The minutes of the meeting between Celtic board members and fan groups on Monday have been released.
And one of the issues addressed at the beginning of the meeting was Celtic’s statement published on the evening of Saturday, September 7.
It came just a few days after the close of the summer transfer window and the publication of an open letter signed by over 420 fan groups and organisations.
In the statement, Celtic tried to defend their spending by using UEFA financial regulations as an excuse.
Moreover, they blamed the challenges faced during the window including inflated transfer fees for players, while criticising the media for spreading inaccurate information.
The Green Brigade branded the statement ‘condescending and insulting’, and now it’s been addressed in the minutes of Monday’s meeting.
Nicholson admits Celtic statement was ‘not well received’
Celtic CEO Michael Nicholson (MN) and chief financial officer Chris McKay (CMcK) addressed the statement and acknowledged that it had gone down badly with fans.
He then stressed the intention of the statement was not to insult fans, and reminded Celtic Fans Collective that they do not speak for all supporters as some defended the statement.
On why the statement was left unsigned, Nicholson said that that was ‘normal practice’.
The minutes on this area read as follows: “MN then addressed the statement released on behalf of the Celtic plc Board dated Saturday 07 September 2025, which was intended to address some of the specific issues discussed at the preceding meetings.
“MN and CMcK acknowledged that the statement was not well received, noting that this further highlights the importance of having these discussions with supporters to provide further context.
“The meeting also acknowledged more general concerns regarding the tone and delivery of the statement and how this was viewed by supporters as insulting. MN confirmed that this was not the intention of the statement.
“MN reminded CFC that they do not speak for all supporters and confirmed that some supporters defended the Club statement.
“When asked why there was no signature on the statement, MN declared this was normal practice and the statement was released on behalf of the board.”
What were Nicholson’s opening meeting comments?
Here’s how Nicholson opened the meeting on Monday as per the minutes. It reads: “MN acknowledged that the Club is not in a place where we would want to be and that some recent communications have not been well received by supporters.
“The Club wants to find a way forward, which allows us to seek to address concerns, while backing the team on the pitch. We respect that everyone is entitled to their view, and we would hope that we can discuss respectfully.
“We are going to have differences, but the fundamental we all share is that we want success for Celtic and we want the team to win. The Club wants to find a way forward.
“MN then asked if there were any thoughts on the meeting from the attendees.”
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