A major development in the Old Firm ticket dispute has been hailed by Rangers manager Philippe Clement and Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers.
The agreement to allocate about five percent of Ibrox and Celtic Park for away fans during league games between the Glasgow rivals starting in the upcoming season was revealed by the Scottish Professional Football League on Friday lunchtime.
Rangers broke up the long-standing tradition in 2018 of having 7,500 fans travel across the city on derby days, reducing that number to roughly 10% of the total. Celtic was bound to follow suit.
Due to safety concerns, neither team was willing to take tickets for each other’s venues. Celtic also turned down Rangers’ request for tickets to the game on December 30, leaving the SPFL powerless to impose ambiguous rules regarding away allocations.
A deal has been struck that will allow between 2,500 and 3,000 away fans to attend games starting in the following season, but not the final two matches between the front-runners for the Premiership this year.
Rodgers is hoping that this development would result in the return of the customary away fan allocations for Rangers games. “This is fantastic news for everyone,” he declared. “This club has definitely supported it for a number of years.
It’s due of the supporters and the fixture’s iconic quality. Therefore, getting 2,500 fans into the stadium is crucial, and ideally that number will rise as well.
“The players on the field and the fans in the stands are what actually make the game, especially in this particular fixture. Thus, this is quite exciting news that comes just in time. Celtic’s goal was never to alter it, so if it can
Clement applauded the news as well. The Belgian claimed that “everyone loves football with two sides if fans sing towards each other and to have this atmosphere.” “Nobody relished the Covid era when there were no supporters.” That was quite challenging.
It was also quite unusual for me to play at Celtic Park without any of our own fans—that was something I had never done before. It was an unusual encounter. Football, in my opinion, is about having both sides in the stadium, and that is what every manager, player, and fan wants.
From my perspective, it is a really good thing because it is entertainment provided by two teams.
Both clubs will provide “around five per cent” of the tickets, according to the SPFL. The statement continued, “This will take effect from the Scottish Premiership season 2024–2025, subject to all necessary requirements being satisfied at both Ibrox and Celtic Park.
” “It has no bearing on the two league matches that remain between the clubs in the 2023–24 season, which will continue to have no admission for away fans.”
Ibrox has a 50,817 capacity, whilst Celtic Park can accommodate 60,411. The arrangement was struck, according to Rangers, “after input from both clubs, the SPFL, local authorities, and the league’s broadcast partners.” The statement from the club further stated: “Mimicking the UEFA European match model, both teams will be obligated to allocate five percent of their stadiums to the away team for Old Firm games only starting next season, but this will not effect the two remaining league derbies this season.
Rangers has long supported having away fans attend these games, and this change will allow a substantial portion of our fan base to cheer on our team at Parkhead in future seasons.
Alternative seating arrangements for impacted supporters in the Broomloan Stand have been identified, according to the Ibrox club.
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