Rangers fans unable to attend Old Firm at Celtic over ticketing dispute | Football News
There will be no Rangers supporters at the Old Firm match against Celtic at Parkhead on Saturday December 30, live on Sky Sports.
There were no away fans at the first derby fixture this season at Ibrox and likewise at the last two league games between Celtic and Rangers at the end of last season due to a ticketing dispute over fan safety.
Rangers say that despite winning a case put to an SPFL board sub-committee which agreed Celtic’s stance of providing zero tickets to the club was unreasonable, an appropriate number couldn’t be reached due to lack of evidence submitted by Celtic.
A Rangers statement read: “It is grossly unfair that if a club (in this case Celtic) fails to submit sufficient evidence as part of such proceedings, it effectively ties the hands of a sub-committee in being able to determine what a reasonable number of tickets should be; especially when the sub-committee agrees that the reasonable number cannot be zero.
“Conversely, if a club (in this case Rangers) complies fully and provides all necessary information in good faith, it can still be penalised.
“Rangers’ position has always been clear. We want away fans from all clubs at our stadium and wish for that to be reciprocated when we travel to other clubs’ grounds.”
Celtic have told Sky Sports News they do not wish to comment.
Rangers were believed to have offered Celtic an allocation of 708 tickets for the first meeting of the season at Ibrox in September although that was turned down by Parkhead bosses due to ongoing concerns over fan safety.
Last season saw the final two Old Firm league games take place without any away supporters due to safety issues following incidents at both grounds in previous matches.
Celtic lead the Scottish Premiership by five points from Rangers who have two games in hand.
