"You get addicted to playing here," James Forrest

Excellent news from the club this morning as Celtic confirm that as expected legendary winger James Forrest has put pen to paper on a new one year contract that will mean that he will stay at Celtic and remain a one club player, so rare in modern football…

James Forrest is already Celtic’s most decorated player and as Matthew Marr told me earlier, he will become Celtic’s joint top ‘goals in consecutive seasons’ player if and when he finds the back of the net next season. That equals Celtic legend Jimmy McMenemy astonishing record that looked like it would never be matched. Now Jamesy is just a goal away from doing that and he refuses to rule out staying on longer which would give him the chance to beat it!

🎙️ ”You get addicted to playing here and the feeling for playing here.”

Watch the exclusive interview in FULL on Youtube ⤵️#Forrest2027 | #CelticFC🍀

— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) April 23, 2026

Martin O’Neill was singing Jamesy’s praise at the weekend after he put Celtic’s third goal – the first in extra time – on a plate for Kelechi Iheanacho to turn the tide back in Celtic’s favour before the Hoops put the game beyond St Mirren with another three quick fire finishes.

And after the match Jamesy spoke at Hampden about his wish to remain at the club as he confirmed that he would NOT play his football elsewhere. So in effective without this new contract offer, James Forrest would have been hanging up his boots after the Scottish Cup Final against Dunfermline on 23 May.

James Forrest during Celtic’s 6-2 Scottish Cup semi-final win over St Mirren at Hampden on Sunday 19 April 2026. Photograph by Vagelis Georgariou

James Forrest signs new one-year deal with Celtic…

Celtic, via the official club site, provided some details on their social media posts confirming that James Forrest has signed a new one-year deal with Celtic to remain at the club until summer 2027.

Celtic are delighted to announce that James Forrest has signed a new one-year deal which will see him remain at the club until the end of the 2026/27 season.

James, who joined the Celtic Youth Academy when he was nine-years-old, has been an integral part of the first-team squad since making his debut on May 1, 2010 when he scored in a 4-0 win over Motherwell.

Callum McGregor and James Forrest of Celtic lift the League trophy after the William Hill Premiership match between Celtic FC and St Mirren FC at Celtic Park on May 17, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Since then, he has gone on to make 564 appearances – including 36 appearances this season – scoring 110 goals and providing 112 assists, the most recent of which came in last weekend’s 6-2 Scottish Cup semi-final victory over St Mirren.

James has also scored in every one of the 17 seasons he’s been at Celtic, including this season when he netted a goal in a 3-1 win against Aberdeen just before Christmas.

And, of course, he has the honour of being Celtic’s most decorated player with 26 trophies to his name – 13 league titles, seven Scottish Cups and six League Cups.

James Forrest of Celtic after scoring the winning goal during the UEFA Champions League Play-off second leg match between Celtic and Shakhter Karagandy at Celtic Park on August 28, 2013.(Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Put simply, James Forrest is a bona fide Celtic legend.

Speaking about further extending his stay at Paradise, James said: “I’m absolutely delighted. I’ve been here my full career and I’ve loved every minute of it.

“We’ve been so successful in my time here and I’m delighted to have signed another year, and I’ll just give my best to the club for however long I’ll be here.

James Forrest and Bobby Lennox at Celtic Park. Photo Celtic FC

“While I’m still playing I can hopefully keep contributing and helping the team when I can and I’m just going to give it everything until I finish. When I do stop, I will look back on so many great memories, but hopefully I can make a few more before I do finish.”