SPL Chief: Talk of Premier league move " not helpful"

Scottish Premier League chief executive Neil
Doncaster is not even contemplating the prospect of the Old Firm
quitting Scottish football for a move south of the border.
Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell has reopened the debate by
reiterating his desire to see his club swap the SPL for the Barclays
Premier League.
The prospect of the Glasgow giants playing teams from England
is one which has been raised on a number of occasions, with both clubs
aware of the financial benefits of such a move.
The English Premier League are set to meet next month where the
possibility of a two-tier system, which could include Celtic and
Rangers, may be discussed.
But, when quizzed on the prospect of losing his two largest member clubs, Doncaster insisted: "I'm not planning for that at all.
"A huge part of the attraction in coming to Scotland and being
part of the SPL was working with so many huge names in the world of
football and clearly Celtic and Rangers are two of those.
"I'm looking forward to working with them and the other 10 clubs going forward."
He clearly did not welcome the subject being resurrected,
adding: "Any sort of speculation around that area isn't particularly
helpful.
"It's not helpful south of the border with a potential English Premier League 2 and it's not helpful north of the border either.
"The fact is that the 12 SPL clubs are where they are and the
structure of the English league is where it is and I don't see any huge
desire for change in most clubs within the UK.
"He (Lawwell) indicated that he would wait for an invitation to
join and, as far as I'm aware, no invitation has been forthcoming.
"It is a story that has been doing the rounds both sides of the
border. There has been a lot of discussion south of the border for many
years about a potential English Premier League 2 and restructuring the
English system.
"But there are no signs yet that it's any closer to being a
reality. It's all very well speculating about what might be the case
but I prefer to deal with the reality.
"We've got 12 magnificent clubs within the SPL and we are
delighted to have all 12 there, including the Old Firm, and what we
need to do is to try our utmost using those enormous brands to drive
more money and investment into Scottish football and that's what we
will be doing."
The SPL agreed a £65million deal with Sky and ESPN in July -
far less than the £125million Setanta had agreed to pay over four
seasons before the collapse of their UK operation.
And Doncaster admits the Scottish top flight is in need of a larger cash injection.
He told BBC Scotland: "I think it's important to focus on where
we are, rather than speculating about what might be the case, and that
we drive as much income as we can into all 12 SPL clubs.
"That's our remit and I think spending a lot of time talking
about what might be the case going forward isn't necessarily
productive. I'd far rather deal with the reality of where we are and
bringing investment into our game.
"We have an enormous amount of good within the SPL, we've got two world-quality broadcasters who are showcasing our product.
"We need to make sure that we get more money, both from
broadcasting and other areas, going forward and that's what we're
working on. That's the focus for me."

Earlier, Lawwell had told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Celtic and Rangers are massive clubs. Celtic certainly has a global reach.
"Our frustration is that we play in a very small market and we don't have a regular platform to tell the Celtic story from.
"We're looking for an opportunity to participate in an
environment that gives us that global exposure. And hopefully, through
time, that will come.
"If we had the TV rights value that you get in England, then there is no barrier for Celtic."

Rangers chief executive Martin Bain believes his club will move on from Scottish football within a decade.
And although Rangers would consider an English invitation, he sees a European league as a more likely scenario.
"I think there is going to be a fundamental change in football somewhere along the line," Bain said.
"We have to be at the forefront of football in order to be invited to the party.
"If the Premier League or a lower league want us and the
arithmetics are right, and it's right for the club as a brand, then
it's something we will explore."
Bain added: "There are a number of like-minded clubs like
Rangers and Celtic throughout Europe - big, big clubs playing in
smaller leagues - who are hamstrung by their environment.
"I think, as that groundswell grows, UEFA will take note of it and that will maybe lead to other things."