Old Firm Matches: No Away Fans This Season
No away fans will be allowed at any Old Firm fixtures in this season’s Premiership or League Cup, after the SPFL moved to shut visiting supporters out of clashes between Celtic and Rangers.
The decision follows months of tension over allocations and comes in the wake of trouble between fans after the clubs’ Scottish Cup tie in March, which triggered an independent review into safety and matchday operations.
Old Firm behind closed lines
Rangers are due to host Celtic at Ibrox in the Premier Sports Cup on 13 September, with the sides then meeting again at Parkhead in the league a week later, live on Sky Sports. Both of those games – and any other Old Firm meetings in SPFL competitions this season – will now go ahead without away fans.
The move represents a sharp turn from the position both clubs had previously agreed: an away allocation of around five per cent of stadium capacity for all SPFL fixtures at Ibrox and Celtic Park.
That fragile truce did not last.
When talks turned to the September cup tie, Rangers offered Celtic 300 tickets, a fraction of the usual 2,500, after what the club described as its own assessment of the “circumstances and risks” around the game. Celtic refused to accept such a reduced allocation.
With the stalemate deepening, the SPFL stepped in.
SPFL steps in after safety review
After discussions with both clubs, Police Scotland and other stakeholders, the league board imposed a blanket ban on away supporters for Old Firm matches in its competitions this season.
In a statement, the SPFL described the move as a “temporary arrangement” designed to give Celtic, Rangers, the league, Police Scotland and other authorities the space to digest the findings of the Independent Review and put its recommendations into practice.
The league stressed that the decision is aimed at providing clarity for supporters and those tasked with organising some of the most demanding fixtures in British football, removing the constant uncertainty around whether away allocations would be cut, restored or pulled at short notice.
Safety and security, the SPFL underlined, remain the driving priorities.
The governing body also confirmed the stance is not set in stone. The position will be kept under review and could change if circumstances “materially” shift during the campaign.
Longer term, the future of away fans at the Old Firm will be decided well before the 2027/28 season. Between now and then, Celtic, Rangers and the SPFL must work out what these derbies are going to look – and sound – like in the years ahead.
