Scotland’s early exit from the 2026 World Cup group stage looks increasingly likely, prompting fresh questions about the deeper structural problems within Scottish football.
Former Arsenal and England striker Ian Wright has entered the debate, calling for a “bolder, braver vision” and claiming “somebody is letting down Scotland on a massive scale.”
Wright’s argument centres not on familiar scapegoats like PlayStations or rising pitch costs, but on undervalued broadcasting deals and unfulfilled potential at a national level.
Steve Clarke’s side have picked up just three points from three group matches, leaving their World Cup hopes hanging by a thread heading into the final stages.
Wright leaned on comparisons with Norway, a country with a similarly sized population of around five million people, to make his case.
Norway, spearheaded by Manchester City striker Erling Haaland and Arsenal playmaker Martin Odegaard, are already through to the knockout phase of the 2026 World Cup.
Despite having lower domestic attendances than Scotland, Norway have secured a broadcast rights deal that Wright says is worth £25m more per year than what Scottish football commands.
“Norway have managed to get a broadcast deal that was £25m more a year than Scotland,” Wright said on ITV, highlighting a financial gap that he believes has real consequences.
Transfermarkt attendance data shows Norwegian top-flight games averaged just over 7,000 fans per match across the 2025 season, compared to around 16,000 for the Scottish Premiership last campaign.
A Uefa report published in September last year confirmed that for the third consecutive year, Scottish top-flight attendances per capita were the highest of any league across Europe.
The SPFL committed to a £150m broadcast deal in 2022, running from 2024 until 2029, with Premiership clubs earning approximately £30m per season under the current agreement.
Scotland’s ambition is for top-flight clubs to be earning £50m a year by 2029, a figure that Norwegian clubs are reportedly already surpassing under their current domestic rights package.
Norwegian media report that from 2029, that figure is set to rise further still, to over £60m per season, widening the financial gap between the two nations.
Greater broadcast revenue would theoretically allow Scottish clubs to invest more heavily in infrastructure, facilities, and youth academies across the country.
Scottish sides have consistently lost young talent to better-resourced clubs, often from south of the border, a pattern that improved finances could help to reverse.
There would still need to be a clear pathway to first-team football, something the Scottish FA has already flagged as a significant concern in a recent report on player development.
Wright expressed sympathy for Scotland and their supporters after what he regards as a generation of missed opportunity at international level.
Judging by the social media response to his passionate comments, which came before Scotland had even played their final group game against Brazil, Wright is far from alone in his assessment.
