THERE is no such thing as a sure bet in sports. But it’s hard to
get much closer than Glasgow Celtic’s chances of winning the
Scottish Premier League (SPL) next year. The SPL has never been
known for its competitive balance—since its inception in 1998
only two clubs have won the league title—but the 2012-13 season
looks like a foregone conclusion before it even begins.  The two
sides that have split the league’s 14 titles evenly between them
are Glasgow Celtic, who have won 73% of their SPL games, and
Glasgow Rangers, with 69%. The “Old Firm” clubs’ fierce rivalry
has been the league’s principal attraction. However, in February
Rangers declared bankruptcy. And on July 13th Scotland’s
football clubs voted to relegate them to the country’s bottom
division, ensuring that they cannot return to the SPL until the
2015-16 season.  Like most clubs today that are not subsidised
by a profligate owner, Rangers have consistently spent more on
payroll than they could afford in order to keep pace with
Celtic. In the 11 yea