WHO IS CELTIC’S MAIN CHALLENGER AFTER RANGERS TAKEOVER? COULD HEARTS EMERGE AS A NEW THREAT?
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- 4 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Ok, I’m going to open up here with a bit of a controversial statement. Here we go:
Tony Bloom’s 10 Million Pound Investment in Hearts will Have a Bigger Impact on Scottish Football Than The Rangers Takeover
There I said it. Let the ridicule commence!
Actually, before you get ripped into me in the comments, let me elaborate a little on my rationale for coming to this conclusion.
First of all, Tony Bloom has more money than any of the people involved in the Rangers takeover. Yes, we know that 49ers Enterprises have a stake in turning things around at Ibrox, but their role, as stated by the 49ers owner himself, will only be advisory.
The vast cash reserves available to The San Francisco 49ers (who as an NFL franchise operate in a completely different financial universe to almost anyone in world football) will not be made available to Rangers.
Bloom’s full investment in Hearts will be made available to strengthen the infrastructure of the Edinburgh club. I expect a significant amount of it will go towards players.
Meanwhile, The Govan Dodgers’ new chairman, Andrew Cavenagh, wouldn’t be drawn on how much of the 20 million pounds of fresh capital (which is coming from a share issue, and not his or the 49ers’ own pockets), would be spent on strengthening the team on the park.
Next, let’s look at the potential for tie-ups.
Whilst any link to the 49ers Group will give Rangers access to new potential revenue streams and marketing opportunities, this is Andrew Cavenagh’s first foray into football, and he doesn’t have the contacts and connections that Tony Bloom does.
In addition to his role as Chairman and majority shareholder at Brighton and Hove Albion, Bloom also has substantial investments in Belgian side Union Saint Gilloise and Australian A-League Side Melbourne Victory. There are also rumors currently circulating that Bloom is looking to invest in a French Ligue 1 team.
The collapse of a recent TV deal, coupled with many French teams chronically overspending to try and keep up with Paris Saint Germain, has left several French clubs in financial distress and seeking fresh investment.
However, I think for Hearts fans, Union Saint-Gilloise is perhaps the most interesting example of Bloom’s transformative potential.
Belgian football has, historically, had 4 big clubs: Anderlecht, Club Brugge, Standard Liege and Genk. Standard have struggled in recently years, and have been largely superseded by Gent as Belgium’s 4th “big team”.
However, USG were barely even heard of outside of Belgium until a few years ago. Last month, they won The Belgian Premier League for the first time in 90 years. In terms of a shock result, this is comparable to someone like Hearts, Hibs or Aberdeen winning the Scottish Premiership.
Now, will Hearts win the league? No, they won’t. The 10 million pound investment, plus maybe some loan players from the squads of the clubs mentioned above will make Hearts a much stronger club. However, Celtic will, quite possibly, spend more than that on one player this summer.
We are on a totally different financial level to the entirety of Scottish football.
However, Tony Bloom’s investment in Hearts could put them a lot closer to Rangers. Depending on just how much austerity (and I’ll emphasize again that austerity is the only way the Rangers takeover makes any financial sense) Rangers new owners decide is needed, they could be drawn into a genuine scrap for second place with a rejuvenated Hearts.
Celtic need to be careful, complacency could see us come under pressure from both Hearts and Rangers next season. However, I still believe we will, ultimately, come out on top in the Championship.
However, the battle for second could be absolutely fascinating. I think Hearts just might edge it.
Overall, whatever happens, I’ll confidently predict that by the end of next season, Hearts will have strengthened their standing in Scottish football, compared to last season, more than Rangers will have.
Feel free to bookmark this, and let’s see where we are next May.
