FIVE top Premiership clubs including Celtic and Rangers are working on establishing exclusive partnerships with teams lower down the SPFL pyramid, according to a report.
It’s understood the moves are backed by the SFA in the hope that they will lead to an increase in young homegrown players playing first team football.
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The new system of co-operation, as first reported by The Herald, has the long-term aim of improving the fortunes of the Scotland national team.
And clubs will be able to go live with their agreements from June 16.
It’s understood that Celtic, Rangers, Aberdeen, Dundee United and Hearts are the five Premiership clubs who have been in talks with lower-league counterparts.
Celtic have been talking to Queen‘s Park, Rangers are exploring a tie up with Raith Rovers, Dundee United are discussing a partnership with Montrose, Aberdeen are negotiating with Arbroath while Hearts (and Cove Rangers of League One) could potentially link up with Spartans.
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The number of young players gaining minutes in the Scottish Premiership has nosedived recently – and the figures weren’t exactly great before.
A study in 2024 revealed that Scotland lagged behind comparable nations when it came to giving under-21 players first team football.
In the 2023/24 season, the likes of Belgium (21.8%), Norway (11.4%), the Netherlands (8.8%) outscored Scotland (3.2%) by a stretch.
France (8%), Spain (4%) Portugal (3.9%) all scored higher too but if we look at more comparable countries again, Austria did better in this regard (6.6%), as did Czechia (5.9%) and Switzerland (5.5%).
Last year, if it wasn’t for the likes of Lennon Miller at Motherwell and David Watson at Kilmarnock, that figure would surely have plummeted.
Indeed St Mirren offered just 0.8% of their first team minutes to players under 21. Dundee had the highest rate with 24.8%.
It’s understood the agreements will allow the top clubs to send a maximum of three players on loan to their partners and they MUST be eligible for the Scotland national team.
In contrast with loans, these ‘co-operation list’ agreements will allow for players to move between their parent club and their loan club during the season rather than being fixed to their loan side.
The Premiership outfit in questions will pay the player’s full wage and at any time they can recall said player, and send another.
The partner clubs in the Championship, League One or League Two will be allowed to take a maximum of two other players from their parent club who are not 21 and under or Scottish.
An SFA report last year first mentioned the introduction of a so-called Cooperation System and other possible introductions including incentives for playing young Scots in cup competitions and the implementation of a scholarship system to protect against our top talents being snapped up by English clubs before they turn 18.
SFA Chief Football Officer Andy Gould spoke to The Herald on the impact of the Cooperation System: “This can definitely make a difference to Scotland teams of the future
“It’s an opportunity for clubs to use a system that enhances their chances of getting players into their first team.
“At the top end of the game it gives them a greater opportunity of selling those players and, down the line, there is an opportunity for the national team to get the benefit of that.
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“That’s not necessarily going to happen overnight, it does take a period of time.
“How many years is difficult to predict, but we need to find a competitive system which gives us a competitive edge over others and at the minute we don’t have that.”
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