UEFA stand firm against Old Firm flit to Premiership

European football's ruling body UEFA has dampened any hopes Scotland's two big clubs still held of ever joining the English Premiership.

Celtic, who last week lost to Porto in the UEFA Cup final, and their city rivals Rangers have in recent years been bidding to join the elite of British football.

The thought of the Old Firm joining the Premiership is also a mouthwatering one for sponsors and broadcasters, however there is stiff opposition from some clubs south of the border and the remaining clubs in Scotland's top flight.

And UEFA chief executive Gerhard Aigner, who is set to leave his post in the near future, says that the largely "economically-driven" motives of the Glasgow giants would spell disaster for the Scottish Premier League.

"The idea of Celtic and Rangers joining the Premiership is driven by economics but the landscape for such a step is not favourable," said Aigner.

"There is nothing to be gained from allowing clubs to step out of their own league, on the contrary, there is a lot to be lost."

Aigner, who in December will hand over to Swede Lars-Christer Olsson, added: The challenge for all the clubs is to help Scottish football to become strong again, then life would be better for the fans as a whole."