Canada Arab Channel
Canada Arab Channel
  • NEWS
  • Canada Arab Press
  • CANADIAN ARABIC COMMUNITY SERVICES
  • WEATHER
  • TRAFFIC
  • PODCAST
  • SPORTS
 Scottish Premiership table: Updated 2022 SPFL standings for title, relegation, Champions League & Europa Conference League battles
Sporting News

Scottish Premiership table: Updated 2022 SPFL standings for title, relegation, Champions League & Europa Conference League battles

by Adam Said April 9, 2022

There are plenty of key places up for grabs in the Scottish Premiership with just two months of the season left.

The league is approaching its final game before the split, which will then see the top six and bottom six separated and booked in to face off over the final five games of 2021/22.

Despite Rangers being comfortable champions in 2020/21, their grip on the title looks in danger of slipping away and into the hands of bitter rivals Celtic. Ange Postecoglou’s side currently possesses a commanding lead at the top with six games remaining, as well as a far superior goal difference than their Glasgow adversaries. 

Elsewhere, there’s a race for European places, and to avoid being relegated to the Scottish Championship. A snapshot of each race follows below.

Tables updated as of April 8

Scottish Premiership title race and Champions League qualification

We have an interesting Scottish Premiership title race on our hands this year – one that many prominent faces within Scottish football didn’t predict. Rangers won the league at a canter last time out, going unbeaten and finishing 25 points clear of downtrodden rivals Celtic under Steven Gerrard. 

Fast forward a year, and Ange Postecoglou has his Hoops side sitting six points clear at the top with six games to go, most recently defeating Rangers at Ibrox in a pulsating 2-1 victory. 

Reo Hatate Celtic

Celtic also have a convincingly superior goal difference at the time of writing, though will meet their rivals again at Parkhead after the split. The exact timeframe of this fixture is yet to be scheduled, though it could have a significant bearing as to where the destination of the Scottish Premiership trophy lies this season. 

The eventual title winners will gain huge rewards in both a footballing and financial sense, as they are all-but certified to enter the UEFA Champions League group stage phase due to Scotland currently being 9th in the UEFA coefficient rankings.

This scenario will happen as long as the 2021/22 Champions League winners also qualify from their league, with only Villarreal currently still in the competition and outside of the Champions League slots in their domestic top-flight.

Meanwhile, 2nd place will retain a shot at the Champions League by entering in the second qualifying round. 

Rangers could also enter the group stage if they win the Europa League, of which they are in the quarter-finals.

Place Team Points Games played Goal difference Next match
1. Celtic 79 32 +52 St Johnstone (H), April 9
2. Rangers 73 32 +36 St Mirren (A), April 10

Europa Conference League qualification and battle for top six

The 3rd- and 4th-placed sides in Scotland will enter the Europa Conference League at the third and second qualifying rounds, respectively, in 2022/23. Heart of Midlothian look very likely to finish in 3rd due to being 14 points ahead of Dundee United.

Such is the competitive nature of the Scottish top-flight this season, any team from 4th down to 10th place could well get themselves into European contention if they can guarantee a top-six finish on the last matchday before the league splits in two. The bottom six teams will be divided into their own section of the league, thus making them ineligible to secure continental qualification.

Just four points separate Dundee United in 4th and St Mirren in 10th place.

Craig Gordon. Incredible. @jallanfilms pic.twitter.com/95Mg5uqsX8

— Heart of Midlothian FC (@JamTarts) April 3, 2022

Scottish Cup winners and potential scenarios

There also could be further European drama, as the winners of the Scottish Cup will qualify for the Europa League playoff round. Hibernian and local rivals Hearts will compete in the semi-finals, playing either Celtic or Rangers on May 21 in the trophy decider.

If either Celtic or Rangers were to win the Scottish Cup, the Europa League playoff position would be granted to the best-placed league finisher and create a drop-down effect.

Hearts would likely claim the Europa League berth as they are all-but certain to finish 3rd, securing continental group-stage football for the first time since 2004/05 as they would drop into the Europa Conference League group stage if they were to suffer defeat in the playoff round. 

In that case, 4th and 5th would assume the league path Europa Conference League qualifying slots.

Place Team Points Games played Goal difference Next match
3. Hearts 54 32 13 Hibernian (H), April 9
4. Dundee Utd 40 32 -6 Dundee United (H), April 9
5. Motherwell 39 32 -12 Livingston (A), April 9
6. Hibernian 38 32 -4 Hearts (A), April 9
7. Ross County 37 32 -8 Aberdeen (A), April 9
8. Livingston 37 32 -8 Motherwell (H), April 9
9. Aberdeen 36 32 -3 Ross County (H), April 9
10. St Mirren 36 32 -16 Rangers (H), April 10

Scottish Premiership relegation battle

St Johnstone and Dundee are both guaranteed to finish in the bottom six and currently occupy the bottom two places, in 11th and 12th, respectively. 

The bottom-placed side at the end of 2021/22 will be relegated to the Scottish Championship, with Dundee being given a 95% chance of going down according to football prediction experts FiveThirtyEight.

A late equaliser from Dundee’s Danny Mullen!#cinchPrem | @DundeeFC pic.twitter.com/wztWFrFMyR

— SPFL (@spfl) April 4, 2022

The second-bottom side – St Johnstone at present – will be thrust into a two-legged playoff against the Scottish Championship playoff winners to fight for the right to play Scottish Premiership football the next year.

Ross County, Livingston, Aberdeen and St Mirren may well be brought into the picture for the relegation playoff if they fail to secure top-six football. 

Place Team Points Games played Goal difference Next match
11. St Johnstone 30 32 -16 Celtic (A), April 9
12. Dundee 24 32 -28 Dundee United (A), April 9

Why does the Scottish Premiership split in two?

There are many disputed reasons as to why the Scottish Premiership elects to split into two for the final run-in. Officially, it is to prevent the need for a 44-fixture calendar which would see every team play each other four times over the duration of a campaign. 

It prevents congestion in an already jam-packed calendar, although it has received mixed reactions over the years from fans. Extensive league reconstruction talks were held in 2020, however, no such agreement was reached, meaning it will stay in place for the foreseeable future.

Previous post
Next post

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Copyright © 2025 Qoxag. All Right Reserved.