UEFA chief executive Gerhard Aigner has told the Old Firm that the barriers to keep them in Scottish football are still very much in place.
The commitment of Celtic and Rangers to the Scottish game has come under intense scrutiny following the collapse of the Scottish Premier League's plans to set up their own television channel.
The Old Firm voted it down, prompting the chairmen of the 10 other SPL clubs to accuse them of having ulterior motives.
A move to a more lucrative league elsewhere is known to be at the top of their wish list, although both clubs have insisted they have no plans to leave in the near future.
But Aigner, who was in Glasgow to preside over the handing back of the Champions League trophy ahead of next month's Hampden Park final, insisted it could not be done anyway.
He said: "For them to leave Scotland we would have to revamp the structure of European football.
"Clubs can't just jump from league to league, but this is speculation because there has been no approach from either club.
"We hope the Scottish clubs could develop within their own context, that would be better.
"It would need at least two associations to put it to us, but it would be against present statutes.
"This is a development that we would not receive positively in general terms."
PA