Scottish Premiership

Scottish Premiership

The Scottish Premiership, also known as the William Hill Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Scotland and the highest level of the Scottish football league system. The top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the Scottish Premiership was established in July 2013, after the SPFL was formed by a merger of the Scottish Premier League and Scottish Football League. There are 12 teams in this division, with each team playing 38 matches per season. Seventeen clubs have played in the Scottish Premiership since its creation in the 2013–14 season. Celtic are the current league champions, having won the 2024–25 Scottish Premiership.

Competition format

Scottish Premiership

Teams receive three points for a win and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then goal difference, and then goals scored. At the end of each season, the club with the most points is crowned league champion. If the points, goal difference, goals scored, and head-to-head results between teams are equal, a play-off game held at a neutral venue shall be played to determine the final placings. The play-off will only occur when the position of the teams affects the outcome of the title, European qualification, relegation, or second stage group allocation and shall not occur otherwise.

Split

The top flight of Scottish football has contained 12 clubs since the 2000–01 season, the longest period without change in the history of the Scottish football league system. During this period the Scottish Premier League, and now the Scottish Premiership, has operated a "split" format, that is, split in two phases as is explained below. This is used to prevent the need for a 44-game schedule, based on playing each other four times. That format was used in the Scottish Premier Division in the mid-1980s and early 1990s, but it is now too high a number of games in a league season.

A season, which runs from August until May, is divided into two phases. During the first phase, each club plays three games against every other team, either once at home and twice away or vice versa. After this first phase of matches, by which time all clubs have played 33 games, the league splits into two halves – a "top six" section and a "bottom six" section. Each club plays a further five matches, one against each of the other five teams in their own section. Points achieved during the first phase of 33 matches are carried forward to the second phase, but the teams compete only within their own sections during the second phase. After the first phase is completed, clubs cannot move out of their own half in the league, even if they achieve more or fewer points than a higher or lower ranked team, respectively.

At the beginning of each season, the SPFL 'predicts' the likely positions of each club in order to produce a fixture schedule that ensures the best possible chance of all clubs playing each other twice at home and twice away. This is known as the league 'seeding' and is based on clubs' performance in the previous season. If the clubs do not finish in the half where they are predicted to finish, then anomalies can be created in the fixture list. Clubs sometimes play another three times at home and once away (or vice versa), or a club can end up playing 20 home (or away) games in a season.

Promotion and relegation

The bottom placed Premiership club at the end of the season is relegated and swaps places with the winner of the Scottish Championship, provided that the winner satisfies Premiership entry criteria. With the creation of the SPFL, promotion and relegation play-offs involving the top flight were introduced for the first time in seventeen years. The Premiership club in eleventh place plays the Championship play-off winners over two legs, with the winner earning the right to play in the Scottish Premiership the following season. This enables two clubs to be relegated from the Premiership each season, with two being promoted. Prior to the creation of the Scottish Premiership, only a single club could be relegated each season - with only the second tier champions being promoted. The Scottish Football League had used play-offs amongst its three divisions since 2007.

European qualification

UEFA grants European places to the Scottish Football Association, determined by Scotland's position in the UEFA country coefficient rankings. The Scottish Football Association in turn allocates a number of these European places to final Scottish Premiership positions. At the end of the 2020–21 season, Scotland was ranked 11th in Europe—granting them two teams in the UEFA Champions League, one team in the UEFA Europa League, and two teams in the UEFA Europa Conference League.

At the end of the 2022–23 season, the Scottish Premiership winners (Celtic FC) gained qualification to the UEFA Champions League group stage, whilst the second placed team (Rangers FC) entered at the third qualifying round. The third placed team (Aberdeen FC) entered the Europa League in the playoff round, while the fourth place (Heart Of Midlothian FC) got UEFA Europa Conference League 3rd Qualifying Round and fifth place (Hibernian FC) got UEFA Europa Conference League 2nd Qualifying Round.

Scotland's place in the Europa League is awarded to the winners of the Scottish Cup. Should the winners of that competition have already qualified for European competition, then the fifth placed team also enters the Europa Conference League second qualifying round, while third placed team (unless they are cup winners themselves) are promoted from Europa Conference League to the Europa League third qualifying round.

Financial disparity

The 2017 'Global Sports Salaries Survey' report found a large variation between the wages offered by teams in the Scottish Premiership, with champions Celtic paying an average annual salary of £735,040, per player, whilst traditional rivals Rangers could only pay £329,600 and league runners-up Aberdeen offered £136,382. The lowest salary offered by any of the twelve member clubs was Hamilton's £41,488—one seventeenth that of Celtic, whose wages were close to the sum of the other eleven clubs combined.

The report stated that this disparity was the third-greatest from the 18 leagues surveyed, and that the Scottish Premiership offered the third-lowest salaries of those leagues; by contrast, Celtic's opponents in the Champions League that year paid average wages of £6.5m (Paris Saint-Germain) and £5.2m (Bayern Munich), seven times higher than the Scottish club.

Clubs

Scottish Premiership

The 12 clubs listed below will compete in the Scottish Premiership during the 2025–26 season.

Club	Location	Position in 2024–25	First season in top division	No. of seasons in top division	First season of current spell in top division	No. of seasons of current spell	National titles	Last title
Aberdeen	Aberdeen	5th, Scottish Premiership	1905–06	114	1905–06	114	4	1984–85
Celtic	Glasgow (Parkhead)	1st, Scottish Premiership (champions)	1890–91	129	1890–91	129	55	2024–25
Dundee	Dundee	10th, Scottish Premiership	1893–94	101	2023–24	3	1	1961–62
Dundee United	Dundee	4th, Scottish Premiership	1925–26	64	2024–25	2	1	1982–83
Falkirk	Falkirk	1st, Scottish Championship (promoted)	1905-06	67	2025–26	1	—	—
Heart of Midlothian	Edinburgh (Gorgie)	7th, Scottish Premiership	1890–91	123	2021–22	5	4	1959–60
Hibernian	Edinburgh (Leith)	3rd, Scottish Premiership	1895–96	119	2017–18	9	4	1951–52
Kilmarnock	Kilmarnock	9th, Scottish Premiership	1899–1900	96	2022–23	4	1	1964–65
Livingston	Livingston	2nd Scottish Championship (promoted)	2001-02	12	2025–26	1	—	—
Motherwell	Motherwell	8th, Scottish Premiership	1903–04	110	1985–86	41	1	1931–32
Rangers	Glasgow (Ibrox)	2nd, Scottish Premiership	1890–91	125	2016–17	10	55	2020–21
St Mirren	Paisley	6th, Scottish Premiership	1890–91	115	2018–19	8	—	—

Aberdeen	Celtic	Dundee	Dundee United	Falkirk	Heart of Midlothian
Pittodrie Stadium	Celtic Park	Dens Park	Tannadice Park	Falkirk Stadium	Tynecastle Park
Capacity:20,866	Capacity:60,411	Capacity:11,775	Capacity: 14,223	Capacity: 7,937	Capacity:19,852

Hibernian	Kilmarnock	Livingston	Motherwell	Rangers	St Mirren
Easter Road	Rugby Park	Almondvale Stadium	Fir Park	Ibrox Stadium	St Mirren Park
Capacity:20,421	Capacity:15,003	Capacity: 9,713	Capacity:13,677	Capacity:51,700	Capacity:7,937

• 25. Rangers (71.250) • 59. Celtic (38.000) • 138. Heart of Midlothian (11.500) • 161. Aberdeen (9.500) • 205. Kilmarnock (2.500) • 206 St Mirren (2.000) • 207. Hibernian (4.500) • 208. Dundee United (2.000) • 209. Motherwell (3.500) • 210. St Johnstone (2.500)

Managers

Scottish Premiership

<table><thead><tr><th>Manager</th><th>Nationality</th><th>Club</th><th>Appointed</th><th>Time as manager</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>John McGlynn</td><td> Scotland</td><td>Falkirk</td><td>4 May 2022</td><td>3 years, 323 days</td></tr><tr><td>Jim Goodwin</td><td> Ireland</td><td>Dundee United</td><td>1 March 2023</td><td>3 years, 22 days</td></tr><tr><td>David Gray</td><td> Scotland</td><td>Hibernian</td><td>14 May 2024</td><td>1 year, 313 days</td></tr><tr><td>Derek McInnes</td><td> Scotland</td><td>Heart of Midlothian</td><td>19 May 2025</td><td>308 days</td></tr><tr><td>Steven Pressley</td><td> Scotland</td><td>Dundee</td><td>2 June 2025</td><td>294 days</td></tr><tr><td>Jens Berthel Askou</td><td> Denmark</td><td>Motherwell</td><td>12 June 2025</td><td>284 days</td></tr><tr><td>Danny Röhl</td><td> Germany</td><td>Rangers</td><td>20 October 2025</td><td>154 days</td></tr><tr><td>Martin O'Neill</td><td> Northern Ireland</td><td>Celtic</td><td>5 January 2026</td><td>77 days</td></tr><tr><td>Neil McCann</td><td> Scotland</td><td>Kilmarnock</td><td>6 January 2026</td><td>76 days</td></tr><tr><td>Marvin Bartley</td><td> England</td><td>Livingston</td><td>1 February 2026</td><td>50 days</td></tr><tr><td>Stephen Robinson</td><td> Northern Ireland</td><td>Aberdeen</td><td>12 March 2026</td><td>11 days</td></tr><tr><td>Craig McLeish</td><td> Scotland</td><td>St Mirren</td><td>12 March 2026</td><td>11 days</td></tr></tbody></table>

Statistics

Championships

<table><thead><tr><th>Season</th><th>Winners</th><th>Runners-up</th><th>Third place</th><th>Tartan Boot</th><th>Players' Player of the Year</th><th>Writers' Player of the Year</th><th>SPFL Premiership Player of the Year</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2013–14</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Motherwell</td><td>Aberdeen</td><td>Kris Commons, 27 (Celtic)</td><td>Kris Commons (Celtic)</td><td>Kris Commons (Celtic)</td><td>Not awarded</td></tr><tr><td>2014–15</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Aberdeen</td><td>Inverness CT</td><td>Adam Rooney, 20 (Aberdeen)</td><td>Stefan Johansen (Celtic)</td><td>Craig Gordon (Celtic)</td><td>Not awarded</td></tr><tr><td>2015–16</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Aberdeen</td><td>Heart of Midlothian</td><td>Leigh Griffiths, 31 (Celtic)</td><td>Leigh Griffiths (Celtic)</td><td>Leigh Griffiths (Celtic)</td><td>Leigh Griffiths (Celtic)</td></tr><tr><td>2016–17</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Aberdeen</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Liam Boyce, 23 (Ross County)</td><td>Scott Sinclair (Celtic)</td><td>Scott Sinclair (Celtic)</td><td>Scott Brown (Celtic)</td></tr><tr><td>2017–18</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Aberdeen</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Kris Boyd, 18 (Kilmarnock)</td><td>Scott Brown (Celtic)</td><td>Scott Brown (Celtic)</td><td>Scott Brown (Celtic)</td></tr><tr><td>2018–19</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Kilmarnock</td><td>Alfredo Morelos, 18 (Rangers)</td><td>James Forrest (Celtic)</td><td>James Forrest (Celtic)</td><td>James Forrest (Celtic)</td></tr><tr><td>2019–20</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Motherwell</td><td>Odsonne Édouard, 22 (Celtic)</td><td>Not awarded</td><td>Odsonne Édouard (Celtic)</td><td>Not awarded</td></tr><tr><td>2020–21</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Hibernian</td><td>Odsonne Édouard, 18 (Celtic)</td><td>James Tavernier (Rangers)</td><td>Steven Davis (Rangers)</td><td>Allan McGregor (Rangers)</td></tr><tr><td>2021–22</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Heart of Midlothian</td><td>Regan Charles-Cook 13 (Ross County) Giorgos Giakoumakis 13 (Celtic)</td><td>Callum McGregor (Celtic)</td><td>Craig Gordon (Heart of Midlothian)</td><td>Craig Gordon (Heart of Midlothian)</td></tr><tr><td>2022–23</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Aberdeen</td><td>Kyogo Furuhashi 27 (Celtic)</td><td>Kyogo Furuhashi (Celtic)</td><td>Kyogo Furuhashi (Celtic)</td><td>Kyogo Furuhashi (Celtic)</td></tr><tr><td>2023–24</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Heart of Midlothian</td><td>Lawrence Shankland 24 (Heart of Midlothian)</td><td>Lawrence Shankland (Heart of Midlothian)</td><td>Lawrence Shankland (Heart of Midlothian)</td><td>Lawrence Shankland (Heart of Midlothian)</td></tr><tr><td>2024–25</td><td>Celtic</td><td>Rangers</td><td>Hibernian</td><td>Cyriel Dessers 18 (Rangers)</td><td>Daizen Maeda (Celtic)</td><td>Daizen Maeda (Celtic)</td><td>Daizen Maeda (Celtic)</td></tr></tbody></table>

As of 2025, Scotland's top-flight league championship has been won 55 times each by Rangers and Celtic. Nine other clubs have won the remaining 19 championships, with three clubs tied for third place with 4 apiece. The last time the championship was won by a club other than Rangers or Celtic was in 1984–85, by Aberdeen.

Records and awards

Biggest home win: Rangers 8–0 Hamilton Academical, 8 November 2020 Biggest away win: Dundee United 0–9 Celtic, 28 August 2022 Most goals in a game: Hibernian 5–5 Rangers, 13 May 2018 Most points in a season: 106; Celtic, 2016–17 Fewest points in a season: 21; Dundee, 2018–19 Most wins in a season: 34; Celtic, 2016–17 Fewest wins in a season: 5; Dundee, 2018–19; Livingston, 2023–24 Most draws in a season: 15; Dundee, 2015–16 Fewest draws in a season: 3; St Mirren, 2014–15; Celtic, 2022–23; Aberdeen, 2022–23 Most defeats in a season: 27; Dundee, 2018–19 Fewest defeats in a season: 0; Celtic, 2016–17; Rangers, 2020–21 Most goals scored in a season: 114; Celtic, 2022–23 Fewest goals scored in a season: 24; St Johnstone, 2021–22 Most goals conceded in a season: 78; Dundee, 2018–19 Fewest goals conceded in a season: 13; Rangers, 2020–21 Fastest goal: Kris Boyd, for Kilmarnock against Ross County, 10 seconds, 28 January 2017 Highest transfer fee paid: Arne Engels, from FC Augsburg to Celtic, £11 million, 30 August 2024 Highest transfer fee received: Matt O'Riley, from Celtic to Brighton, £25 million, 26 August 2024 Most hat-tricks: Liam Boyce and Leigh Griffiths, 4 each Youngest player: Dylan Reid, for St Mirren v Rangers, 16 years and 5 days, 6 March 2021 Youngest goalscorer: Jack Aitchison, for Celtic v Motherwell, 16 years and 71 days Longest-serving manager: David Martindale, for Livingston, 26 November 2020–1 February 2026

Top scorers

Leigh Griffiths, the Scottish Premiership's all-time top goalscorer

• Bold shows players still playing in the Scottish Premiership. • Italics show players still playing professional football in other leagues.

Rank	Player	Goals	Apps	Ratio	First	Last	Club(s) (goals/apps)	Notes
1	Leigh Griffiths	92	188	0.49	2014	2022	Celtic (90/173), Dundee (2/15)
James Tavernier	92	341	0.27	2016	2026	Rangers
3	Alfredo Morelos	78	178	0.44	2017	2023	Rangers
4	Lawrence Shankland	75	178	0.42	2013	2026	Aberdeen (0/17), Dundee United (8/33), Heart of Midlothian (67/128)
5	Odsonne Édouard	66	116	0.57	2017	2021	Celtic
Adam Rooney	66	151	0.44	2014	2018	Aberdeen
7	Kyōgo Furuhashi	63	116	0.54	2021	2025	Celtic
Martin Boyle	63	253	0.25	2014	2026	Dundee (0/18), Hibernian (63/235)
9	Liam Boyce	62	166	0.37	2014	2025	Ross County (48/99), Heart of Midlothian (14/67)
10	James Forrest	60	293	0.2	2013	2026	Celtic

Broadcasting rights

Scottish Premiership

The SPFL's domestic TV broadcast deal currently ranks 16th in Europe among European leagues.

<table><thead><tr><th>Country/region</th><th>Broadcaster</th><th>Language</th><th>Summary</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> United Kingdom</td><td>Sky Sports</td><td>English</td><td>Up to 60 live Premiership matches per season from 2024 to 2029 and the play-off final. Saturday-night goal highlights on Sky Sports News.</td></tr><tr><td>Premier Sports</td><td>20 live Premiership pre-split matches per season from 2024 to 2029 and 2 live bottom six post-split matches from 2025 to 2029. This is in addition to live Scottish Cup, Scottish League Cup.</td></tr><tr><td>BBC Sport Scotland</td><td>Saturday-night Scottish Premiership Highlights of matches from that day. Extended Sunday-night Scottish Premiership highlights with full weekend review, 30 live Friday-night Scottish Championship matches, the Scottish Premiership Play-Off quarter-final and semi-final, and every Scotland Men's National Team match matches live, until the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Friday night magazine programme A View from the Terrace. Online and social media highlights also.</td></tr><tr><td>STV</td><td>Goal clips during the sport section of their STV News at Six programme.</td></tr><tr><td>BBC Alba</td><td>Gaelic</td><td>38 delayed matches on Saturday evenings, 10 live League one matches and live Championship and League One playoff matches.</td></tr><tr><td>Worldwide</td><td>YouTube</td><td>English (N/A)</td><td>6-10 minute highlights of all Premiership matches as well as Championship, League One and League Two goals available without commentary/narration via the SPFL YouTube channel.</td></tr></tbody></table>

International

Country/region	Broadcaster
Albania	Tring Sport
Australia	beIN Sports
New Zealand
Armenia	Setanta Sports
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Estonia
Georgia
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Latvia
Lithuania
Moldova
Tajikistan
Uzbekistan
Ukraine
Austria	Sportdigital
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Arena Sport
Croatia
Montenegro
North Macedonia
Serbia
Slovenia
Brazil	Canal GOAT
Caribbean	ESPN
China	Zhibo.tv
Czech Republic	Premier Sport
Slovakia
Denmark	Viaplay
Finland
Iceland
Norway
Sweden
Germany	Sportdigital
Greece	Cosmote Sport
Hungary	Arena4
Indonesia	SPOTV
Macau
Philippines
Singapore
Ireland	Sky Sports
Israel	Sport 5
Italy	Como TV
Latin America	ESPN
Liechtenstein	Sport1
MENA	Sharjah Sports
Netherlands	Ziggo Sport
Poland	Polsat Sport
Portugal	Sport TV
Romania	Digi Sport
Russia	Match TV
Sub-Saharan Africa	ESPN
Switzerland	Sportdigital
Taiwan	ELTA
Thailand	True Sports
Turkey	TRT SPOR, S Sport
United States	CBS Sports Network / Paramount+
Puerto Rico