn through cash. They’re barely able to afford their current setup, let alone the luxury of buying another team. It’s clear that those writing this nonsense haven’t thought it through.

I know for a fact that this kind of idea has been discussed within Celtic over the years. However, it’s only recently become a viable consideration because of the SPFL relaxing regulations on multi-club ownership. Still, it’s not a priority for us.

Celtic has no burning desire to own another club, even though there are obvious benefits, like possibly gaining a foothold in the English system one day.

There’s certainly been talk of adopting a “franchise model” at Celtic. The concept is straightforward: buy a struggling club in another country, rebrand it with your logo, colours, and name, and work your way up through the ranks. However, one of the main reasons this has been discussed and dismissed is that it would essentially mean killing off another club in the process. That’s not something we are prepared to do, nor should we be.

Celtic has considered various versions of this over the years, but none have come to fruition. Instead, we prefer to form formal partnerships with other clubs, and we’ve established several affiliate relationships around the world. This approach is undoubtedly more suitable for a club our size than attempting to manage multiple football operations.

That said, it’s a discussion worth having.

If the right opportunity presented itself—a deal too good to pass up—I could see Celtic forming a football group and expanding. There are places, like the United States and Canada, where this could be a viable strategy. But to do it right, we would need vast amounts of capital, far more than we currently have. It’s not something you just dive into. It would take years of planning and require a much larger corporate structure.

As for the Ibrox club, the idea that they could pursue a multi-club model is laughable. They can barely keep their heads above water with one club, never mind trying to run two. That’s what makes the story so ridiculous. It’s not remotely credible. Nobody over there has the wherewithal for this; their best hope is to get bought by an entity that already runs teams … but that’s fraught with its own dangers and there are cautionary tales all across football.

That is a model Celtic would not even consider. Fans would never allow us to be swallowed up by some vast corporate entity and become just another cog in its big wheel.

To successfully implement a multi-club model yourself you need deep pockets—something the media seems to have conveniently forgotten.

We’re talking about major companies or extremely wealthy individuals who already own multiple businesses and can afford to sink vast sums into start-up costs, redevelopment, and everything else that comes with essentially creating a new sports organisation. Even with Celtic’s considerable financial reserves, this is not something we could easily do, even if we wanted to.

Dermot Desmond could probably pull it off.

He already owns Shamrock Rovers and is the largest individual shareholder at Celtic. He could potentially buy a club in England or France and run it as part of a larger portfolio. But that doesn’t mean Celtic would run those clubs. Desmond doesn’t bankroll Celtic out of his own pocket. Our club operates as a self-sustaining business, and any club we bought would need to do the same. It would have to be profitable for it to make any sense.

I’ve always liked the idea of owning a lower-league English club and doing a “Wrexham” with them—bringing them up through the divisions. If a club went bust and their assets and league place were available, I could see the appeal of stepping in, as long as the running costs weren’t astronomical. But beyond that? The idea is unrealistic even for us.

And for them? The stuff of outright fantasy.