It is no secret that Celtic have found it very difficult to make it to the main stage of the Champions League in recent years. In fact, they have failed to qualify for the competition for three straight seasons now, which would have been unthinkable not too long ago. But if things go according to plan, the club might be looking at the prospect of an automatic spot in Europe’s elite competition in the not too distant future.
Now, the reason for the Hoops’ struggles in Europe in recent years is two-fold. Firstly, the gap in finances between the clubs belonging to the ‘Big Five’ and the rest have only increased over the past decade or so.
Secondly, the club must bear some of the blame as well, because there have been other teams outside of the major leagues, who have managed to consistently make it into the competition. And to be honest, none of the teams that have knocked Celtic out from the qualification phase over the past three years are in a better financial position than them.
It looks like the club might not even need to go through a qualification phase in the near future though if the comments of European Football chief Lars-Christer Olsson are anything to go by. As reported by Herald Scotland, he said:
"“We think the three extra positions should be allocated in a way that more associations can be represented in the Champions League.“It must not be given to one of the ‘Big Five’ associations.“We are also of the opinion that the so-called country cap of the Champions League should stay at maximum five teams from the same association.“We actually prefer champions from Scotland, Denmark or Switzerland to qualify – rather than team number six from England or Spain.”"
More from Celtic FC News
- Celtic handed fresh injury doubt before Feyenoord game
- Celtic’s £40.7 million announcement should scare Rangers
- Brendan Rodgers makes superb claim about returning Celtic player
- BBC pundit makes sensational claim about Celtic hero Kyogo
- Kyogo Furuhashi sends clear message to Celtic doubters
This could be brilliant news for Celtic
Of course, the important thing for Celtic would be to firstly win the Scottish Premiership on a consistent basis even if this change comes into play. And as we know from this season, the Rangers are a force in Scotland after a decade of domination on the part of the Hoops.
The Champions League format is expected to undergo a change in 2024, which more than enough time to turn that around.
As it stands, qualification for the Champions League group stages can land a side in upwards of £20 million. But this number could increase significantly if the suggested format change does take place over the next few years. Rumours have suggested that making it into the competition could mean landing something around £80 million with the revised format, which would be absolutely massive for a club like Celtic.