The architects of two of Scottish football’s great escape acts, former Celtic chief Fergus McCann and ex Hearts chair Ann Budge, have been recognised in the New Year Honours.
McCann, the man who dragged Celtic back from the brink of oblivion, has been made a CBE. Budge, who performed a similar miracle in Gorgie, becomes an OBE. The honours cap remarkable tales of rescue and rebirth at two of the country’s biggest clubs.
The pair’s inclusion headlines a list packed with Scottish sporting and cultural figures. Lisbon Lion and European Cup winner Jim Craig is also made an OBE, while New Seekers singer Eve Graham receives the same honour.
McCann’s place in Celtic folklore is secure. In 1994, with the club hours from bankruptcy, the Stirling born Canadian businessman bought a controlling stake and cleared the debts. He then masterminded the rebuild of Celtic Park and put the club on a stable financial footing. “I had a responsibility to the supporters to make sure their money wasn’t wasted,” he told BBC Scotland back in 2016. His CBE is for services to the economy and charity.
Across the M8, Ann Budge’s OBE recognises a stunning rescue act at Hearts. The club was in administration in 2013 after the chaotic reign of Vladimir Romanov. Budge put up £2.5m of her own cash, worked with the Foundation of Hearts, and has since established the Jambos as the UK’s largest fan owned club. She also delivered the new main stand and introduced a living wage. She stood down as chair earlier this month with Hearts sitting pretty at the Scottish Premiership summit.
For Celtic legend Jim Craig, the OBE adds to a medal haul that includes the European Cup and seven league titles. The defender, who later became a dentist, was a key part of Jock Stein’s immortal ’67 side that conquered Europe.
The broader list features a host of Scots from all walks of life, from forensic scientist Prof Lorna Dawson now a Dame for her work on high profile murder cases ,to the Royal Botanic Garden’s retiring chief exec Simon Milne, who gets a knighthood.
For the football world, the honours for McCann and Budge serve as a permanent reminder of how close two institutions came to collapse and the individuals who had the vision and nerve to save them. Their legacy isn’t just silverware, but the very survival of the clubs themselves.