Celtic have surged ahead of Rangers in the latest global football power rankings, leaving their Glasgow rivals trailing significantly.
The rankings, compiled by stats specialists Opta, feature over 13,000 clubs and use a scale from zero to 100, where zero represents the worst and 100 the best.
The system is based on the Elo rating, originally designed for chess, but now adapted for various sports, including the official FIFA world rankings.
The Elo algorithm, applied to over 2.5 million games since 1990, calculates each team’s relative strength across leagues, countries, and continents.
According to Opta, the most recent update on September 21st has seen Celtic climb five places to 56th in the world, boasting a rating of 85.4. Rangers, while moving up two places, sit far behind in 120th with a rating of 82.
It’s been a brilliant start to the season for Celtic. The Hoops maintain a perfect record in the Scottish Premiership and recently demolished Slovan Bratislava 5-1 to open their Champions League campaign in style.
Their early-season form has translated into a strong global ranking, highlighting the gap between them and Rangers, both domestically and internationally.
For Rangers, however, it’s been a more challenging time. Off the field, the club is in the midst of searching for replacements for James Bisgrove, who resigned as CEO, and John Bennett, who stepped down as chairman due to health concerns.
On the pitch, it hasn’t been smooth sailing either. New manager Philippe Clement is already under pressure, with his side five points behind Celtic in the league standings.
As things stand, Celtic are setting the standard for Scottish football on both the domestic and international fronts, while Rangers are struggling to find their rhythm amidst managerial and boardroom upheaval.