A former EFL chairman has revealed that a secret £40m plan to move Celtic and Rangers into the English Championship was on the verge of completion before being uncovered by a newspaper reporter.
Keith Harris, who chaired the English lower leagues for six months in 2002, made the claim on the Keys and Grey Unleashed podcast. He said board members from both Old Firm clubs, along with the Scottish FA and the SPL, shook hands on the deal at a meeting held at then-Rangers chairman David Murray's house.
Deal Agreed at Murray's Home
Harris described attending a lunch at Murray's house in Perthshire, where the Celtic and Rangers boards were both present. He said there was broad agreement that the clubs would enter the Championship.
"I attended a lunch at David Murray's house in Perthshire. The Celtic and Rangers board were both there in the same house," Harris said. "David said 'I'll invite them in, but I won't host them. You can host them.' It was an interesting experience, it was certainly exciting!"
Financial Incentives and Scottish Impact
Harris claimed that a financial incentive offered to the SPL, plus the prospect of Hearts and Aberdeen regularly challenging for league titles, helped sell the deal. He said some of the extra £40m of revenue would have gone back into Scotland.
"It was quite fast moving. Between the SPL and the Scottish FA, and there was broad agreement that they would come into the Championship," he said. "It was a triumph (getting them all to agree to it). I'd like to take praise, but it wasn't that difficult. Because suddenly Hearts and Aberdeen weren't playing for third or fourth place, they're playing for first."
Plot Foiled by Reporter
Harris said the plan fell through when a journalist threatened to reveal the story. He believed the reporter was from the Observer.
"I got stopped by a journalist who said 'I've got the story.' I think he was an Observer journalist. He said 'we're going to be running this.' And that blew it, no question," Harris said. "You get some quotes going in and it died on the maypole. But it was that close."
Former Rangers striker Michael Ball previously revealed that the idea of a move south was used as a selling point to bring him to Scotland in 2001.
