Celtic could now bank stunning ‘£65m’ windfall – Keith Wyness
Aberdeen’s former chief Keith Wyness has claimed Celtic could earn up to £65million through their Champions League participation next season.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, the 66-year-old – who served as CEO at Aberdeen between 2000 and 2004, had lengthy spells as the chief of Everton and Aston Villa and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – insisted the gap could widen to rivals Rangers if the Ibrox club can’t progress through the qualifying rounds to the league phase of the competition.
Celtic lifted the Scottish Premiership title on Wednesday (15 May), securing automatic qualification to the league phase of next season’s Champions League.
Second-place Rangers will need to progress through two qualification rounds to join their rivals in the competition.
Brendan Rodgers’ side will be hoping to better their 2023-24 performance, which saw them finish fourth in the group stage with just one win from six games.
Celtic well-placed to continue Rangers domination, says Wyness
Wyness claimed the prize money will leave Celtic in a “very strong” position domestically.
He told Football Insider‘s Insider Track podcast: “That gap between Celtic and Rangers could get wider – particularly if Rangers can’t qualify to the Champions League.
“The group money which comes in will position Celtic very strongly.
“In the group stage, they’ll be looking at around £30-40million.
“If they then progress through to the knockouts, it could go up to near £60-65million depending on how far they go.
“It’s big, big money at stake.
“They’ve had a difficult time in Europe, but hopefully they can equip themselves better next season.”
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