The ongoing ticket allocation saga surrounding the Glasgow Derby has taken a new turn, with Celtic once again declining their small allocation of around 700 tickets for the upcoming match on September 3rd.
This decision comes after Celtic declined tickets for last season’s final Glasgow Derby. The reason for this refusal is clear and justified: the safety of Celtic fans cannot be guaranteed at Ibrox Stadium.
CeltsArehere has been informed that on the previous two visits to Ibrox, SEVEN Celtic fans have been injured due to being hit by glass bottles thrown from the above tier. This is a serious safety concern that cannot be ignored.
When Celtic sought assurances over fan safety and requested a larger allocation back in March of this year, the conversation with Rangers did not progress at all. As it stands today, Celtic cannot in good conscience accept tickets for a stadium they refused to attend in May, as nothing has changed regarding the safety of their supporters.
Rangers, on the other hand, are demanding their away tickets for the reverse fixture at Celtic Park. Celtic’s stance is clear: there will be zero away supporters inside Celtic Park until Rangers address the safety issues in their away section – a fact that Rangers seem unwilling to accept.
Rangers have stated that they will write to the Scottish Football Association (SFA) to secure Celtic tickets through official channels. While this may appear to be posturing by their new chief executive, James Bisgrove, Celtic’s position is sound.
Reliable sources have informed CeltsAreHere that Rangers are planning to install a net around the away section to minimise the risk of away supporters being struck by objects – something The Celtic Star first picked up on earlier this week. While this is a welcome initiative, it also highlights the fact that Rangers are aware of the safety dangers in that small away section.
Furthermore, if Rangers take the matter up with the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the fact that a net is going to be installed works against their argument in the short term. The net will not be in place by September 3rd, and Celtic will only hand Rangers their allocation back once the safety of their supporters can be virtually guaranteed.
This is not even going into the safety concerns or the embarrassing nature of which 700 Celtic fans need to be almost smuggled into Ibrox 3 hours before kick-off by security to make sure of their safety heading into the ground.
Despite what the SPFL rule book states, which only requires clubs to allow a ‘reasonable number of away fans’ into stadiums, a reasonable number at Celtic Park for the derby in December would be zero, under the current circumstances.
The safety of fans should always be the top priority, and Celtic’s decision to decline their ticket allocation is a responsible and necessary action to protect their supporters. Until Rangers take concrete steps to ensure the safety of all fans attending the Glasgow Derby, Celtic’s stance is both justified and commendable.
This entire ticket allocation saga has become a melodrama of the Ibrox club’s own making. There was no sound reasoning behind cutting Celtic’s old allocation, other than the fact that they could not stand the sight of Hoops supporters and sometimes players in the stands celebrating. It’s petty stuff from the Ibrox club, and it has only served to diminish the unique atmosphere that the Glasgow Derby is known for.
The derby atmosphere has always been a unique selling point of the game and Scottish football. Reducing the allocation from 7,000 to a mere 700 supporters greatly diminishes the atmosphere and the derby itself. The Ibrox club’s decision to cut Celtic’s allocation was short-sighted and has only created tension and animosity between the two clubs.
