Celtic Fans Collective – Monday Night Meeting Summary

In partnership with

The Celtic Star

·7 Oktober 2025

Celtic Fans Collective – Monday Night Meeting Summary

This afternoon the Celtic Fans Collective issued the following summary of last night’s meeting at Celtic Park between the Collective, including all the Celtic supporters organisations and the Celtic Board…

The Collective appreciates that there has been a lot of attention on this meeting with fans eager to understand how it played out. They have therefore put together this summary which will also be shared online via the social channels.

At the meeting, both the Collective and the Club took minutes. Both parties will share minutes with the other to seek agreement before sharing. If no agreement is reached then both parties will share their own version. The Collective are seeking to share full minutes as soon as possible.

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The attention and interest in the meeting unfortunately resulted in some information being leaked early. The Collective would like to apologise to you for this and have given an assurance that they are working to improve the functioning of the Collective.

Please continue to monitor emails, social media and other communication channels for updates moving forward. As always, the Collective welcomes all and any insight and input from all fans as they seek to build an important fan body and campaign for the betterment of our football club.

Celtic Fans Collective, Founded September 2025.

Celtic Meeting, Summary, 6 October 2025 | Celtic Park

Yesterday evening, (6 October 2025), the Celtic Fans Collective met with Celtic Football Club to discuss the collective concerns of the Celtic support. The meeting was to seek answers to the questions addressed to the Celtic Board in the Open Letter of 3 September 2025 which amassed over 420 signatories, as well as to understand what lessons have been learned and what changes will be made to avoid similar mistakes being repeated.

The Celtic Board. Partick Thistle v Celtic. Premier Sports League Cup. Sunday 21 September. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

Representing the Celtic Board at the meeting was Michael Nicholson, Chief Executive Officer, and Chris McKay, Chief Financial Officer. Also in attendance from Celtic Football Club was John Paul Taylor, Supporter Liaison Officer; Kevin McQuillan, Head of Commercial Operations; George Campbell, Head of Legal and Governance; and Mark Hargreaves, Head of Safety, Security and Operations.

At the beginning of the meeting, a representative of the Collective clearly laid out the context which brought us to this point and set out the Collective’s expectations of the meeting. It was made clear that the Collective expected reasonable answers to the existing questions and some form of tangible action points moving forward.

Michael Nicholson, Chief Executive of Celtic FC and Chris McKay Celtic’s Chief Financial officer look on from the stands prior to the Premiership match between Celtic and St Mirren at Celtic Park on May 17, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The Collective acknowledged that while the positions of Michael Nicholson and Chris McKay are in our view untenable, there was no expectation of agreement or progress on that during the meeting and discussions would remain respectful and constructive.

The meeting was structured by working through the questions of the Open Letter, although there was some natural deviation. A recurring theme, through all answers and discussions, was a lack of humility, awareness and accountability. At various points, the Club deferred to communication and perception being the causes of concern rather than structure, performance or culture. The Club also repeatedly questioned or rejected the premise of questions.

The Club defended its footballing strategy although accepted it could be better communicated to fans. Overall, the Club believes the football strategy is working and pointed to participation in European competition as evidence of its success.

Michael Nicholson, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Celtic, looks on prior to the UEFA Champions League match between Celtic FC and Club Brugge KV at Celtic Park on November 27, 2024 . (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Similarly, the Club defended its transfer strategy citing different factors for transfer activity being difficult (for example tax laws in different European countries) while pointing to examples which they believe is evidence of the strategy working.

The Club said that transfer business involves a multi-disciplinary model and no part of that model has ultimate authority, however did cede that there are thresholds where the the Board of Directors must authorise increased transfer payments. When pressed on this point, the Club claimed emails would be sent to Board members for authorisation where necessary.

When pressed on accountability for failings, the Club rejected the premise of the question but referred to internal reviews and the experience of long-serving Non-Executive Directors. The Club provided little evidence of independent oversight and no belief that substantive change may be required.

Celtic v St Mirren – Peter Lawwell and Michael Nicholson in the stands during the cinch Premiership match at Celtic Park, Wednesday November 1, 2023. Photo Andrew Milligan

The allegation of a senior Club official briefing against the Manager to The Sun was described as “closed” by Michael Nicholson. The Club was unwilling to divulge much information although claimed a conversation took place between the Board and the Manager. The Club suggested that the allegation was unsubstantiated and did not require further investigation.

In conclusion, the Collective expressed disappointment that the Club remained unwilling to engage meaningfully on questions of leadership, governance, and accountability. The meeting produced no tangible outcomes, and many participants left with the view that the Club’s leadership remains detached from the concerns of its supporters and reluctant to confront the need for change.

Peter Lawwell, Michael Nicholson and Chris McKay applaud during the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Livingston at Celtic Park on August 23, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Full minutes of the meeting will be published as soon as possible.

The Celtic Fans Collective will continue to consult with members to plan next steps in our campaign for positive change at Celtic Football Club. It is our strong belief that yesterday’s meeting compounded the necessity and urgency of change.

Summary of Celtic Meeting (06/10/2025)
– Selasa, 7 Oktober 2025

Please add your own comments below and we’ll post the minutes as soon as they are available.

Celtic in the Eighties and Willie Fernie – Putting on the Style both by David Potter. Photo The Celtic Star

Danny McGrain has signed the remaining batch of David Potter’s outstanding final book Celtic in the Eighties so hurry to get your signed copy!

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Danny McGrain signing copies of Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter. Photo: Celtic Star Books

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