Every year, a new edition of the Laws of the Game are published, and a document describing any changes is released. The next edition takes effect from 1 July 2026, but competitions that begin before that date can either implement the changes early or delay them until the start of their next competition.

The 2026 World Cup starts tomorrow, a few weeks before this date, and FIFA have confirmed they will implement the changes, and so we will see these new laws in effect at this tournament.

Annual changes to the laws can sometimes be confusing for fans as the changes are often not well communicated. Those watching a match might expect a certain outcome from the referee, based on what they remember seeing in previous seasons. But actually a change in the law has occurred meaning a new outcome would be expected.

An example of this from last season would be that previously it was an automatic red card for denying a goal with a handball offence. An example of this law being followed was in May 2024, as Kilmarnock’s Joe Wright was shown a straight red card for a handball on the goal line - preventing a goal, as seen in the Sky Sports Video:

To most that watch football, this punishment seems harsh, as although he has stopped a goal, it was completely accidental. The lawmakers agreed, and so for season 2024/25 the laws were changed and an offence like Joe Wright’s (a non-deliberate handball, denying a goal) was no longer a sending off.

Therefore those that were calling for Dujon Sterling to receive a red card for denying a goal with a non-deliberate handball against Celtic in March, were likely unaware of the law change at the beginning of last season. A penalty award then was correct, but a sending off would have been incorrect - even though it would have been correct less than 12 months prior.

This is where fans, or even pundits, can sometimes fail to get their point across properly regarding refereeing decisions. There is a difference between “that should not be a red card, because the referee has misinterpreted the law” and “that should not be a red card, because I personally believe the law is too harsh, and would like to see it changed so it isn’t a red card in future”.

Who Implements Change?

The International Football Association Board (IFAB) is the organisation that writes and updates the Laws of the Game, essentially the official rulebook for football worldwide. IFAB was founded in 1886 by the four British football associations, The FA (England), The SFA (Scotland), the FAW (Wales) and the IFA (was Ireland, now Northern Ireland).

As a matter of principle, the Laws are global - the same Laws apply everywhere, and they must not be altered except where The IFAB permits modifications (for example, certain “organisational” changes at youth, disability, veterans, and grassroots level). However it is of course possible to see variations in how the laws are applied from country to country, for subjective decisions like a penalty for a handball or for forceful tackles - “you just don’t get away with those in Europe”.

Actual changes to the Laws can only be introduced during the AGM. Any football association or football body can propose a law change, but for a proposal to get to the stage where a law is presented at an AGM it must be assessed and approved by the The Board of Directors (BoD). The BoD includes the CEOs of the four FA’s plus FIFA’s secretary general.

As the yellow graphic at the start shows, The BoD are supported by the Technical Subcommittee (TSC), which includes “former renowned international referees”, including Pierluigi Collina, Mike Riley, Howard Webb and Willie Collum.

The TSC assesses and analyses potential Law changes and interpretations proposed, as well as overseeing experiments and trials approved by the Board of Directors (BoD).

Lastly, there are external advisory panels, the The Football and Technical Advisory Panels (FAP and TAP), which bring together experts from across the world of football. The FAP consists of former football players as well as former and current coaches. Their purpose is to bring expertise and knowledge to the discussions of footballing issues and the sporting aspects of potential Law changes.

That’s why we hear of “Wenger’s offside law” in the media, as he is in a position where he is able to recommend law changes - however any change would still need to be approved by the BoD.

Next Season’s Law Changes

These are the key changes that have been approved and published and will take effect next season. As fans we will first see them implemented at the World Cup, starting on Thursday!

Change 1.)
MATCH TEMPO

The IFAB approved a set of measures which build on last season’s visible countdown to enforce the goalkeeper 8-second restriction for holding on to the ball for too long, which would result in a corner to the opposition.

This will now be extended to include throw-ins and goal-kicks

THROW-INS

If the referee judges a team is unfairly delaying a throw-in, they whistle, signal the restart, then run a five second visual countdown (raised hand). If the throw-in is not taken by the end of the countdown, the throw-in is awarded to the opponents.

The referee does not need to wait for the player to have the ball before starting the countdown - it can begin if the team is delaying by, for example, slowly retrieving the ball or taking an incorrect position. If the player is already in the act of throwing as the countdown ends, the protocol says they should not be penalised.

GOAL KICKS

The goal kick version is the same mechanism: whistle, signal, then a five second visual countdown. If the kick is not taken in time, the punishment is more severe - the opponents receive a corner kick.

The feedback from 400+ trial matches before the implementation of the goalkeeper countdown last season said that there very few offences but the game was faster and that the countdown was helpful. So although we may not see many throw-ins or corners awarded to the opposition team, this is because the countdown itself has been shown to reduce time wasting.

Change 2.)

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St Mirren won the Premiership playoff final tonight at home to Partick Thistle, with captain Marcus Fraser scoring the only goal in a tight 1-0 win after the sides had drawn 1-1 at Firhill in the first leg.

The result means St Mirren avoid becoming the first team in Scottish football history to win a major domestic trophy and be relegated in the same season. Had they gone down, they would have been only the fourth club across the UK to do so, and the third in the last 15 years

A Continued Stay

The playoff final victory ensures St Mirren’s current top-flight stay will continue into a ninth season. It is the second time they have survived through the playoffs, and 2026-27 will be the Buddies’ 106th top-flight season, compared with just 24 spent outside the top division.

In 2018-19, St Mirren stayed up thanks to a penalty shootout victory after a 1-1 aggregate draw against Dundee United. Their trajectory has largely been upward since then, although this season brought their lowest Premiership finish since that campaign.

Their playoff involvement came on the back of three consecutive top-six finishes, something only St Mirren, Celtic and Rangers achieved across those three seasons.

In my analysis of their annual report, I highlighted that although St Mirren made a £727,000 profit in their latest accounts, that was almost entirely driven by UEFA income from European football.

The current season will likely produce a reduced profit or a small loss, perhaps leading to a cut in costs next year. Had they lost tonight, that cost-cutting may have been more pronounced given the drop in income in the Championship. The winners of the Championship receive £790,000, while St Mirren earn an SPFL payment of £1.7m for finishing 11th in the Premiership.

Given the Saints have become accustomed to the higher prize money paid to teams in the top half of the division, the £478,000 received for winning the League Cup in December will have been a welcome, unbudgeted bonus.

St. Mirren avoid becoming the sixth side in Scottish Football history to face relegation after three consecutive top six finishes

Thistle Wait Continues

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There will be lots of articles on the website for the World Cup, before the UEFA qualifiers and League Cup both start in July - then league action returns on 1st August 2026.

Before that though, in the first of the summary articles for last season 2025/26, I attach a “scorecard” for each team of the 42 teams in the SPFL, as well as an overall “scorecard” for each division. This includes top scorer, most common result this season, and history of finishing in that position in the division for each club.

17 of the 42 SPFL clubs finished in a league position they had not previously finished in this century, in that tier.

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SPFL Overall Scorecard

Premiership

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Article Update 21:25 18/05/2026 with additional Rangers stat

Manchester United secured a third place finish in the English Premier League at the weekend, and will return to the Champions League next season. They went in at the break 1-0 up thanks to a Luke Shaw goal, and despite Forest equalising soon after the restart, United secured the win through goals from Cunha and Mbeumo.

You may be asking why you are reading about this on a website that prides itself in detailed alternative coverage and analysis of the Scottish game.

It’s because of a very specific stat.

After the match, Opta Stats stated that this win extended a specific Manchester United streak to 400 matches. That’s 400 matches in which Man United have been leading at half time - yet have avoided defeat at full time, with 365 wins and 35 draws.

This run stretches back to August 1984. 42 years. This is genuinely incredible - in Scotland, we have numerous team where such run doesn’t stretch back 42 days!

So after reading this stat, I naturally had to find out exactly how long the same run would be for each of the 42 SPFL sides, and what’s the longest such current run in Scotland.

So here you go. The “Manchester United table” for all four divisions.

Premiership

Normally, you’d expect Celtic to lead a metric like this. They rarely lose at home, and if they do - they normally wouldn’t have been leading at half time.

Not this time.

Rangers’ 3-1 victory at Celtic Park in January came after Wilfried Nancy’s side went in 1-0 at the break. So for Celtic it’s now only a run of only five matches where they have been leading at home at half time and not lost the match. That isn’t even enough to be in the top six in the Premiership’s version of the ‘Manchester United table’

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Celtic Football Club are the 2025/26 Scottish Premiership champions, ending Hearts’ bid to end a 41-year run of Rangers and Celtic dominance at the top of Scottish football. It’s the Celts’ 56th title, as they move clear as the outright most successful club in Scottish top-tier history.

Exactly what this means for both Celtic and Hearts in Europe this summer can be found in the humongous “UEFA Qualifiers” article, which has the answer to every question you can think of.

For today, though, here are 56 stats from this remarkable season in which Celtic recorded their 56th top flight triumph, followed by a brief financial comparison of three key metrics at Celtic, Hearts and Rangers.

I’ve teamed up with ‘Boot & Ball’ to promote their Scotland national team playing cards.

It is genuinely a fantastic product, with cards featuring King Kenny Dalglish, Andy Robertson, Scott McTominay and more.

Click here to order!

SEASON STATS

1. Celtic have won the Scottish league title for the 56th time, moving one clear of Rangers on 55.

2. Celtic have won five consecutive league titles, their fourth run of at least five-in-a-row after 1904-05 to 1909-10, 1965-66 to 1973-74 and 2011-12 to 2019-20.

   

3. The Old Firm title streak has reached 41 consecutive seasons, from Celtic in 1985-86 through Celtic in 2025-26, since Aberdeen’s last title in 1984-85.

4. Celtic had not been top of the table for 232 days (26th September-16th May), the longest ever wait for a Scottish champion to reach 1st place. This beats the previous record from 1985/86, when Celtic went 204 days before overtaking Hearts on the final day.

5. Hearts had been on top of the Premiership table since 27 September 2025, except for one day in April. Rangers briefly led on goal difference on 4th April 2026, but Hearts returned to the top the following day and haven’t moved since.

6. Celtic spent just 33 days top of the league this season, the fewest by any Scottish top-flight champion since Celtic in 1985/86.

7. Daizen Maeda becomes only the fourth player

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SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster: “Saturday’s match between Celtic and Heart of Midlothian promises to be a memorable occasion and one for the history books. It’s been a title race like no other in our top-flight since the SPFL was formed in 2013, and one of the most dramatic in decades.

We’re expecting a truly compelling encounter for supporters both inside the stadium, and watching live on Sky Sports, and wish both clubs the very best of luck for this crucial match.”

Scottish football has reached a final-day showdown guaranteed to produce an outcome not seen in 40 years. There is the well-known 41-year wait for anyone other than Celtic or Rangers to win the title, stretching back to Aberdeen’s 1984/85 championship under Sir Alex Ferguson. But it has also been 40 years since Celtic last started the final day in second place and still came through to win the title.

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It will be only the third time the Scottish top-flight title has been decided on the final day by a match between two teams that could win the league, and just the sixth such occasion across all tiers of Scottish football.

The last time it happened in the top flight, Mark Hateley scored twice for Rangers at Ibrox to beat an Aberdeen side who would have taken the title with a draw. It was Aberdeen’s only defeat in their last 13 matches, while Rangers had lost 3-0 at Motherwell the week before, having also lost away to both Aberdeen and Celtic in their final 10 matches.

Season 2025/26 has undoubtedly been the most gripping top-flight title race for at least 15 years, and arguably the best overall season in that time. Hearts and Celtic have proved themselves the two best teams in the country, and they will now meet on the final day with the title on the line. It will be the 12th time in Scottish football history that the clubs have faced each other on the final day of the season and, unsurprisingly, Celtic hold the upper hand 7 wins to 2.

Hearts fans will be hoping their side can end the niche run of not beating Celtic on the final day since 1975/76, while the 57,000+ Celtic fans in the stadium will fancy their chances of roaring their team to yet another league title. But how did we get here?

This article discusses last night’s penalty before giving the stats regarding last minute winners, Martin O’Neill, Daizen Maeda and the post-split results records on offer to both Celtic and Rangers on Saturday. If you’re not yet a member here, please consider taking out a paid subscription and supporting my work, to receive full access to all articles.

Last Night’s Penalty

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Falkirk occupy 6th position, five points behind Hibs. In order to move up to 5th and take the final European place - that’s only available if Celtic win the Scottish Cup - Falkirk would have to beat Hearts and Rangers in their final two games. They’d then also need the Hibees to fail to win both of their final two fixtures. Unlikely, so it’s almost a dead rubber for the Bairns.

Furthermore, the Jambos will be up against a Falkirk side missing several key players including Scott Bain, Leon McCann, Filip Lissah, Lewis Neilson and Barney Stewart. With Hearts looking to complete their first season unbeaten at home in the top-flight since 1985/86, the game in Gorgie should be a formality. If Hearts score first, it could be a matter of “how many” - and we’ll get to the minutia detail of what each additional goal could mean come Saturday.

It does seem unlikely then that former Hearts coach John McGlynn, who spent more than a decade at Tynecastle, will be able to mastermind the downfall of Hearts tonight in front of an expectant crowd. But even if he does, it wouldn’t be curtains for Hearts yet, as Celtic can’t seal the title for themselves tonight. At worst for Hearts, it’s guaranteed to still be an achievable dream on the final day. I’ll go through all of the permutations, but first a discussion on whether this is ‘now or never’ for the boys in maroon.

Now or Never?

For many of those in the country that don’t follow a team in green and white, Hearts winning the league would be a refreshing change from the norm most have known all their lives. Celtic fans will be hoping that it’s business as usual of course, and that a squad full of players that win every year will be able to get it over the line, again. While for Hibs fans, a maroon trophy parade through Edinburgh would be a miserable way for their 150th anniversary season to end.

From my point of view, I believe a Hearts title win this week would great for Scottish football, but I think it’s more important that this type of season becomes the norm, with title races going down to the final week every year. The television deals with Sky, Premier and BBC all run until 2029 and so renegotiation discussions will probably start some time next year. If we consistently have genuine title challenges from three teams, forcing Sky into broadcasting more matches than ever before, this can only put the SPFL in a stronger negotiating position.

In March I spoke about how I didn’t believe this was ‘now or never for Hearts to win the league’, but instead it was probably ‘now or never for Hearts to win the league with fewer than 80 points’, given how poor both Celtic and Rangers had been this season.

It has been the worst season in decades - under numerous metrics - for both halves of Glasgow. It is a reasonable assumption that one, if not both, will improve next season and return to regularly reaching points tallies of 85+. However, the reason I don’t believe it’s now or never for Hearts is the recruitment process they will have in place thanks to their exclusive partnership with Tony Bloom’s Jamestown Analytics. I wrote back in May last year why I thought Bloom’s impending investment could genuinely see Hearts challenging for the title, given his track record of disrupting clubs with much greater budgets elsewhere.

If Hearts are on the same trajectory that Brighton or Union St. Gilloise were under Bloom, then there will be improvements at Tynecastle next year, too. And then the year after that. This can only be a positive thing for the Scottish game, and if we continue to see improvements at the likes of Motherwell, Hibs and Aberdeen over the coming years then it will be more than I suspect Sky Sports may not be the only broadcaster looking for a seat at the negotiating table.

Forgive me for one last act of self-acclamation, in an effort to demonstrate to new subscribers that I sometimes offer predictions of value - I point you to some basic stats I shared in October which indicated Hearts were in with a real chance of challenging for the title this season.

Even before that, I was on the Celtic Exchange Podcast with host Tino in August, and predicted that Hearts would finish second, with a coin toss needed to decide which of the Old Firm would take the title. Smarter men than me, namely Brighton fan and football finance expert Kieran Maguire and ’s have both spoken incredibly highly of Tony Bloom and the transformative effects he can have at a football club. For these people, I suspect it won’t be a shock if Hearts were win the title.

Let’s look at how this can happen this week.

Permutations for the title

Obviously for both Hearts and Celtic, if they win two games then they take the trophy. However as Hearts have a 1 point advantage going into tonight, they might not need to do that, and so all scenarios demonstrate what Hearts require to win the title.

Some of the permutations in the following graphic are simple. If Motherwell beat Celtic at Fir Park for the second time this season, Hearts are Champions tonight if they defeat Falkirk. If both teams win, then Hearts ‘only’ need to avoid defeat at Celtic Park on Saturday to become Champions.

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Always click through to the website ScottishFootball.info for the most accurate version of any article. Any mistakes that are corrected after publication will only show on the website, rendering the version in your email inbox out of date.

This is the sixth edition of the weekly SPFL Stats Packs on ScottishFootball.info, and it covers the Premiership league matches, as well as the 1st legs of the playoffs for the lower leagues. A post-match Stats Pack will be out on Thursday following the conclusion of the games.

My favourite stat for each fixture will be highlighted with a blue line at the left hand side like this.

The aim is that these stats packs will constantly evolve and improve through subscriber feedback. Please leave any comments detailing what you like or dislike. Of course please also point out any errors, even if just a small typo - I can correct these easily on the website.

If you are not a paying subscriber yet, please consider taking out a 7-day free trial to continue reading, before deciding for yourself if you think £25 per year (or £3.50 per month) is value for money. If it’s not for you, then cancel at any point before the trial ends and won’t pay anything.

PREMIERSHIP

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Always click through to the website ScottishFootball.info for the most accurate version of any article. Any mistakes that are corrected after publication will only show on the website, rendering the version in your email inbox out of date.

This is the weekly SPFL post-match Stats Packs on ScottishFootball.info, covering all four divisions. This follows the pre-match Stats Pack which is released by the Friday before the weekend’s games.

My favourite stat for each fixture will be highlighted with a blue line at the left hand side like this.

Please leave any feedback detailing what you like or dislike and of course please also point out any errors. Even if just a small typo - I can correct these easily on the website.

If you are not a paying subscriber yet, please consider taking out a 7-day free trial to continue reading, before deciding for yourself if you think £25 per year (or £3.50 per month) is value for money. If it’s not for you, then cancel at any point before the trial ends and won’t pay anything.

PREMIERSHIP

Aberdeen 2-0 Dundee United

• The four league meetings between Aberdeen and Dundee United this season finished perfectly level, with one win each, two draws and a 3-3 aggregate score.

• Aberdeen have lost just one of their last 19 home league games against Dundee United (W10 D8), and United are now winless in 11 visits since August 2014.

Aberdeen have won three consecutive home league matches to nil for the first time since a four-game run ended in April 2023.

Dundee 3-0 Livingston

• Dundee completed an unbeaten league season against Livingston, with two wins, two draws and a 10-6 aggregate score.

• Dundee are now unbeaten in seven league meetings with Livingston (W5 D2) since a 1-0 defeat in February 2022.

Dundee’s 10 league goals against Livingston are their most against them in a single league season.

• Dundee have won back-to-back home league matches to nil for the first time since November 2023.

• Livingston have won only 1 of their 19 away league matches this season.

  • That win last time out at St. Mirren was their first in 35 away Premiership matches (25 losses & 29 draws).

• Livingston have the most goals conceded in the Premiership this season (71). and have the joint-most defeats in the Premiership this season (20), level with St. Mirren.

St. Mirren 0-3 Kilmarnock

• Kilmarnock completed an unbeaten league season against St. Mirren, with three wins, one draw and a 9-3 aggregate score.

• Kilmarnock have lost only one of their last 15 league meetings with St. Mirren (W8 D6).

Kilmarnock have won consecutive league matches 3-0 for the first time since a three-game run in October-November 2010.

• For the 34th time in their history - and only the 2nd time this century - Kilmarnock have won consecutive league matches by 3+ goals.

  • Only two of those 34 have been by a scoreline of exactly 3-0; and both were the occurrences this century - in 2026 and 2010.

• If Kilmarnock win the next match 3-0 against Dundee, they will become the eighth side in history to win three consecutive matches 3-0, repeating their own feat from 2010/11.

• St. Mirren have lost four consecutive league matches without scoring for the first time since a five-game run from March to April 2015; a season in which they were relegated.

• St Mirren have scored only 27 league goals, the fewest in the division. They’ve only failed to reach 30 goals in a full top flight season four times in their history.

Falkirk 1-3 Hibernian

• Hibernian got the better of Falkirk this season, with two wins, one draw and one defeat, and a 9-7 aggregate score.

The defeat earlier in the season was the only one Hibs have suffered in their last 14 league meetings with Falkirk (W7 D6).

• Hibernian ended a three-match league losing run; their last longer losing run in the top flight was four games in April 2023.

• Since drawing 0-0 at home to Motherwell, none of Falkirk’s home games have been drawn (5 Falkirk wins & 6 Falkirk losses)

Motherwell 1-1 Hearts

• Hearts completed an unbeaten league season against Motherwell for the first time since 2016-17, and only the fifth time this century.

• Hearts have lost only one of their last 10 league meetings with Motherwell (W5 D4), going unbeaten since a 3-1 defeat in August 2024.

• Hearts are unbeaten in seven league meetings with Motherwell, their longest ever unbeaten run against the Well.

• Hearts are unbeaten in six league matches, their longest run since a 10-game sequence from May 2025 to November 2025.

Hearts have fallen behind in each of their last 4 matches, but avoided defeat in all 4 (3W & 1D). The last time they managed this was in 2005:

• 1-1 away to Hibernian; Derek Riordan scored first

• 3-2 home to Dundee United; Barry Robson scored first

• 1-1 away to Dundee; Fabian Caballero scored first

• 2-1 away to Livingston; Derek Lilley scored first

Celtic 3-1 Rangers

• The four league Old Firm meetings ended perfectly level overall this season: one win each, two draws and a 6-6 aggregate score.

Celtic became the 24th side to win its first three post-split league matches since the split was introduced in 2000-01; it is the ninth time Celtic have done so, and the first since 2023-24.

• Rangers became the 26th side to lose its first three post-split league matches since 2000-01, and the first Rangers side ever to do it.

• Rangers are now guaranteed to finish third; it will be only their fifth third-place finish since 1989, and their first since 2017-18.

  • 2005/06: Celtic 1st, Hearts 2nd

  • 2014/15: Hearts 1st, Hibs 2nd (Championship)

  • 2016/17: Celtic 1st, Aberdeen 2nd

  • 2017/18: Celtic 1st, Aberdeen 2nd

• Rangers have lost three consecutive league matches for the 16th time in their history, and the first time since October 2000

• Rangers have conceded 2+ goals in five straight league games for the eighth time in their history, and only the second time since 1987 (the other was an eight-match run from February to April 2025 last season).

• Celtic have won five consecutive league matches; their previous longer league winning run this season was five, from 29 October to 3 December 2025, during Martin O’Neill’s first interim spell.

Always click through to the website ScottishFootball.info for the most accurate version of any article. Any mistakes that are corrected after publication will only show on the website, rendering the version in your email inbox out of date.

This is the fifth edition of the weekly SPFL Stats Packs on ScottishFootball.info, and it covers only the Premiership this week given the other three leagues have completed the regular season, and are now into the playoffs. A post-match Stats Pack will be out at the end of the weekend following the conclusion of the games.

My favourite stat for each fixture will be highlighted with a blue line at the left hand side like this.

The aim is that these stats packs will constantly evolve and improve through subscriber feedback. Please leave any comments detailing what you like or dislike. Of course please also point out any errors, even if just a small typo - I can correct these easily on the website.

If you are not a paying subscriber yet, please consider taking out a 7-day free trial to continue reading, before deciding for yourself if you think £25 per year (or £3.50 per month) is value for money. If it’s not for you, then cancel at any point before the trial ends and won’t pay anything.

PREMIERSHIP

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A few weeks ago I explained how the title race could be decided by goal-difference or even a one off play-off match at a neutral venue at the end of May.

Due to the popularity of the article, coupled with how close the title race continues to be - I will update the ‘required results’ graphics each week. If you missed the article or want more detail on how it all works, then you can read it here:

Each week, I have been providing completely made-up results for the remaining fixtures in order to force several different outcomes, and displaying them in a graphic. After Hearts beat Rangers, this now removes the possibility of a playoff match between the two; as Hearts would now have the head to head advantage. Some other results, namely Rangers winning the league by any means, are now much more unlikely - but still possible.

In this week’s edition I have removed some outcomes, but included a new scenario “Still alive on the final day”; these are the results required to ensure all three teams can still win the league on the final day.

For simplicity I will record the winning margin in each match as being by 1 goal, unless more goals are required to force a certain scenario.

If Celtic or Rangers win the league, it will be on the final day. Only Hearts may have the opportunity to win the league in matchweek 37, depending on this weekend’s results.

THE SCENARIOS

1. All teams can still win the final on the final day

2. Hearts win the title on goal difference

3. Celtic win the title on goal difference

4. Rangers win the title on goals difference

There can longer be a playoff match between Celtic and Hearts or Rangers and Hearts because Hearts will always win any head-to-head. This is because they have two wins and one draw against Celtic, and three wins and one loss against Rangers.

Reminder: the determination of league position in the SPFL is by:

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It’s not just Hearts that are giving the big boys a bloody nose this season. Across Europe, 2025/26 is becoming a season of broken monopolies in many of the small to medium sized leagues. In fact, were Hearts to win the Premiership, it would only rank as the fourth rarest title in Europe this season, given three leagues have already produced first-time champions!

This article discusses the impact of UEFA prize money on competitiveness, the surprises in league winners this season, and the current seedings for the Champions League qualifying rounds.

I’ve teamed up with ‘Boot & Ball’ to promote their Scotland national team playing cards.

It is genuinely a fantastic product, with cards featuring King Kenny Dalglish, Andy Robertson, Scott McTominay and more.

Click here to order!

UEFA Prize Money Skews the Competitive Landscape

Several leagues around Europe - including ours - have either already been won, or are currently led, by ‘smaller’ clubs trying to end droughts that stretch back decades. Many fans will view this as refreshing, given streaks of the same team winning year after year have become a common part of the European landscape. Celtic are currently on 4-in-a-row league titles, after Rangers won one to interrupt their 9-in-a row. Other examples include Bayern Munich and Dinamo Zagreb who both managed 11-in-a-row, while Ludogorets did 14-in-a-row until this season.

One of the contributing factors for such streaks is that the prize money on offer from UEFA has grown year after year, and is often only attainable by only one or two clubs, especially in the smaller leagues. Those clubs can end up earning sums from UEFA which far exceed the total domestic prize pot for their entire league. This has meant that in many leagues, the teams that often qualify for the European tournaments regularly have become untouchable domestically. This becomes a difficult cycle to break because the big clubs, pumped full of UEFA cash, then win their league again, qualify for Europe again, and pull further away financially from those left in their wake.

We’ve seen that cycle in Scotland, to an extent too. Of course, Celtic already start with an in-built advantage over all others given the size of the fanbase that fills the 60,000 capacity stadium. So their financial success is not built solely on UEFA revenue. However in the years in which they reached the Champions League group stage, their financial advantage surged to levels previously not seen in Scotland.

The hoops have been able to earn more from UEFA in one season than the SPFL have to share between all 42 clubs. Then, as Champions Celtic then take the largest share of the SPFL pot (~£4.5m), and so their financial gulf grows year-on-year. I have previously argued that our distribution model is not conducive to a competitive league, and have proposed a change in the model that gives less to the top two clubs, and more to the clubs further down the league. If not an overhaul in the model that changes the percentages awarded to each place, then I’d like to see a “UEFA” tax, similar to what they have in the Netherlands.

Scotland could have a system where if a team earns a certain amount through UEFA competition, then they automatically give 5% of that back to the SPFL for redistribution to the clubs. When Celtic (or whoever the Champions are) earn £40m from Champions League, that figure alone dwarves the the entire SPFL distribution pot of £35m. I don’t believe that the Champions should then also take £4.5m of that pot. Either the Champions share of the SPFL pot should be reduced, or they should give a % of UEFA earnings back to the league for re-distribution, in my opinion.

While UEFA earnings have had an effect in Scotland, UEFA’s money can skew things even further in leagues with less revenue than Scotland - especially in countries where only one team is regularly qualifying for Europe. With Rangers, we’ve at least had two teams with a financial advantage over everyone else, rather than just one.

With the financial discrepancies witnessed in leagues across Europe, it increasingly becomes a more notable achievement for any smaller team to win their domestic league. Taking the title away from the top team - especially if they have such a pronounced financial advantage - seems completely unachievable for most clubs in Europe.

But not this year, apparently.

The Real Fairytales

The biggest ‘fairytale’ from all the ‘outsiders’ this year has undoubtedly come in Sweden. Mjällby had never won a major trophy in their history, and were in the Swedish third tier only seven years ago. In fact, they were one game away from dropping to the fourth tier of Swedish football before earning back-to-back promotions. The team is made up of mostly locally born players, and play their football in a village called Hällevik, which has less than 1,000 inhabitants.

Mjällby would have been 150/1+ to win the season behind the traditional bigger Swedish clubs such as Malmö, Hammarby, Djurgården, AIK and Häcken. However, in October 2025 Mjällby became champions of Sweden for the first time in their history, winning the tile with ease - as they eventually finished 13 points clear of Hammarby. Sweden’s top club, Malmö, finished all the way down in 6th, 26 points off the pace - despite winning eight championships in the previous 15 seasons.

Not far behind the Swedish story is the season that has unfolded in Switzerland, a league which in 2023 adopted “the Scottish model”, 12-team / 38 match split format that we’ve used here for 25 years.

Thun is a small Swiss town with a population that could fit into Hampden Park with a few thousand to spare. After five years in the second tier, FC Thun, returned to the top flight last season. In their first season back they were naturally rank outsiders for the league title, but Thun have now won the Swiss Super League for the first time in their history, with games to spare. They are already 11 points clear of St Gallen with three games left, with the big boys Basel and Young Boys down in 5th in 6th. Since the “Swiss Super League” was launched in 2003, the title had only been won by Basel, Young Boys or FC Zürich and so it’s quite incredible that the newly promoted club have added their name to that list.

Surprises, but not small teams

It’s important to note that not all of these ‘upsets’ I’ve highlighted have been caused by ‘small’ teams. In Bulgaria for example, Levski Sofia have won the Bulgarian title for the first time since 2009, ending Ludogorets dominance. Levski are not a ‘small team’ in that country though, they’ve won 27 titles and are the best supported side in Bulgaria, ahead of CSKA Sofia in second. The situation for Levski over the past two decades was one of severe financial difficulties, before being swept aside by Ludogorets, a side who have a much smaller fan base hailing from the small town of Razgrad. Ludogorets have had had substantial investment in order to build the monopoly they’ve enjoyed over the last 10-15 years.

Similarly AEK Athens lead by six points in Greece with three games to go, and they are one of the country’s biggest clubs. However they’ve only won two league titles since 1994. I’ve included Champions League finalists Arsenal on the list, who are clearly not an underdog given the hundreds of millions of pounds they’ve spent on their squad in recent seasons. However the Gunners lead the EPL with three games left, but also have no title in over 20 years. Therefore I’ve considered them ‘outsiders’ purely due to the dominance of Manchester City and Liverpool, and the length of time since they last won the league.

Sabah have done something similar in Azerbaijan, and will be the ‘newest’ club to win a title this season. Founded only in 2017, they have claimed their first league title, again with games to spare, as they are 13 points clear of Qarabag with four matches left. Qarabag had won 11 of the previous 12 championships, and so this is one of the clearest breaking of a monopolies in Europe this season.

The fourth ‘most rare’ title win in Europe would be in Scotland, if Hearts can hold on to the top spot they’ve held for most of the season. Three points ahead with three games to go, means the bookies now expect Hearts to win their first title since 1959/60. As we know, Celtic have won 13 of the last 14 Scottish Championships, but it’s the fact that nobody other than Rangers or Celtic have won any of the last 40 leagues that makes the Hearts story so astounding. “It’ll never happen in my lifetime” will be an answer given in pubs up and down the country when their mate asks them if their club will ever win the Scottish Premiership. For Hearts fans, they are close to making the seemingly impossible a reality, thanks in part to the partnership with Tony Bloom, which I wrote in detail about exactly one year ago.

Elsewhere in Europe, if the leagues ended today then in Austria we would see LASK win their first league title since 1964/65 and only their second ever, ahead of Red Bull Salzburg (8 of the last 10 titles) and Sturm Graz (won the last two titles).

In Denmark, AGF are two points clear of Midtjylland with two matches left, closing in on their first league title since 1985/86. In Romania Craiova are three points clear with three games left, chasing their first league title since 1990/91. They would do so ahead of 28 time winners FCSB and CFR Cluj, the team that’s won six of the last 15.

Another summer league saw a surprise champion, with Viking winning the Eliteserien for the first time in 1991, winning their ninth overall title by a solitary point. They won the Norwegian league one point ahead of Bodø/Glimt, who had won four of the previous five titles. Since then, we’ve seen Glimt go 3-0 up in their Champions League last 16 tie against Sporting Lisbon in March, before losing the return leg 5-0 in Portugal. Lastly the title will go down to the wire in Hungary, too. Győri ETO are one point clear of Ferencvárosi with one game left, looking for their first title since 2012/13 and fifth overall. Ferencváros have 36 titles and have won seven straight, eight of the last ten, makin it another huge upset if they lose their crown.

Impact on the Scottish Champions

What this spate of upsets means for the Scottish Champions, whoever that may be, is that potentially there might be a ‘weaker’ opponent waiting in the Champions League Playoff round.

Now, the term ‘weaker’ here is only true if you are judging the clubs on a historic or financial point of view, or judging a team on their experience of European competition. For example, LASK Linz may narrowly win the Austrian league ahead of two teams - RB Salzburg and Sturm Graz - who have more money and more experience of Champions League football.

However if LASK are the Austrian Champions - they are the best team in the country over a season, and so they are by definition not the weaker team. If Hearts win the Scottish league then of course historically and financially they are still weaker than Celtic. But would they be an easier game for the others in qualifiers, compared to Celtic? Maybe not.

So the same goes for the opponents that our Champions might face. An underdog winning the league may be the stronger team in their country over the course of a season, but they may have less European experience and more chance of seeing their squad being broken up in the summer through player sales.

The Champions League Seedings

The following graphic shows where the 40+ Champions across Europe will be seeded, as all leagues currently stand. This excludes the Champions of the top 10 leagues, as they automatically qualify for the Champions League. From this list, we can see the potential opponents that lie in wait for the Scottish Champions.

The graphic shows the four qualifying rounds, from QR1 to the playoff, and in which round the Champion of each country enters. The stage each country’s champion enters cannot change (i.e. Scotland’s champion will enter in the playoff round) - only the club name may change between now and the end of the season, and thus the seeding status (i.e. Hearts would be an unseeded team whereas Celtic would be seeded).

Round entered in is based on country coefficient, while seeded status within each round is based on club coefficient.

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The Premiership title pendulum swung in the favour of Heart of Midlothian last night, as we move into the final three match weeks in the top tier. For the next three divisions, although the regular season has now finished, some of the most exciting stories of the season are still to be written.

The first leg of the playoffs to secure status in the Premiership, Championship and League One start tonight, while the League Two playoff between Edinburgh City and the Highland League winners, Brora Rangers, plays its first leg on Saturday.

This brief article will discuss each of the fixtures in turn, before looking at how teams have fared in the playoffs since their introduction in 20xx, and how the gate money is shared - as this differs between divisions.

The minimum prize money for each team in the SPFL outside the Premiership can be viewed in yesterday’s prize money article:

PREMIERSHIP PLAY-OFFS

1st leg: Dunfermline Vs Arbroath (East End Park, Tuesday 19:45)
2nd leg: Arbroath Vs Dunfermline (Gayfield Park, Friday 19:30)

Both legs are live on BBC Scotland.

Arbroath finished 3rd in the Championship, one point above 4th-placed Dunfermline. Their league head-to-head was certainly exciting; Arbroath lost 5-0 at home in September, only to win the next two - 2-1 at East End Park in December and 4-2 at Gayfield in February. On Friday night the teams played out a much less eventful 0-0 draw at East End Park in the final match of the season.

Partick Thistle who finished 2nd in the Championship, await the winners in the two legged Semi-Finals (Tues 12th at the winners place & Fri 15th May at Firhill).

The two legged final will then be played against the Premiership’s 11th-placed side, which is currently St. Mirren - however they are only 1 point behind Kilmarnock. Both legs of the final are live on Sky Sports.

Two dates for the final have been published
1.) If it involves Dunfermline: Tuesday May 26th and Friday May 29th, as Dunfermline have the Scottish Cup Final Vs Celtic on Saturday 23rd.

2.) If Dunfermline don’t reach the final: Thursday 21st and Monday 25th May

I’ve teamed up with ‘Boot & Ball’ to promote their Scotland national team playing cards.

It is genuinely a fantastic product, with cards featuring King Kenny Dalglish, Andy Robertson, Scott McTominay and more.

Click here to order!

CHAMPIONSHIP PLAY-OFFS

1st leg: Alloa Athletic Vs Airdrieonians (Recreation Park, Tuesday 19:45)
2nd leg: Airdrieonians Vs Alloa Athletic (Excelsior Stadium, Saturday 15:00)

Both legs are live on Premier Sports PPV at £9.99 per match.

The format for the lower league playoffs differ from the Premiership playoffs in that there is no Quarter-Finals, and the team second bottom in the Championship enters at the Semi-Final stage rather than the Final. Airdrieonians finished 9th in the Championship after failing to beat Morton on Friday; while Alloa were 4th in League One. There were therefore no regular-season league meetings because they were in different divisions.

1st leg: Queen of the South Vs Stenhousemuir (Palmerston, Tues 19:45)
2nd leg: Stenhousemuir Vs Queen of the South (Ochilview, Sat 15:00)

Both legs are live on Premier Sports PPV at £9.99 per match.

Stenhousemuir finished 2nd in League One, Queen of the South 3rd. Stenhousemuir were unbeaten in the four league meetings: two 1-1 draws at Palmerston, a 0-0 at Ochilview and a 2-0 home win in January.

The winners of these two ties meet in the two-legged final, with the lowest-ranked team at home in 1st leg on Wednesday 13th May at 19:45, before the return leg at the highest-ranked team on Saturday 16th May at 17:30.

Both legs of the final are live on BBC Alba.

LEAGUE ONE PLAY-OFFS

1st leg: Forfar Vs Hamilton (Station Park, Tuesday 19:45)
2nd leg: Hamilton Vs Forfar (Broadwood Stadium, Saturday 15:00)

Both legs are live on Premier Sports PPV at £9.99 per match.

The League One Play-Offs have the same format as the Championship play-offs and so the team second bottom in League One enters here. That was Hamilton, however they suffered a 21 point deduction. Without the points deduction they were the 3rd best team in the division, which is slightly harsh for the League One sides looking to gain promotion - playing one of the strongest sides in the division. Forfar finished 4th in League Two, and so again there was no league meetings this season.

1st leg: Clyde Vs The Spartans (New Douglas Park, Tuesday 19:45)
2nd leg: The Spartans Vs Clyde (Ainslie Park, Saturday 15:00)

Both legs are live on Premier Sports PPV at £9.99 per match.

The Spartans finished 2nd in League Two; Clyde finished 3rd. Spartans had the better regular season record, after winning 3-1 away and 2-1 at home. Clyde won once at home, 2-1, and there was a 1-1 draw at Spartans.

The winners will meet in the two legged final on Tuesday 12th and Friday 15th May, with both legs legs live on BBC ALBA, with kick offs at 19:45.

LEAGUE TWO PYRAMID PLAY-OFF

1st leg: Brora Rangers Vs Edinburgh City (Dudgeon Park, Sat 9th 15:00)
2nd leg: Edinburgh City Vs Brora Rangers (Meadowbank Sat 16th 15:00)

Both legs are live on Premier Sports PPV at £9.99 per match

Edinburgh City finished 10th in League Two, after a 15 point deduction. Without the points deduction they’d have finished eighth on 39 points, well clear of the playoff spot. Brora Rangers won the Highland League and received a bye to the final after Lowland League champions Linlithgow Rose were ruled ineligible on licensing grounds. There were again therefore no regular-season meetings.

GATE RECEIPTS

The SPFL rules split the money differently depending on the competition.

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Always click through to the website ScottishFootball.info for the most accurate version of any article. Any mistakes that are corrected after publication will only show on the website, rendering the version in your email inbox out of date.

This is the weekly SPFL post-match Stats Packs on ScottishFootball.info, covering all four divisions. This follows the pre-match Stats Pack which is released by the Friday before the weekend’s games.

My favourite stat for each fixture will be highlighted with a blue line at the left hand side like this.

Please leave any feedback detailing what you like or dislike and of course please also point out any errors. Even if just a small typo - I can correct these easily on the website.

If you are not a paying subscriber yet, please consider taking out a 7-day free trial to continue reading, before deciding for yourself if you think £25 per year (or £3.50 per month) is value for money. If it’s not for you, then cancel at any point before the trial ends and won’t pay anything.

PREMIERSHIP

Livingston 0-0 Aberdeen

• Aberdeen completed the league season unbeaten against Livingston, with two wins, two draws and a 9-4 aggregate score across the four meetings.

• Livingston have only ever beaten Aberdeen in three of their 19 home league meetings; a 2-0 win in April 2004 and 2-1 victories in both February and November 2022.

• Aberdeen have only won one (D3 & L1) from their last 5 league visits to Livingston.

• Livingston are on a nine match winless run against Aberdeen (L5 & 4 D) since beating them 2-1 victory in November 2022.

This was Livingston’s seventh 2-2 draw in the Premiership this season; the most in the division since Hibs in 2023-24, with eight.

• Livingston moved on to 14 league draws this season, the most in the top-flight since Dundee with 15 in 2015-16.

• Livingston have conceded the most goals in the league this season (68).

• Aberdeen are without an away league win in 12 matches (D2 & L10) since beating Dundee 3-1 on 6 December

Dundee 1-0 St Mirren

• Dundee got the the better of St. Mirren this season, with two wins, one draw and one defeat from the four league meetings and a 4-2 aggregate score.

Dundee won both of their home league meetings with St. Mirren this season, 3-1 in November and 1-0 here; they had not done that since 2005-06 (when they beat Dundee 3-2 & 4-0 at Dens).

• Dundee ended a five-match winless league run and kept their first clean sheet in 10 league matches.

• St Mirren have won only twice in the league at Dens Park since the start of the 2014/15 season, both times in 2024.

• St. Mirren have now failed to score in 17 Premiership matches this season, the highest total in the division.

St Mirren have scored only 27 league goals, the fewest in the division and on track for their lowest top-flight total in a full season since 26 in 2007/08. They’ve only failed to reach 30 goals in a full top flight season four times in their history.

Falkirk 1-0 Motherwell

• Falkirk finished unbeaten against Motherwell in this season’s league meetings, winning three and drawing one with a 6-3 aggregate score.

This is the first time Falkirk have beaten Motherwell three times in a league season

• Falkirk have 49 points, one behind their best in a post-war season which was 50 points in 2006/07.

• Falkirk’s top-six finish is their first in any post-split season, having previously never finished above seventh achieved in 2006/07 and 2007/08.

• None of Falkirk’s last ten home league matches have been drawn (W5 & L5).

Kilmarnock 3-0 Dundee United

• Kilmarnock finished unbeaten against Dundee United in this season’s league meetings, with two wins, two draws and a 7-2 aggregate score.

Kilmarnock are on an 11 match unbeaten run against Dundee United in all competitions (7 wins & 4 draws) since losing 4-0 nearly 4 years ago (November 2022).

• Dundee United have not won a league match at Rugby Park since a 4-2 victory in May 2016, They are winless in their nine league visits since (D4 & L5).

• This is the first time Kilmarnock have gone unbeaten through a top-flight league season against Dundee United since 2001-02, when they won three and drew one.

• Since Neil McCann took over, Killie have only lost one match at home (5 wins & 1 draw). Even in the loss (3-2 Vs Celtic) they were 2-0 up at half time. Before he took over they had lost 6 out of the previous 7, with 1 draw.

Hibernian 1-2 Celtic

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The result means that for the first time this season, Hearts are the only side with the title ‘in their own hands’; if they win their three remaining matches - or even win two and draw the last - then they will be confirmed as Champions.

For Rangers, the damaging defeat means they are all but out of the title race, and are now fighting to avoid third place.

This article looks at some of the tightest title races in the history of Scottish football before explaining the European entry points for each club, as it stands.

I’ve teamed up with ‘Boot & Ball’ to promote their Scotland national team playing cards.

The cards are superb, with every one featuring a Scotland reference of some description.

Click here to order!

THE CLOSEST TITLE RACES IN HISTORY

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East Kilbride have completed back-to-back promotions after clinching the League Two title on Saturday, beating Clyde 5-0 at K-Park to confirm their place in League One next season.

It is another huge step forward for the semi-pro club which was only formed in 2010. Mick Kennedy’s side were Lowland League champions last season before reaching the SPFL for the first time through the pyramid play-off. They beat Bonnyrigg Rose 3-1 on aggregate in May 2025, drawing 0-0 in the second leg after a 3-1 first-leg win.

I’ve teamed up with ‘Boot & Ball’ to promote their Scotland national team playing cards.

The cards are superb, with every one featuring a Scotland reference of some description.

Click here to order!

Across Scottish football history, The Kilby become the 15th back-to-back promotion that involves at least reaching the third tier of Scottish football. Most of these promotions (and the relegations shown later) have been achieved this century, owing to the fact the fourth tier wasn’t created in Scotland until 1994/95. Even the third tier wasn’t a regular until league reconstruction in 1975 - the year in which 8 sides were relegated from the top flight!

COMEBACK TITLE WINS

East Kilbride’s title also came with a sizeable mid-season recovery, having trailed The Spartans by eight points on 27th January, following Spartans’ 6-0 win at K-Park. E.K would win 12 of their final 15 matches (including 7-in-a-row), while Spartans only won a further six games. While a remarkable comeback, it wouldn’t make the top 10 for overall comebacks across all divisions in Scottish football history, as these graphics will now show.

The following four graphics show the top 10 greatest comebacks by league champions in the history of Scottish football. Four different graphics are used because it is hard to compare like-for-like due to games in hand and points being worth more after 1994.

The first graphic is using “same matchday method”. This is based on both teams having played same number of games, to discount when teams had big leads due to games in hand.

Secondly, the “calendar date method” - this is more accurate as it is the actual table as it looked on each date, but includes any game(s) in hand.

Lastly, both graphics then have the league tables from before 1994 are adjusted to 3 points for a win (rather than 2), to show how impressive these early years comebacks really were.

I therefore would class the calendar date method, adjusted for 3 points to a win to be the most accurate representation of the title-winning comebacks.

SAME MATCHDAY COMEBACK WINS

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Always click through to the website ScottishFootball.info for the most accurate version of any article. Any mistakes that are corrected after publication will only show on the website, rendering the version in your email inbox out of date.

This is the fourth edition of the weekly SPFL Stats Packs on ScottishFootball.info, and it covers all four divisions. A post-match Stats Pack will be out at the end of the weekend following the conclusion of the games.

My favourite stat for each fixture will be highlighted with a blue line at the left hand side like this.

The aim is that these stats packs will constantly evolve and improve through subscriber feedback. Please leave any comments detailing what you like or dislike. Of course please also point out any errors, even if just a small typo - I can correct these easily on the website.

If you are not a paying subscriber yet, please consider taking out a 7-day free trial to continue reading, before deciding for yourself if you think £25 per year (or £3.50 per month) is value for money. If it’s not for you, then cancel at any point before the trial ends and won’t pay anything.

PREMIERSHIP

Livingston vs Aberdeen (The Set Fare Arena, Friday 19:45)

All-time league record: Aberdeen wins 22, draws 11, Livingston wins 8
At Livingston: Aberdeen wins 8, draws 7, Livingston wins 3
Top scorer in this fixture this century: Bojan Miovski - 5 goals

This fixture specifically:

• Aberdeen are unbeaten in this season’s three league meetings with Livingston (W2 D1 L0), with a 7-2 aggregate score; but that includes a 6-2 win at Pittodrie in January.

Livingston have only ever beaten Aberdeen in three of their 18 home league meetings - a 2-0 win in April 2004 and 2-1 victories in both February and November 2022.

• Aberdeen have only won one (D2 & L1) from their last four league visits to Livingston’s home ground; and the 1-0 win in November 2025 was their first there since August 2021.

• Aberdeen have won 6 of the last 10 league meetings between these sides, with 3 draws and 1 defeat.

• Livingston are on an eight match winless run against Aberdeen (L5 & 3 D) since beating them 2-1 victory in November 2022.

League-wide form:

• Livingston ended their 31-match winless run last weekend with a 2-0 victory at St Mirren - the longest continuous winless run in top-tier Scottish football history (Arbroath had a 31-match streak across separate top flight campaigns years apart)

  • The win was their first in the league since the 3-1 win over Falkirk on the second matchday of the season, on 9 August 2025.

• Livingston have just 19 points after 34 matches, on track for their lowest top-flight total since 18 in 2005/06.

• Livingston have won only one of their 18 away league matches this season (D6 & L11).

• Livingston have conceded 66 goals this season; joint-most in the division alongside Kilmarnock.

• Aberdeen have 36 points after 34 matches - their lowest tally at this stage of a top-flight season since 1999/00, when they finished on 33.

• Aberdeen are without an away league win in 11 matches (D1 & L10) since beating Dundee 3-1 on 6 December

  • All four of Aberdeen’s away wins this season came at bottom six sides between mid-October and early December (St. Mirren, Killie, Livi, Dundee).

  • This is only the 4th season this century that Aberdeen failed to win an away game against a top-six side, and all four came in the last five seasons (also in 21/22, 22/23, 24/25)

• Aberdeen have failed to score in 15 league matches, behind only St Mirren with 16.

Dundee vs St Mirren (Dens Park, Saturday 15:00)

All-time league record: Dundee wins 90, draws 46, St Mirren wins 85
At Dens Park: Dundee wins 59, draws 21, St Mirren wins 29
Top scorer in this fixture this century: Simon Murray, Toyosi Olusanya, Kenny McLean and Mikael Mandron - 4 goals each

This fixture specifically:

• It’s 1 win each and a draw from the previous 3 meetings this season, with a 3-2 aggregate score for Dundee

• St Mirren have lost their last two league visits to Dens Park, after winning the previous one 3-1 on 4 May 2024.

St Mirren have won only twice in the league at Dens Park since the start of the 2014/15 season, both times in 2024.

• Dundee have won the previous two top-flight meetings at Dens Park - which is the same number of wins as the previous 10 encounters (2 Dundee Wins, 3 Draws, 5 St. Mirren wins).

League-wide form:

• St Mirren have failed to score in 16 league matches, the most in the Premiership.

St Mirren have scored only 27 league goals, the fewest in the division and on track for their lowest top-flight total in a full season since 26 in 2007/08. They’ve only failed to reach 30 goals in a full top flight season four times in their history.

• St Mirren have won just two of their 17 away league matches this season (D4 & L11) - conceding 32 goals on the road.

• Dundee are winless in five league matches (D2 & L3), their longest such run since a five-game winless run that ended in February.

• Dundee have failed to score in 15 league matches this season, behind only St. Mirren (16).

• Dundee have gone 10 league matches without a clean sheet.

Falkirk vs Motherwell (Falkirk Stadium, Saturday 15:00)

All-time league record: Motherwell wins 75, draws 37, Falkirk wins 54
At Falkirk: Falkirk wins 34, draws 21, Motherwell wins 28
Top scorer in this fixture this century: Scott McDonald - 7 goals

This fixture specifically:

• Falkirk are unbeaten against Motherwell this season with a 5-3 aggregate score (W2 & D1) including a 3-2 win at Fir Park on 4 April.

• In fact, Motherwell haven’t beaten Falkirk in the league since a 1-0 win in October 2009 (2 losses & 3 draws since)

• If Falkirk avoid defeat on Saturday, they will complete a top-flight league season unbeaten against Motherwell for the first time since 2007/08.

If Motherwell win - then also beat Hearts - would mean the Well have beaten every team in the division for only the 7th time in their history. They’d join Rangers and Hearts in achieving the feat this season.

League-wide form:

Motherwell have kept the most clean sheets in the league (17), equalling their all-time top-flight club record set in 1931/32 and matched in 1993/94.

• Motherwell have conceded only 31 goals, the second-fewest in the division behind Hearts (29), but have won only one of their last five league matches (W1 D1 L3), conceding 9

• Falkirk have 46 points - already the third highest top-flight post-war points. Their best in a post-war season is 50 points from 2006/07.

• Falkirk’s top-six finish is their first in any post-split season, having previously never finished above seventh achieved in 2006/07 and 2007/08.

• None of Falkirk’s last nine home league matches have been drawn (W4 & L5).

• Falkirk have gone 8 league matches without a clean sheet, and have also scored in each of their last 6 league matches.

Kilmarnock vs Dundee United (Rugby Park, Saturday 15:00)

All-time league record: Killie wins 58, draws 46, Dundee Utd wins 52
At Rugby Park: Kilmarnock wins 38, draws 19, Dundee United wins 22
Top scorer in this fixture this century: Kris Boyd - 13 goals

This fixture specifically:

• Kilmarnock are unbeaten in this season’s three league meetings with Dundee United (W1 & D2) with a 4-2 aggregate score.

Kilmarnock are on a ten match unbeaten run against Dundee United in all competitions (6 wins & 4 draws) since losing 4-0 nearly 4 years ago (November 2022).

• Dundee United have not won a league match at Rugby Park since a 4-2 victory in May 2016, They are winless in their eight league visits since (D4 & L4).

League-wide form:

• Nobody has conceded more than Kilmarnock’s 66 goals - already two more than their tally for the entire 2024/25 season (64). Only in 2003/04 did they concede more in the last 30 years - 74 goals.

• Kilmarnock have won only one of their 17 away league matches this season (D6 & L10), the fewest at this stage in the last 30 years.

• However since Neil McCann took over, Killie have only lost one match at home (4 wins & 1 draw). Before he took over they had lost 6 out of the previous 7, with 1 draw.

• Dundee United have 13 league draws this season, the most in the Premiership.

• Kilmarnock have lost 18 league matches, behind only Livingston (19).

Hibernian vs Celtic (Easter Road Stadium, Sunday 12:00)

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My data on the shortlisted nominees for these awards only goes back to 2006, however I have the full list of winners since 1977/78.

For this article, I’ve teamed up with ‘Boot & Ball’ to promote their Scotland national team playing cards.

It is genuinely a fantastic product, with cards featuring King Kenny Dalglish, Andy Robertson, Scott McTominay and more.

These will make a perfect addition to the sporrans, especially for the certain 8-hour upcoming flight for many of us in June! I will share videos of the deck of cards when my pack arrives later this week!

Click here to order!

To have four nominees shortlisted and none of them to come from Rangers or Celtic is extremely rare. Thirteen years ago was the only time it’s happened since 2006, when Michael Higdon (Motherwell), Leigh Griffiths (Hibs), Niall McGinn (Aberdeen), Andrew Shinnie (ICT) were the final four in 2013.

Michael Higdon was the winner, a man who holds the distinction of not only being the only player from Motherwell F.C to ever win the award, but also the only player to be arrested after the awards ceremony for alleged assault in the Corinthian nightclub in Glasgow. After the Sunday night awards in May 2013, Higdon was due to meet journalists for a media conference at 08:30am on the Monday morning. The meeting was cancelled however, due to Higdon being remanded in the cells until 9am. The Fear.

THE FOUR NOMINEES IN 2026

Hearts strike partnership Claudio Braga and Lawrence Shankland are joined by Motherwell sensations Elijah Just and Tawanda Maswanhise. While Motherwell have had Kevin van Veen in 2023, and Hearts have had Shankland himself in 2024 as recent nominees, it’s the first time that either Hearts or Motherwell have supplied two nominees in a season.

Lawrence Shankland is the standout figure in the final four in terms of previous recognitions from the PFA. He won this very award in 2023-24, becoming the tenth non-Old Firm winner and the first since the aforementioned Higdon.

Shankland remains the only Hearts player to ever win the award.

In being nominated for the top prize for a second time, he instantly becomes one of the most nominated players in the modern era. His total of two nominations for Player of the Year can be bettered only by Callum McGregor and Steven Davis, who both have four nominations, and Kris Boyd, who has three.

Scottish players have received more nominations than any other nationality (31 nominations since 2006) and Scots have taken the award 25 times overall since 1977, so Shankland is in good company there

Shankland’s teammate and the early favourite for the award, Claudio Braga, is the first Portuguese player to be shortlisted since Pedro Mendes in 2008-09. As my data only goes back to 2006, I can’t be sure they are the only two Portuguese players to ever make the shortlist. I’d suspect the top scorer in the 1996/97 season who managed 33 goals in all competitions must have been in with a shout….

Jorge Cadete, who in 2014 was living on state benefits with his parents, was part of the 1996/97 Celtic team that finished five points adrift of a Rangers side that won their ninth consecutive title. Celtic had a sublimely talented trio in the form of Cadete, Pierre Van Hooijdonk, and Paolo di Canio - and it was the infamous Italian who took the PFA award that year. Painfully for Celtic fans, all three of them forced moves from the club that year, however it resulted in the club replacing them with Harald Brattbakk, Paul Lambert, Craig Burley and….Henrik Larsson.

Back to the present day and the two Motherwell nominees are the first representatives from their respective countries to make the shortlist; Elijah Just of New Zealand and Tawanda Maswanhise from Zimbabwe. For the league’s top scorer Maswanhise, he’s one of only three Zimbabweans to play in Scotland this century after Kundai Benyu (Celtic, 2018-2019) and Munashe Garananga (Hibs, current).

Although New Zealanders are more common in the SPFL than Zimbabweans, Just is still only one of 22 kiwis to play in Scotland this century, alongside players such as Alex Greive (St Mirren & Dundee United), Chris Killen (Celtic), George Stanger (Hamilton, Ayr & Kilmarnock) and Rory Fallon (Aberdeen and St. Johnstone).

Whoever wins the award on Sunday will take the acclaim after a fantastic season, and all four would make a deserving winner. More importantly than that, obviously, is what that means for the stats. The winner will move their club up to the joint-fourth most successful in the history of the PFA Player’ of the Year awards, behind only Aberdeen (4), Rangers (11) and Celtic (27).

TEAM OF THE YEAR

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