Away allocation confirmed for Celtic vs Rangers in Scottish Cup as verdict made on potential eight-year first
The allocation debate has resurfaced ahead of next month’s Old Firm Scottish Cup tie.
A decision has been made on Celtic’s allocation for their upcoming Scottish Cup fixture against Rangers at Ibrox.
The ticket row began at the start of the 2017/18 season, when Rangers cut Celtic’s away allocation, which prompted the Hoops to follow suit when The Light Blues came to Parkhead. Before the feud, Celtic would get an allocation of 8000 in Govan, giving them the entire Broomloan Stand behind the goal, while Rangers would receive a similar portion at Celtic Park.
Since then, a tit-for-tat argument has persisted between the Old Firm sides, with even at one stage no away fans being allowed in either ground at all. While agreements have now been reached to give each team a 5% away allocation of approximately 2,500 to 3,000, the traditional rules of the Scottish Cup allows teams to request up to 20% of the stadium’s capacity, something Celtic have now taken full advantage of.
Celtic reclaim Broomloan Stand for Old Firm cup clash
According to The Daily Record: “Celtic fans WILL be given the full Broomloan Stand at Ibrox for next month’s Scottish Cup quarter-final showdown with Rangers. Record Sport understands the clubs have thrashed out a deal for the March 8 clash - and it means Hoops supporters will be given around 7,500 tickets for the entire section.”
Celtic did exercise their right to ask for the full 20% however it was always going to be unlikely they’d be granted the full 10,000. It will be the first time since March 2018 the stand will be covered in green and white. On that day, the Hoops emerged victorious in a five-goal thriller.
Despite the constant toing and froing, the general consensus between fans, players and managers alike is that the allocation should go back to what it was. When the draw was made, Hoops boss Martin O’Neill was hoping Celtic would be given the whole stand, to help bring back the atmosphere to one of world football’s fiercest rivalries.
‘I would want all the tickets we can get’
He said: “Just being a Celtic supporter, I would want all the tickets we can get – the allocation that's available to us under the rules. I assume that would be forthcoming. I thought that the Old Firm fixture lost a little bit in the sense that the full allocation was not given, for whatever reason.
"I don't know historically what it was. I've got kind of an idea, but it doesn't really matter. That did lose a little bit of one of the great fixtures in European football, if not the world. But at least there's some fans coming back and it makes a bit of a difference. To get the full allocation as we did, going to Ibrox and having the side to the left full of Celtic fans, was always gratifying."
The Old Firm sides will face off twice in the space of a week at Ibrox, with Rangers and Celtic also playing each other in the league on March 1. With both fixtures in close proximity time-wise, it will be easier for both clubs, as well as the police to analyse whether it’s feasible for the allocation to revert back to what it was for future derbies.