SPFL rules out overturning Celtic stance on tickets for next Old Firm clash
The SPFL has ruled out overturning Celtic’s stance on tickets for their upcoming derby following a complaint from Rangers.
Rangers had rejected Celtic’s condition that they must exclude the Union Bears ultras if they are to receive their away allocation for the crucial William Hill Premiership encounter on May 10.
Celtic’s decision followed violent scenes after their recent Scottish Cup win at Ibrox, when more than 100 Rangers fans, many from the section housing the Union Bears, charged towards the Broomloan Stand after visiting supporters spilled on to the pitch to celebrate.
One of the subsequent arrests made was for an alleged assault on a Celtic member of staff and player.
Both clubs have been giving each other allocations of about five per cent for league games, roughly 2,500 tickets, following a long-running dispute which saw away fans locked out for a spell.
An SPFL board sub-committee has refused to intervene in the latest row, although it observed that it was “extremely regrettable” that the two clubs had been unable to reach an agreement between themselves.
The committee noted that the home club were responsible for safety and security and that the SFA-commissioned independent review into the scenes that followed the cup clash had not yet been completed.
A statement read: “The sub-committee then determined that, based on the evidence presented, it would not overrule a risk assessment carried out by the party legally responsible for the safety and security of the event, or interfere with the mitigation measures it considered to be necessary.
“Having reached that conclusion, the sub-committee confirmed that five per cent of the stadium was a reasonable allocation.”
The statement noted that the allocation remains on offer to Rangers if they accept the condition.
An SPFL spokesperson added: “We have been consulting with all clubs for months regarding the rules in this area and had achieved consensus that the current deadline of 14 days before a match for a referral to the SPFL board is insufficient to allow a proper forensic analysis of the circumstances.”
A resolution is set to be tabled at the league’s annual general meeting that would bring the deadline forward to 35 days before the fixture.