Inside guide to Celtic’s ban on fan media

Tino Callaghan of the Celtic Exchange has delivered a run through on the events that led to no fan media outlets attending Wilfried Nancy’s first media conference as Celtic manager.

Ange Postecoglou and Brendan Rodgers both had separate media conferences with fan outlets such as websites and podcasts when they were introduced as the new Celtic manager.

There is a case to be put up for different arrangements for a mid-season appointment when time is at a premium.

The real issue however is that no fan websites were at the general pre-match media conference with Nancy.

Celtic attempted to treat it as business as usual yesterday except it wasn’t as usual. Two fan media outlets are usually permitted to ask one question at the end of a conference with Sky Sports, Radio Clyde and STV leading the way.

THE CELTIC REVIEW

Apparently Celtic are ‘currently reviewing fan media arrangements’. They didn’t tag on ‘that this was unconnected to recent protests’. It wasn’t needed. Anyone capable of using a smart phone can join the dots.

Fan media has been reluctantly tolerated since the summer of 2021. It was introduced by Dom McKay and clamped down by Michael Nicholson.

Many fan media outlets think that it is progress to be on a rota getting an invite to a media conference every five or six matches.

Others such as Video Celts has no interest in being part of a box ticking exercise. Celtic clearly pander to their favoured legacy media partners such as the Daily Record, Herald/Evening Times, Sun, Daily Mail and a few other stragglers.

There is virtually nothing to be gained from being on the rota. Outside of it you can call out events any way you see it.

CELTIC FANS COLLECTIVE

Recently almost all fan media outlets have signed up to the Celtic Fans Collective.

Their aims are fairly clear. It includes the removal of the current CEO, Chairman and CFO. There is no disguising those aims. It is rather naive to think that there will be no reaction to that stance.

The Collective aren’t asking for tea and biscuits to iron a few issues out. They want rid of three key wage earners at Celtic.

Fan media outlets that agree with that can hardly get upset over not asking a question at a media conference.

The Collective are all in. It’s not a minor issue.

Not getting access to ask a question then be ushered out the door is no big loss. Every site will survive that ‘blow’.

After discussing previous fan media access at 4 minutes Tino explained

This time however there has been a change of plan. It may purely be a timing thing, I get it that with Wilfried Nancy it is a timing thing, a lot going on between now and Sunday.

I understand as well that the World Cup draw will take place later today, around 5pm. And there may be amore formal unveiling of the new manager next week.

However, the plan as it stands is, a standard pre-match press conference will take place at 1.30pm today at Lennoxtown which will therefore be very unlikely to be conducted around a Michael Nicholson or a Paul Tisdale type.

It won’t and can’t be a grand unveiling. It is at Lennoxtown first of all. Celtic generally bring in the new guy into the Number 7 restaurant, the Kerrydale or something like that. That’s where they do that kind of thing.

So , I don’t think that we will see Tisdale or Michael Nicholson today. It will probably be just Nancy himself, or possibly, quite likely put Callum McGregor alongside him as club captain.

However, a very interesting twist on all of that is a couple of fan media groups in the shape of Celts Are Here and Celtic Star, they were down to attend this today as standard, as part of a regular fan media rota but they’ve since been told by the club, not long ago, in the last hour, to stand down as they are currently, quite unquote, reviewing fan media access.

I don’t have any more information on that at the moment, we may hear more moving forward but to be honest with you it is not a great look at all.

Wilfried Nancy, his first time in front of the mics and no fan media there at all.

Is this setting the correct tone for the Nancy era? I don’t think so and I hope that it isn’t going to be the way they do but let’s see what happens in the coming days on that.

We might be invited along to meet him next week at Celtic Park as normal but we might not.

And if we are we might get to ask some valid questions, you would hope that the full fan media would get to do the same.

I might get answers to my Paul Tisdale data driven theory but until then we will all just have to sit tight on that one.

Don’t hold your breathe for a Nancy conference before Wednesday’s UEFA agreed one to preview the Roma match.

Martin O’Neill and Brendan Rodgers delivered their verdicts on Shin Yamada, Hayato Inamura and Jahmai Simpson-Pusey. There are sound reasons that no English clubs outside of Exeter will employ Tisdale. The self style Football Doctor.

NON COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

Celtic have no wish to engage with supporters, their so-called Communications Manager makes that clear every day of the week. Communications starts and ends with trying to get supporters to buy things. Nothing else matters.

This is the club that manufactured their AGM to abort it before the CEO answered a question.

Where the CEO took over four years to be interviewed by Celtic TV, it lasted four minutes. It said nothing.

A club that has suspended 300 Season Ticket holders because they have a video of 80 fans leaving their seats to go to the stadium concourse.

A club where the Head of Operations hasn’t said aword in public since his appointment in October 2024.

BUILDING BRIDGES?

Any fan media outlet that thinks that they can build bridges with the executives and board are living in complete denial.

Nicholson’s scripted AGM interview did promise improved communications. A new app, an update for Celtic TV and possibly a membership scheme are on the way.

Haud me back and let me get on the fan media rota.

And don’t forget the attempt last year of a virtual sale of plots of the pitch at Celtic Park!