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Scottish football coefficient crisis: just seven wins from 29 European games this season

Celtic and Hearts are still recovering from another disappointing night in Europe - and the results leave the Scottish Premiership drifting further away from the European spotlight.

By Mark Pirie · Belfast Live

Published: Friday, 23 October 2026 at 9:56 AM

Key Things to Know

Celtic fell to a third straight Europa League loss against Celta Vigo, worsening Scotland's coefficient ranking crisis.
The defeat leaves Celtic 35th out of 36 teams in the Europa League phase.
Scotland has dropped to 21st in UEFA's coefficient standings after being overtaken by Sweden.

The Story in 60 Seconds

Celtic suffered their third consecutive Europa League defeat after falling to Celta Vigo, leaving the Scottish champions 35th out of 36 clubs in the competition's league phase. The loss compounds a disastrous continental campaign for Scottish clubs, pushing the nation down to 21st place in the UEFA coefficient rankings after Sweden moved ahead.

Mark Pirie reports that Scotland is heading toward its lowest coefficient tally in nearly a decade, severely damaging future European qualification berths. Scottish clubs have registered only seven wins in 29 European matches this season, leaving the nation well adrift of the crucial top-15 threshold required to secure five European places.

Read the full article on Belfast Live

Scottish football coefficient crisis: just seven wins from 29 European games this season

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