The 2025/26 Scottish Premiership season produced one of the most dramatic finishes in the league's history. Celtic clung on to win a fifth consecutive title by just two points, snatching it from Hearts in the dying minutes of the final day. Now, as the 2026/27 campaign kicks off, the question is familiar but far from settled: can anyone stop Celtic making it six in a row?
Last Season's Dramatic Finale
To understand this season's storylines, you have to revisit last May. Hearts had led the table since September and looked set to end the Old Firm's 40-year stranglehold on the Scottish title. But Celtic came from behind to beat the Jambos 3–1 on the final day, finishing on 82 points to Hearts' 80. Rangers, meanwhile, slipped to a distant third on 72 points — their first finish outside the top two since 2018.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celtic | 38 | 26 | 4 | 8 | 73 | 41 | 82 |
| 2 | Hearts | 38 | 24 | 8 | 6 | — | — | 80 |
| 3 | Rangers | 38 | 20 | 12 | 6 | — | — | 72 |
| 4 | Motherwell | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | 61 |
| 5 | Hibernian | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | 57 |
That two-point margin was agonising for Hearts. It was the closest a team outside the Old Firm had come to the title in decades — and the fallout has reshaped the entire league.
Celtic: The Machine Rolls On
Martin O'Neill, 74, returns for another full season in the Celtic Park dugout. The legendary manager came back for a second spell in January 2026, initially on an interim basis, and guided the club to that nerve-shredding title. Now confirmed as permanent manager, he'll look to extend Celtic's extraordinary run to 14 titles from the last 15 seasons.
Celtic's squad remains formidable. Callum McGregor continues to captain the midfield, Alistair Johnston provides defensive solidity, and Kieran Tierney — who returned to Glasgow in his twilight years — adds experience and quality on the left. Paulo Bernardo has established himself as a key creative force, while Benjamin Nygren leads the line.
The Opta Supercomputer gives Celtic a 55.36% chance of winning the title — more than double any rival. The bookmakers agree. But Celtic's relative vulnerability last season, when they conceded 41 goals and lost eight league matches, suggests the gap is narrowing.
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Rangers: The Great Rebuild
If last season's storyline was Hearts' near-miss, this season's belongs to Rangers. New manager Derek McInnes arrived from Tynecastle with a point to prove — and he brought reinforcements. Rangers poached Hearts' captain and top scorer Lawrence Shankland, midfielder Cammy Devlin, and essentially gutted the team that almost beat them all to the title.
Shankland has been named Rangers captain, a statement of intent. Add Dan Neil from Sunderland, Ben Godfrey on loan from Atalanta, Serbian midfielder Vanja Dragojevic (signed for around £4m from Partizan Belgrade), goalkeeper Ivor Pandur from Hull City, and defender Olwethu Makhanya, and Rangers have had a genuinely transformative summer.
McInnes knows Scottish football inside out. He took Aberdeen to second place and a League Cup title during his first managerial spell in Scotland, and then came within minutes of delivering the championship to Hearts. With Rangers' considerably greater financial muscle behind him, the 26.35% title probability the Opta model gives him feels about right — this is the most credible Rangers challenge in years.
Hearts: Starting Over
Losing your manager, your captain, your top scorer, and your best midfielder — all to the same rival — would devastate any club. Hearts face exactly that situation as Wouter Vrancken, the Belgian who was named Belgian manager of the year after his work at Genk, takes the helm at Tynecastle.
Vrancken has a reputation for developing young talent and playing progressive football, but he inherits a squad that needs wholesale reconstruction. The Jamestown Analytics group, who advise the club, have reportedly recommended double-digit signings. Whether Hearts can find adequate replacements for Shankland and McInnes' tactical nous will determine if last season was a breakthrough or a one-off.
The Opta model gives Hearts an 11.86% chance of winning the title — still the third-highest probability, but a far cry from the team that led the league for eight months.
The Rest of the Pack
Motherwell finished a creditable fourth last season but face upheaval of their own. Swedish manager Alfred Johansson replaces the departed Jens Berthel Askou (who moved to Toulouse), and key players Elijah Just and Elliot Watt have also left. It's a rebuilding job, but Motherwell's track record of punching above their weight is well established.
Hibernian have the squad to push for fourth, according to most analysts, but manager David Gray faces growing supporter frustration after inconsistent results. The Edinburgh derbies against a weakened Hearts side could define their season.
Aberdeen endured a miserable 2025/26, finishing ninth with just 40 points. Manager Stephen Robinson has responded with eleven summer signings, including goalkeeper Marius Müller from Wolfsburg and forward Toyosi Olusanya from Houston Dynamo. Early signs are encouraging — Aberdeen won all four of their League Cup group matches — but the Dons need to prove they belong in the top half again.
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The Newcomers
Two promoted sides bring fresh energy to the Premiership. Falkirk return to the top flight for the first time in 15 years, having earned back-to-back promotions under veteran manager John McGlynn. They've lost star player Calvin Miller to Hearts, but the feelgood factor is real. St Johnstone are back after winning immediate promotion from the Championship, though history suggests newly promoted sides face a tough adjustment.
Kilmarnock are worth a mention too — not as newcomers, but because Rugby Park has finally ditched its infamous plastic pitch for a proper grass surface. It's a change that could alter the dynamics of away trips to Ayrshire.
Prediction
Celtic will win the Scottish Premiership again. O'Neill's experience, the squad's depth, and the sheer momentum of five consecutive titles make them incredibly hard to dislodge. But this could be the season Rangers genuinely push them — McInnes has assembled a squad with genuine quality, and Shankland gives them a proven goalscorer who knows exactly what it takes to win in Scotland.
Hearts will drop back to third or fourth as the post-McInnes rebuild takes time. Aberdeen should improve, and Falkirk's fairytale is worth watching — though survival will be their primary aim.
The Old Firm duopoly may feel inevitable, but last season proved that it can be challenged. Whether the challengers can sustain it over 38 matches is the question that makes Scottish football worth following.
Sources
This post was researched using the following sources:
- ESPN — 2026-27 Scottish Premiership Preview
- FotMob — Scottish Premiership 2026/27 Preview
- Opta Analyst — Scottish Premiership Supercomputer Predictions
- Football Today — Rangers 2026/27 Preview
- Sky Sports — Scottish Premiership Transfer Window Tracker
- SPFL — Premiership Transfers Summer 2026
Cover image: Celtic Park interior, Guillaume Gogo via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.