Conference League is ON as Rangers and Celtic as well as Hearts and Aberdeen given Lowland League green light

Lowland League clubs have green-lit plans for a Conference involving Rangers, Celtic, Hearts and Aberdeen B teams to be established at tier five of Scottish football.

The new division is set to come into play for season 2024-25 - and the Old Firm and Hearts colt teams are to be invited back for another year in the Lowland League to bridge the gap. That was the outcome of an indicative vote at this week’s meeting of the Lowland League board where the proposals - outlined in a pyramid working group paper last week - were discussed.

Seven clubs were in favour of the move with six against and three abstaining. It means the pyramid working group have been given the go ahead to negotiate with the SPFL over the make-up of the division. Record Sport told last week how the Conference would be funded by the Premiership sides taking part and established as a separate company meaning there would be no need for the statutory SPFL rule of 75 per cent approval to vote it in.

Discussions will now centre around the size and workings of the Conference - with either a 10 or 12 team division in the pipeline involving the four B teams and a selection of sides from the Lowland and Highland Leagues. The Highland League is understood to be lukewarm on the proposal with only a couple of clubs interested in playing a part.

But that won’t stop the formation of the new tier from which the Premiership B teams would be barred from winning promotion to League 2. Run as a separate company to the SPFL it would look to exploit commercial rights for the benefit of its member clubs and, with added financial might, would be able to offer parachute payments to clubs relegated from League 2.

However the proposal was slammed by Darvel boss Mick Kennedy last