A prominent Celtic support group has issued a statement following the club's commitment to a major overhaul of its engagement.
On Wednesday, interim chairman Brian Wilson outlined plans to improve relations between the two parties, including the employment of John Paul Taylor as Head of Fan Engagement in a new role.
Fan Engagement Update pic.twitter.com/vnj2ioQyrc
— Celtic Fans Collective (@CFC_Collective) July 31, 2026
Now, the Celtic Fans Collective (CFC) has responded, praising the move, but called for more substance surrounding the club and Wilson's words.
In full, the statement said, “Firstly, the Celtic Fans Collective congratulates John-Paul Taylor on his appointment as Head of Fan Engagement. John-Paul has been a fantastic ambassador for Celtic supporters for many years, and this promotion is thoroughly deserved.
“Since our formation last summer, one of the Celtic Fans Collective's core objectives has been the establishment of a democratic Fan Advisory Board. Indeed, for at least three years before that, the Celtic Trust, one of our constituent organisations, has been engaged in detailed discussions with Celtic FC on the creation of a Fan Advisory Board. By the Club's own admission, its current approach to supporter engagement falls well short of what Celtic supporters deserve.
“A progressive, representative and democratically elected Fan Advisory Board would help rebuild trust, improve relations and ensure supporters have a meaningful voice in matters affecting them. Academic research conducted specifically on Celtic FC has also demonstrated a strong appetite for such a body among season ticket holders, shareholders and members of supporter organisations.
“However, the newly announced Celtic Connect initiative falls well short of that ambition. Any supporter engagement model designed without meaningful consultation with supporters from the outset inevitably lacks credibility. For such a model to succeed, it must be democratic, representative, and have the autonomy to help shape the agenda with the Club, ensuring the issues that matter most to supporters receive proper scrutiny.
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“To support that vision, the Celtic Fans Collective established a dedicated working group which spent months researching best practice and developing proposals for a sustainable and representative Fan Advisory Board at Celtic. We repeatedly sought to present that work to the Club on behalf of supporters clubs, fan organisations, fan media and the thousands of supporters represented within the Collective. Despite an assurance from interim Chairman Brian Wilson that he would meet with us to discuss these proposals, that commitment has yet to be honoured.
“Instead of engaging with the substance of those proposals, supporters have been presented with broad commitments to "be better", "ensure consistency", "improve responsiveness" and "drive innovation." Such corporate jargon offers little reassurance to supporters who have heard similar promises before without seeing meaningful change.
“This is the latest in a long line of assurances given by the interim Chairman that have not been honoured. He has repeatedly misled supporters through commitments that have failed to materialise. That ongoing pattern undermines both his own credibility and that of the Board, and demonstrates why any new fan engagement model cannot be designed by the Club alone. It must be developed alongside supporters from the very beginning.
“Finally, we note that Celtic FC has welcomed feedback on its proposals. With this in mind, we have today once again written to John-Paul Taylor and Brian Wilson to request an urgent meeting to discuss our own proposals for a Fan Advisory Board and the future of supporter engagement at Celtic. We hope the Club will now engage constructively, and we will update supporters in due course.”
