How worried should Celtic be by Tony Bloom’s Hearts project?

As Hearts sit top of the Premiership and develop a connection with Brighton owner Tony Bloom, expert Alan Morrison examines how their strategy is fuelling a new rival and what this means for Celtic’s future.

For as long as it was known that Tony Bloom, the owner of Brighton and Hove Albion, was investing in Heart of Midlothian, Celtic had been warned about the hazards involved. Bloom has transformed Brighton from a modest provincial team to a true disruptor at the top level of the English Premier League.

They have also been a player trading powerhouse, capable of sourcing, exhibiting, and then selling players from all over the world at a significant profit while remaining competitive.

Last season marked the culmination of seven years of controlling interest (relinquished in 2023 to comply with UEFA multi-club ownership criteria) in one of Belgium’s grand old teams, Royale Union St. Gilloise (USG), with their first premier title in 90 years after numerous close calls.

Yes, USG outperformed the very well-run and considerably better-resourced Club Brugge. The lessons for Celtic should be stark.

Bloom not only leverages advanced analytics intellectual property to provide high-end gambling intelligence to significant players in the industry, but his collaborations with Jamestown Analytics enable cutting-edge data-driven thinking to inform decision-making at these clubs.

Specifically, the secret sauce generated inside that data ecosystem allows those teams to uncover undervalued talent in comparably undervalued leagues based on fit to a league-optimized system of play and available budgets.

Football is a simple game if you’re smart. USG under Bloom began in the second tier with free transfers and signings for less than £100,000, just like Hearts did this season. Last season, they invested €19 million and recovered €25 million.

This season, the Belgian Champions invested €17 million but earned €69 million, cashing in on their title winners. They are currently consistently competing at the highest level of the competition.

Franjo Ivanović was bought from HNK Rijeka for €4 million in 2024 and sold to Benfica for €22.8 million the following year. Do not become too connected to Bloom-driven signings.

Brighton and USG have both delivered consistent bloody noses to clubs that, when viewed through the lens of Hearts and USG, are comparable to Celtic in terms of performance.

Bloom boldly predicted that Hearts will win the Scottish Premiership within ten years. I believe he was being humble.

We’re in the second international break of the season, and Hearts lead the league by two points over Celtic, who are struggling with poor recruitment and squad management.

Bloom’s engagement, in my opinion, will have far-reaching and overwhelmingly beneficial consequences for Hearts. But the question today is whether Hearts are all that this season, under the renowned Derek McInnes.

Celtic’s season so far

Before I compare the contenders to the champs, some background on Celtic’s season so far.

When Matt O’Riley, Kyogo Furuhashi, Nicolas Kuhn, and Adam Idah leave and are replaced with, at best, project signings and last-minute free transfers, attacking potency may decrease. And you’d be correct.

Read more on Straightwinfortoday.com