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What is financial gap between Old Firm and rest of Scottish Premiership?
TL;DR
Celtic and Hearts are in a tight race for the Scottish Premiership title, with Hearts aiming to become the first non-Old Firm club to win in over 40 years. The final match will determine the champion for the 2025-26 season.
Key points
- Celtic and Hearts are competing for the Scottish Premiership title
- Final match will decide the 2025-26 champions
- Hearts could end a 40-year title drought for non-Old Firm clubs
- The financial gap affects competition in the league
[BBC]
This season's Scottish Premiership has produced the closest-fought battle involving a non-Old Firm club for decades.
Holders Celtic will face Hearts in the final game of the season to decide the 2025-26 champions.
Should the Edinburgh side avoid defeat against the Glasgow giants, they will be the first side outside the Old Firm to win the top flight in more than 40 years.
Breaking the stronghold that Celtic and Rangers have held for so long would be an even more impressive achievement given the huge financial disparities between the clubs.
Aberdeen were the last non-Old Firm side to win the title, all the way back in the 1984-85 season under Sir Alex Ferguson.
How big is the financial gap between clubs?
There was a revenue gap of nearly £120m between title challengers Hearts and 55-time winners Celtic last season [Getty Images]
Celtic's annual turnover for the 2025-26 season was £143.6m - nearly six times that of Hearts in the same time period.
Rangers had the second highest revenue last season at £94.2m, putting the gap between the Old Firm and Hearts - as the next highest-valued team - at nearly £70m.
The revenue gap between Celtic and the lowest turnover, Falkirk, is nearly £140m - with the Glasgow club bringing in more than 30 times as much money.
How much does the Old Firm dominate the transfer market?
The gulf between Old Firm finances and the rest of the league can also be shown in transfer spending.
While Celtic had a relatively conservative spend in the summer transfer window, they still brought in the highest amount through outgoing players.
Rangers' total outgoings, the highest in the league, were nearly nine times that of Hearts.
Four teams did not register any signing spending at all - though some fees may have been undisclosed - with two of those clubs, Dundee and Falkirk, also not displaying any finances gained from departing squad members.
How do the stadiums compare?
Celtic Park is the 10th biggest-capacity stadium in the UK [Getty Images]
Celtic Park's capacity of 60,411 dwarfs all other stadiums in Scotland - including the national stadium Hampden by nearly 9,000 seats - sitting at the 10th-biggest stadium in the whole of the UK.
Rangers' Ibrox stadium is the second-biggest in the league with a capacity of 50,817.
The next closest ground is Aberdeen's Pittodrie with a capacity of 20,866 - less than half of Ibrox.
The lowest-capacity stadium, belonging to Falkirk, could fill Celtic park seven-and-a-half times.
The full list of stadium capacities is as follows:
- Celtic Park - 60,411
- Ibrox (Rangers) - 50,817
- Pittodire (Aberdeen) - 20,866
- Easter Road (Hibernian) - 20,421
- Tynecastle (Heart of Midlothian) - 19,852
- Rugby Park (Kilmarnock) - 15,003
- Tannadice (Dundee United) - 14,223
- Fir Park (Motherwell) - 13,677
- Dens Park (Dundee) - 11,775
- Almondvale (Livingston) - 8,716
- St Mirren Park - 7,937
- Falkirk Stadium - 7,937
This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team.
More questions answered...
Q&A
What is the financial gap between Old Firm and other Scottish Premiership clubs?
The financial gap between the Old Firm and other clubs in the Scottish Premiership is significant, impacting competition levels.
When is the final game of the Scottish Premiership season?
The final game of the Scottish Premiership season will be played between Celtic and Hearts.
How long has it been since a non-Old Firm club won the Scottish Premiership?
It has been over 40 years since a non-Old Firm club last won the Scottish Premiership.
What would a victory for Hearts mean for Scottish football?
A victory for Hearts would mark a historic moment, as they would be the first team outside the Old Firm to win the league title in four decades.
