TWO prominent Celtic supporters groups have criticised the club’s Saturday night statement – with one issuing a vote of no confidence in the board.
The growing tenson between the fans and the directors shows no signs of easing despite chief exec Michael Nicholson and other senior figures sitting down on Friday with representatives of the Celtic Supporters’ Association, the Affiliation of Registered Celtic Supporters’ Clubs and the Association of Irish Celtic Supporters’ Clubs.
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The meetings were aimed at easing the frustration and anger felt by many Hoops supporters following the club’s lack of activity in the transfer window – contributing to the team failing to qualify for the Champions League.
Last night the club issued a mammoth 1000-word statement that called out ‘other parties’ for leaking information to the press and took aim at ‘inaccurate’ reporting during the summer window.
The statement – that had no name attached to it – also defended the lack of spending over the summer, saying that the club had to “adhere to our self-sustaining model: to protect the present and secure the future, ensuring Celtic remains strong for generations to come.
“The Club’s model has been developed and applied over many years, and during that period the Club has enjoyed a sustained period of success and growth.”
That attitude hasn’t gone down well with many supporters, including those who were invited to meet with the board’s hierarchy on Friday.
The Celtic Supporters Association have replied with a statement of their own signed by their general secretary, Joe O’Rourke – and declared a vote of no confidence in the current custodians.
It read: “Following on from our meeting on Friday with Michael Nicholson and other representatives of Celtic Football Club, we convened a meeting today of our member branches to give a report on the aforementioned meeting.
“The member branches were dissatisfied with the answer’s to our questions, and as a consequence have decided to place a vote of no confidence on the Board of Celtic Football Club.”
This evening the Association of Irish Celtic Supporters’ Clubs also issued their own statement.
And while it didn’t go as far as declaring a vote of no confidence, it made clear their own dissatisfaction with the club’s conduct.
It read: “On behalf of the executive committee of the Association of Irish Celtic Supporters’ Clubs, we wish to formally express our complete and utter disappointment in relation to Celtic FC’s statement on 6th September 2025.
“Whilst we acknowledge the dialogue held with representatives of the supporters’ associations, and while we appreciate the recognition of fans’ passion and loyalty, we remain deeply concerned about the future direction and priorities of the Club.
“In a somewhat patronising statement, we feel that the club completely underestimates the passion, anger, and even the intelligence of the Celtic support.
“Defending complete underperformance in recent transfer windows with business jargon and keywords of “self-sustaining models” and “financial integrity” is just an insult to the intelligence of our support.
“We simply don’t believe that the current strategies in place at the club will allow us to compete at the highest level.
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“We also believe that our current approach falls short of the ambition required to achieve continued success both domestically and in Europe.
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“We fully endorse the position of all Celtic supporters and call for clarity, open communication, and a commitment to strengthen our team, and improve the overall matchday experience for the club’s largest stakeholder, the fans.”
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