Celtic chairman calls for unity with the fans ahead of planned fixture boycott

Martin Macdonald

• 6 Feb 2026 07:01 CST
• 4 min read

Nieuws

Celtic chairman Brian Wilson has called for all supporters to become united ahead of a planned boycott of the Scottish Cup fixture against Dundee on Saturday.

A large portion of Celtic fans have been extremely critical of the board over the last few years and things have reached boiling point in the 2025/26 campaign.

This season, it all began with a dismal summer transfer window which led to increasingly poor performances on the pitch, with manager Brendan Rodgers eventually leaving. Iconic boss Martin O'Neill was brought in on a interim basis before Columbus Crew boss Wilfried Nancy was brought in.

Nancy proved to be a total disaster and was sacked in the January transfer window, with O'Neill being brought back again to steady the ship.

In the January transfer window, Celtic were expected to spend to address key flaws within the squad. In the end, not a penny was spent as they relied on a flurry of loan deals to bolster the squad.

Title challengers Hearts and Rangers, meanwhile, both shelled out money on new signings.

That has led to a planned boycott of the next match which followed the closure of the transfer window, tomorrow against Dundee.

Wilson spoke to Celtic TV and made pleas for unity.

"I don't expect suddenly all the issues to go away," he said. "What I've asked for, and what I think the great majority of Celtic supporters want to see, is unity behind the team.

"Let's sort out these other issues - and in no way am I dismissing them or marginalising them. Short term, it's imperative to support the team.

"It's up to each individual to decide whether a boycott inside the stadium or outside the stadium helps that. That's for people to judge.

“What I can say is that I do accept there hasn’t been enough engagement as I would have liked over the past month for a range of reasons, but mainly because of the focus of the transfer window.

“What I can say is that we have reached out to all fan groups and we hope these meetings will take place over the next week.

“There is no reluctance on my part to engage and I hope that can be put that into practise soon.

“Unity in the ground is one thing. We won’t agree on everything to do with these issues but we can talk about them.

“But don’t let it distract from what’s going on inside the stadium. That’s all I’m asking for.

“What I want to see is a full Celtic Park with a great atmosphere and everyone getting behind the team.”

Celtic fans are demanding the removal of certain members of the board like Chief Exective Officer Michael Nicholson, while shareholder Dermond Desmond, who wields the most power at the club, is also in the firing line.

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