Celtic & Rangers to play home cup ties behind closed doors after fan disorder
August 28, 2026 13:14
Celtic and Rangers have been ordered to play their next home Scottish Cup fixtures behind closed doors after fan disorder following last season’s quarter-final meeting. Each club must also pay £100,000 to the team they are drawn against for that tie. The panel ruled a further ban could be imposed on either club’s next home cup match if there is another incident of “unacceptable conduct” by their supporters.
The sanctions relate to the scenes at Ibrox in March, when Celtic won on penalties and supporters from both clubs entered the pitch. That post-match disorder included supporters throwing fireworks and other projectiles, injuries to police officers and a number of arrests. Both clubs gave evidence to an independent judicial panel under Scottish FA disciplinary rule 37.
KEY CONTEXT
An independent review led by Mark Blackbourne, published last month, judged the March incident to have been within a very small margin of becoming a violent mass confrontation. The review found failings by both clubs and was critical of the Scottish FA for not taking a tougher stance on crowd disorder. In the past the governing bodies have typically issued fines or reduced ticket allocations for issues such as pyrotechnics; commentators and the review signalled this new sanction as a tougher approach by the SFA.
Celtic have publicly expressed surprise at the severity of the punishment, saying they were shocked at what they described as a disproportionate response given the circumstances, and noting that on that occasion they were not the home club responsible for stadium safety arrangements. The club said it will examine the panel’s report when available and then decide on its next steps.
WHY IT MATTERS
The penalties mark a clear escalation in how Scottish football authorities are prepared to deal with crowd disorder, moving beyond fines or allocation reductions to stadium closures and direct financial payments to opponents. For both clubs this has immediate sporting and financial consequences: lost matchday revenue from a closed gate, plus substantial payments to the opposing teams. The decision also raises questions about club responsibilities for stewarding and policing at high‑risk fixtures, and about how the SFA will enforce behaviour standards going forward.
WHAT TO WATCH NEXT
- The official panel report and its reasoning, which Celtic has said it will study before deciding what to do next.
- Whether the sanctions are implemented when both clubs enter the Scottish Cup in January, as is expected.
- Whether any further incidents of unacceptable conduct occur that would trigger the additional potential home match ban for either club.
KEY FACTS
- Both Celtic and Rangers ordered to play next home Scottish Cup match behind closed doors.
- Each club must pay £100,000 to the team they are drawn against.
- A second home crowd ban could follow if further unacceptable conduct occurs.
- The sanctions relate to post-match disorder at Ibrox in March after Celtic's penalty shootout win; fireworks were thrown, police were injured and arrests were made.
- An independent review led by Mark Blackbourne found the incident nearly became a violent mass confrontation and criticised failings by both clubs and the Scottish FA.