In Pictures: Remembering the 1980 Scottish Cup Final riot that led to the booze ban in all Scottish stadiums

Ahead of the Scottish Cup semi-final 2023 this weekend, where Celtic and Rangers will square off at Hampden Park, we looked back at perhaps the most controversial and memorable Cup final match (for the wrong reasons) of the 20th century.

Back in 1980, Rangers were favourites to win the Scottish Cup over Celtic - the year saw Aberdeen win the league, so it was both teams last chance to win some silverware in the 1979-1980 campaign.

The match is most remembered for the riot that followed the close of play - which the BBC described as ‘the most infamous case of disorder’ in a Glasgow derby back in 2011.

Celtic ran out 1-0 winners after Danny McGrain hit a shot that appeared to go wide, before George McCluskey deflected the ball past the grasp of Rangers goalie Peter McCloy and into the net.

The SFA had given both Rangers and Celtic permission to parade the trophy on the pitch after the match - as they believed a recently installed 10-foot tall pereimeter fence at Hampden would be able to effectively hold back the fans. They were sadly mistaken.

Some Celtic supporters scaled the fences to join the players on the pitch in what the SFA executive committee later described as ‘a spontaneous, if misguided, expression of joy.’

It’s often said that one of the Celtic fans ran to the Rangers side, and kicked a ball into the goals - sparking a response from the Rangers side who scaled the fence themselves to scrap with the Rangers fans. Whether this is true or not is unclear, as the facts often get muddled in a riot - especially when tensions are so high between the two sides.

Only a dozen or so Police were present inside Hampden, which meant they were unable to control the rapturous fans in the slightest. Most Police were stationed outside the stadium, as that’s where trouble most often occurs - it wasn’t until mounted Police armed with truncheons ran through and seperated the crowd that the fighting was able to be stopped.

Missiles were thrown, parts of the stand were broken off and used as makeshift weapons on both sides, with Police also taking many blows from the rioters. At the end of the day 100 people were seriously injured, and 210 were arrested - around 160 of which were inside Hampden.

George Younger, the Secretary of State for Scotland, blamed alcohol and the actions of the Celtic players for the riot. An Act of Parliament was passed that banned the sale of any alcohol within Scottish sports grounds - from football to rugby to cricket. Both clubs were fined £20,000 after the events of the day.