13th September 2026; Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow, Scotland; Scottish League Cup Football, Rangers versus Celtic; Brian Wilson and Michael Nicholson of Celtic
Celtic Supporters Limited has been manning the X/Twitter barricades all through the weekend.
On Saturday the CSL voting intentions for the 2026 shook up the peace and quiet of the international weekend.
In contrast to the SACK THE BOARD mantra of many fans the CSL will be voting to reappoint key members of the current board.
Michael Nicholson, Chris McKay, Brian Wilson, Sharon Brown and Brian Rose will get the backing of the CSL.
Crucially they won’t be backing the reappointment of Dermot Desmond and Mark Keane.
There is method in this but many fans have the blinkers on over the decisions on Nicholson and McKay.
CSL know as well as anyone their multiple failings. Nicholson and McKay have no future in a modern Celtic. But they could be of limited use over the next 12 months.
Uniting fan shareholders with their lost shares ?
Takeover Panel – Rule 9 legal work ?
Growing a fan shareholding block ?
Members group focused on corporate governance at our club ?
Helping fans understand that their shareholding matters and has power ?
Challenging the club on better corporate governance and making change ?
Full strategic plan on how we benchmark the board and the custodians of the club on all metrics of the club/company ?
— Celtic Supporters Ltd (@celticCSL) November 15, 2026
Our Celtic Paradox paper scored Celtic’s governance 1.2 out of 5 against a peer average of 4.1. We stand by every word of it. But the paper’s case was never about swapping names. It was about how power sits on this board: one shareholder chairing the committee that picks directors and sitting on the one that sets their pay, no published strategy, and shareholders kept out of the conversation. Voting out an individual director fixes none of that.
Something has also changed this year. Over 300 shareholders signed our resolution to trace the supporters who bought shares between 1995 and 2003 and reunite them with what they own. The board did not fight it. It backed it unanimously, and the directors will vote their own shares for it. That is supporter shareholders using the proper channel and getting a yes.
A protest vote against every director would not remove anyone. Director votes at Celtic are decided by the largest holdings, not by supporters’ proxies. It would make one headline, and it would tell the board that working with supporter shareholders earns nothing. We would rather spend our votes where they change something.
So we vote where the problem is:
- We withhold on Dermot Desmond and James Mark Keane, the significant shareholders on the committees that choose directors and set their pay.
- We vote FOR a published 3 to 5 year plan, which the board opposes.
- We vote FOR a full review of security operations at Celtic Park, which the board also opposes.
- We vote AGAINST new Articles that would let a meeting restart online with no guarantee of live questions.
For every other director, our vote is a one-year mandate with three conditions, which we are putting on the record now:
- Publish the strategic plan.
- Make the Nomination and Remuneration committees independent.
- Answer shareholders’ questions in full, at this AGM and every one after.
We will rescore the board against those three conditions before the 2027 AGM and vote on the result. If they have not moved, our votes will.
CELTIC BOARD IN THE CROSSFIRE
Initially it is difficult to understand any circumstances in which anyone would vote to reappoint Nicholson and McKay.
The CSL vote won’t impact on the vote to re-appoint but they are encouraging Nicholson and McKay out of the bunker. As CEO and CFO they have significant roles. They could start to act independently, they could act in the best interests of the club rather then blindly follow instructions from afar.
The reprieve lasts for 12 months. The CEO and CFO have the opportunity to do their jobs.
CSL has encouraged them to follow up the backing for their Resolution to employ Georgeson to track down dormant shares.
If Nicholson and McKay wish to continue as they have over the last five years they will come under fire.
The choice is up to the £1.5m a year Executive duo.
Two men who haven’t had an original thought or idea throughout their entire tenure on the Celtic pay-roll.
@Celtic_Anon1 We want a seat at the table as shareholders: to finally hold this board to account and bring back the challenge that disappeared from Celtic’s governance years ago.
You don’t get that by shouting from outside. You get it with votes, resolutions and questions on the record.
— Celtic Supporters Ltd (@celticCSL) November 15, 2026
Thanks for the article Paddy, we have offered to arrange a meeting and discuss our strategy, our plan and what our record is.
Not sure if some people want us to share our personal and work diaries on X to get something booked in, usually offering an email to book a meeting is more than enough, it certainly has been with many fan media outlets as well as MSM.
— Celtic Supporters Ltd (@celticCSL) November 15, 2026
