Celtic and Rangers have each been sanctioned by the Scottish Football Association, with both clubs ordered to stage their next home Scottish Cup tie without spectators after violent scenes marred last season's quarter-final meeting at Ibrox.
The punishment stems from disorder following Celtic's penalty shootout victory in March, when fans from both sides invaded the pitch and clashes broke out. Fireworks and missiles were thrown, police officers were injured, and dozens of arrests were made in the aftermath.
An independent judicial panel, appointed to examine the incident, concluded that the trouble came within a "very small margin" of escalating into a serious and potentially deadly confrontation, warning that "crushing" and "life-threatening violence" were narrowly avoided as supporters clashed on the pitch. The review, led by Mark Blackbourne, pointed to shortcomings on the part of both clubs and also criticised the SFA itself for previously failing to adopt a firmer stance on crowd disorder.
Both Celtic and Rangers had been charged under the SFA's disciplinary rule 37, covering unacceptable conduct at matches, and each admitted the charge at a disciplinary hearing held at Hampden Park on 13 August. As part of the ruling, both clubs must also pay £100,000 in compensation to their opponents to cover lost gate receipts from the closed-doors fixtures.
The sanction will apply only to each club's next home match in the competition, meaning the practical impact may not be felt immediately given the pair are not due to meet again in the Scottish Cup until at least the fourth round in January 2027, when Premiership sides enter the tournament. The two rivals do, however, face each other twice in the coming weeks in other competitions — in the League Cup quarter-finals at Ibrox on 13 September and in the Premiership on 20 September — though neither of those fixtures falls under the cup punishment.
The panel further warned that any repeat of crowd disorder in the Scottish Cup over the next two seasons would trigger another closed-doors sanction, signalling a tougher line from Scottish football's governing body after previous punishments for issues like pyrotechnics were largely limited to fines or reduced ticket allocations.
Celtic reacted with dismay to the ruling, issuing a statement expressing that the club was "shocked by this disproportionate punishment for a relatively small incursion by Celtic supporters at a moment of emotion and celebration." The statement continued: "Our club has never defended supporters entering the field of play and we have repeatedly taken action when it occurs. However, we understand the part emotion plays in football and would have expected the context and distinction in behaviours to have been taken into account by the panel."
Celtic also noted a key distinction in their case, stressing that "on this occasion, Celtic were not the home club, responsible for stadium safety arrangements," and said the club would review the panel's full report and reasoning before deciding on any further action. Rangers have not yet issued a public response to the sanction.
The decision marks a notable shift in how Scottish football's authorities are approaching crowd control problems, particularly during high-stakes derby matches between the country's two biggest clubs. While the SFA itself was not spared criticism in the independent review, the findings appear to have given the governing body the justification it needed to take a harder line going forward. Officials are likely to view the sanctions as a message that fan disorder of this kind will no longer be met with lenient punishments.
Based on reporting from Independent and BBC Sport.