Which Celtic fans deserve Champions League tickets?

What makes someone a bigger Celtic fan than another fan?

Is it someone who goes to more games than another person?  Is it the fan who travels the furthest?  Is it the fan who gives up the most to go the football ?

Other people might say that it is the fan who shouts and sings the loudest at the matches.  Or is it the supporter who stays right till the full time whistle regardless of the score?

The real answer is that there is not an easy answer on how to define how much of a Celtic fan you are.  In turn, that means that it’s very difficult to decide who is entitled to tickets for the upcoming Champions League games.

I know that there was a bit of a discussion or disagreement between various people on twitter last night over this very matter.  This comes after the club have allowed season ticket holders to buy extra tickets for the Champions League matches.

As a season ticket holder, I’ve already bought my own tickets for the games but I don’t really feel that I should be entitled to buy tickets for people who may have never been to a Celtic game before.  That could leave fans who do go fairly regularly without the chance of buying a ticket for the big games.

Last year, at the Juventus game, I remember when the 3rd goal went in that there was a group of people nearby who were throwing scarves away and shouting about how much of a disgrace Celtic well as they were leaving the ground.

I’ve sat in the same seat since the Jock Stein stand opened and nobody round about had any ideas who these ‘fans’ were.  As sad as it is, it’s inevitable that people like that will end up at these games again this year over someone who goes to the games to support the team.

It’s important to remember that, despite our amazing home record, we are not entitled to win every home Champions League game.  I don’t think someone going to a match as a one off seems to grasp that.

It’s partially for this reason that I would be wary of buying extra tickets for some people that I didn’t know very well.

In my opinion, fans who buy the most tickets should be entitled to the bigger games as a reward for supporting the team.  The first argument against that could be that it means fans who live closer have an advantage over someone who has to travel to the games. Obviously someone who lives near the ground can decide at the last minute to go along to some games.

How about the club introduce some sort of reward scheme for supporters that takes into account money spent at the super store along with home and away tickets bought ?

Season ticket holders all have a unique ID so what’s to stop the club from setting up something similar for non season ticket holders who want to opt in?

Most football clubs have some sort of supporters club so I think that this should be taken into account for things like the bigger matches.  If the club could make something like this work on an agreeable level, what’s to stop them from applying this to cup games too ?

I remember on the way to Seville, talking to a Hearts fan who had a ticket for the Celtic end.  That annoyed me, part because of my dislike for Hearts but more because I don’t see why a fan of another club should see a game over a Celtic fan.  Incidentally, my Dad watched the match in a park in Seville while this Hearts fan had a ticket.

In the past, there’s been more than once that I have been too all the cup games plus a semi final to then be told I have not been successful with applying for a final ticket.

Like a lot of things I write, there’s not one answer but I think a supporters reward scheme of some sort would be a good place for the club to start.  Of course some fans have other ideas and some might completely disagree with what I’m saying, that’s what the comments box is for.