SD Scotland Index

In 2017 we released the first version of our work on the governance and ownership of clubs in the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL).

This built on a Working Group Report on Supporter Involvement in Football Clubs (made up of the SFA, SPFL, Supporters Direct Scotland, Scottish Government and Sportscotland) which provided recommendations on reducing barriers to involving fans within their clubs. Some of these recommendations were ultimately not accepted or pursued by clubs, but are still regarded by SD Scotland as good practice, and have been used as the basis for the SD Scotland Index.

The Index has since been expanded to include Highland League and Lowland League clubs, and the Scottish Women’s Premier League clubs. It provides an overview of each club’s approach to Fan Engagement and Transparency, and also examines the Ownership of the clubs. The information gathered within the Index has been sourced through publicly accessible records such as Companies House and clubs’ websites.

The Index was inspired by the work of the Raith Supporters Trust who have provided updates on ‘Who Owns What?’ at Raith Rovers for a number of years. Alan Russell, SD Scotland Executive Director and Chair of the Raith Supporters Trust said:

“It can be difficult to really understand who owns our football clubs. Club ownership structures can be complex – none more so than my club Raith Rovers – and it can be confusing and time consuming to find accurate and up-to-date information. We often hear soundbites in the media about new investors and takeover deals, and only discover later that the true picture is not as simple as we thought.

Through this work we have tried to keep things simple and transparent without losing sight of the crucial details. We will update the information periodically so that this remains as accurate as possible, and encourage anyone to use this as the first port of call if they want to know more about their club’s ownership and governance.”

If you have any corrections to the data provided, please contact us at