Celtic and Rangers Heading To England?
For decades, perhaps more, segments of the support at both Celtic and Rangers have agreed on one thing: A move to the English footballing pyramid would benefit both clubs.
Unfortunately, the honchos at the English FA haven’t seen such a switch—the obvious precedent is Swansea City and Cardiff City—as being mutually beneficial.
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And then, of course, is the concern over competitive fairness: If Glasgow’s big two were to take their relative riches (by Scotland standards) from the Premiership to the England, they couldn’t rightly leapfrog clubs that earn promotion and start in the EPL or the even the Championship.
With respect, Celtic v. Port Vale (currently in League Two) is even less enticing than, say, Celtic v. Hamilton Academical. At least the latter has tradition behind it.
All of which makes the reports that the women’s teams at Celtic and Rangers have entered “exploratory talks” about joining England’s Women’s Super League (WSL) all the more intriguing.
While the clubs themselves have been tight-lipped regarding the switch, both managers have acknowledged the appeal of playing against more well-heeled opposition week in and week out.
“We can say that competing against Arsenal, Chelsea… it is a different level,” Hoops bench boss Elena Sadiku said. “Is it nice to play against those teams? Yes.”
A different level indeed: On Wednesday, Sadiku’s side beat Aberdeen 8-0.
Having said that, Celtic and Rangers, who play each other this weekend, have become dominant sides in the SWPL only relatively recently. In fact, Glasgow City remains a force to be reckoned with in the Scottish women’s game (they are currently league leaders).
Celtic made its women’s team “professional” in December 2018, two years before Rangers.
Although WSL tams only went full-time professional prior to the 2018-19 campaign, the member clubs have devoted significantly more resources to the game than their counterparts in Scotland—because they have more, primarily, but also because the athletes have pushed them to do so.
As a result, Celtic and Rangers would both be at a competitive disadvantage should they make the move, at least initially.
They’d also, likely, set the women’s game in Scotland back significantly: On the pitch, at least, Glasgow City, Hearts and Hibs are all right there with Glasgow’s big two.
Of the pitch, though, Celtic and Rangers are Scotland’s biggest brands. Where they go, the eyes of the footballing world will follow.
The t’s still need to be crossed, but should the WSL switch go through, it will be interesting to see what happens next.
Could the women—who are already pioneers in their own right—pave the way for the men’s teams to follow?