Billionaires Investing Big into Scottish Football
Why Celtic plc Could Be the Next Major Takeover Target in Scottish Football
Back in 2012, President Trump took a serious look at acquiring Celtic plc (LSE: CCP)’s long-time rival Rangers F.C. and had plans to rebrand Ibrox Stadium as Trump Ibrox to help promote his Trump International Golf Links Scotland. President Trump’s mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, was born and raised in Scotland, so he was naturally excited about the possibility of owning Rangers. Unfortunately, Trump was forced to back out after full due diligence revealed that in 2012 Rangers carried total outstanding liabilities and claims exceeding £134 million.
In 2025, after years of mismanagement and financial distress, billionaire U.S. healthcare tycoon Andrew Cavenagh teamed up with 49ers Enterprises, the investment arm of the San Francisco 49ers, to acquire a 50%+ majority stake in Rangers.
Also in 2025, Tony Bloom, the billionaire owner of sports-data analytics firm Starlizard, acquired a 29% stake in Heart of Midlothian F.C., the club Celtic plc (LSE: CCP) defeated in the final match of the season to become the 2025/2026 Scottish Premiership Champions. Interestingly, his newly issued shares came with no voting rights.
The Foundation of Hearts (FoH), a private group of Hearts FC supporters, holds a 75.5% voting majority and a 53.6% economic interest in the club, giving them total control and making it impossible for Hearts to be acquired by wealthy U.S. sports investors or private equity money.
Tony Bloom also owns 100% of Brighton in the Premier League, which paid a record-breaking fee of €29.50 million to Celtic plc (LSE: CCP) in August 2024 for Matt O’Riley. Brighton was recently valued at $910 million, yet remains largely unknown outside of Britain.
📈 The Investment Case
With billionaire investors backed by NFL and Premier League money acquiring stakes in Celtic’s two top competitors, the odds are high of Celtic becoming a takeover target in the near future. Celtic is tightly held, with few shares available on the public market, whether in London under the symbol CCP or in the U.S. under the symbol CLTFF.
| Scenario | Enterprise Value / Revenue |
|---|---|
| Suggested Buy Zone | < 2x |
| Near-Term Target | 3 to 4x |
| Buyout Range | 5 to 10x |
Unlike last year’s Rangers transaction, where Andrew Cavenagh / 49ers Enterprises acquired their stakes directly from private investors without bidding for smaller investors’ shares, for Celtic’s largest shareholder, billionaire Dermot Desmond, to sell his stake, the buyer would be required by law to bid for all of Celtic.
Under the UK City Code on Takeovers and Mergers, crossing the 30% voting-rights threshold in a UK public company (PLC) triggers a mandatory requirement to launch an all-cash offer for all remaining shares.
One of the many reasons we initially became excited about Celtic plc (LSE: CCP) / CLTFF, and first suggested it exactly two years ago at £1.40 per share, is that it was managed by Brendan Rodgers, who previously managed Liverpool, the Premier League club partially owned by Highlander Silver (TSX: HSLV) Chairman Richard Warke.
In December 2025, Brendan Rodgers sold out to Saudi Arabia, abandoning Celtic for a 5x larger salary to manage Al-Qadsiah. To his credit, since moving to Saudi Arabia for a $15 million salary, Rodgers has achieved 18 wins, 6 draws, and only 1 loss in his first 25 matches. No other Saudi Pro League club earned more points or scored more goals than Al-Qadsiah during this period. In January 2026, Al-Qadsiah defeated Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr 2 to 1.
Celtic’s largest shareholder, billionaire Dermot Desmond, made the mistake of believing he could replace Brendan Rodgers with a manager from the MLS. Although he hired the very best manager the MLS has to offer in Wilfried Nancy, who won the 2023 MLS Cup, reached the CONCACAF Champions Cup final, and won the 2024 MLS Coach of the Year award, Celtic plc (LSE: CCP) / CLTFF operates at a totally different level of quality above all MLS clubs, and no MLS coach is qualified to manage Celtic!
After losing 6 of 8 matches, including a 3 to 1 loss to Rangers, Wilfried Nancy was sacked on January 5, 2026. Celtic then brought its legendary former manager Martin O’Neill out of retirement as interim manager, having not managed the club since 2000 to 2005. O’Neill won 87.5% of his Celtic matches this season and led the club to its most epic comeback in club history, securing a record 56th league championship, the most league championships any sports organization has won in world history!
Martin O’Neill being hired as permanent manager for next season is the most bullish news possible for Celtic. Not only do they have their most successful manager in club history back in charge, but because he has signed for only one season with an option for a second, Dermot Desmond is likely to feel tremendous pressure to sell Celtic for $1 to $2 billion within the next 12 to 24 months.
Past performance is not an indicator of future returns. NIA is not an investment advisor and does not provide investment advice. Always do your own research and make your own investment decisions. NIA’s President has purchased 75,000 shares of CCP and intends to buy more shares. NIA’s President has purchased 125,000 shares of HSLV and can buy or sell shares at any time. This message is meant for informational and educational purposes only and does not provide investment advice.