Lagging Behind in Europe: The Scottish Premiership’s Struggles in the Transfer Market
Scottish Premiership Falling Behind in Transfer Market
Only five players left the Scottish Premiership for transfer fees during the January window, generating a total of €18.7 million. However, the vast majority of that sum went to Celtic, with the Scottish champions receiving €12 million from Kyogo Furuhashi’s move to Stade Rennais and €5.5 million from Alejandro Bernabei’s transfer to Internacional. This meant that Celtic accounted for 94% of all transfer income in Scotland. The only other notable sales were Hearts’ Kye Rowles to DC United for €715k, Daniel Oyegoke to Hellas Verona for €400k, and Kieran Offord’s €119k move from St Mirren to Linfield.
A Market Dominated by One Club
The numbers make it clear: Celtic is the only club in Scotland generating significant revenue in the transfer market. So far this season, the club has earned €56.2 million from player sales, which amounts to a staggering 78% of the Scottish Premiership’s total transfer income. To highlight their dominance, Celtic’s reserve team brought in more revenue (€3.09 million) than Rangers (€2.95 million).
Rather than being a sign of Celtic’s overwhelming success, these figures point to a wider issue—Scottish football is among the weakest leagues in Europe when it comes to profiting from player sales.
A European Perspective
Looking at the last decade, Scottish Premiership clubs have earned €407 million from transfers, placing the league 23rd in Europe. That figure lags behind similar-sized leagues such as Greece’s Super League (€450m, 21st), Croatia’s HNL (€606m, 19th), and Denmark’s SuperLiga (€814m, 16th). In comparison, leagues that thrive on developing and selling talent—such as Belgium’s Jupiler Pro League (€2.2 billion, 9th), the Dutch Eredivisie (€2.7 billion, 8th), and Portugal’s Liga Portugal (€4.1 billion, 6th)—are operating on an entirely different level.
Given that the Scottish Premiership currently ranks 14th in UEFA’s league coefficient, its inability to generate substantial transfer income is well below where it should be in European football.
A One-Horse Race
A closer look at individual club earnings over the past decade further illustrates the imbalance. Celtic alone accounts for €257 million in player sales—68% of the total revenue from the Scottish Premiership. Meanwhile, Rangers have managed just €72.4 million in the same period. The Ibrox club has only twice exceeded the €13.5 million they received for Giovanni van Bronckhorst when he joined Barcelona in 2001, and Celtic dominates eight of the top ten biggest sales in Scottish football history.
However, the problem extends beyond the Glasgow clubs. Aberdeen has averaged just €2.5 million per season in player sales over the past decade, while Hibernian and Hearts have brought in only €1.7 million and €1.1 million per season, respectively. These figures are alarming, especially given that Hearts and Hibernian recently reported a combined net loss of €10 million. Both clubs’ record transfer sales—Scott Brown’s €6.6 million move from Hibs to Celtic and Craig Gordon’s €10.8 million transfer from Hearts to Sunderland—date back to 2007, highlighting the lack of progress.
Can Scottish Football Catch Up?
There are glimpses of improvement. Transfers such as Calvin Ramsay’s €4.9 million move from Aberdeen to Liverpool and Bojan Miovski’s €6.5 million switch to Girona show that Scottish clubs can demand higher fees. However, to close the gap on other European leagues, the Scottish Premiership must implement fundamental changes—prioritizing player development and maximizing transfer value, just as much as competing on the pitch.
