Lockout- SPFL under pressure as ticket issue gets critical

Celtic fans could be in line for away ticket restrictions with the SPFL reluctant to take action against the away fan ban at Celtic Park and Ibrox.

So far this season no away fans have been inside Celtic Park but 7,000 hoops fans visited Livingston earlier this month with Aberdeen providing an allocation for Sunday’s trip to Pittodrie.

Protocols have resulted in an area either side of the tunnel being out of bounds at Celtic Park forcing the relocation of some Season Ticket holders.

They have been housed in the traditional away section but with 50,000 Season Ticket holders there should be capacity elsewhere to relocate Season Ticket holders.

Picking up on the issue the Daily Record reports:

All top-flight clubs have moved home supporters to accommodate socially distanced ‘red zone’ areas for players and staff, with the Glasgow duo particularly affected and it’s led to travelling fans being refused access.

SPFL rules state clubs must provide a “reasonable” ticket allocation to the opposition but when pandemic measures were introduced league chiefs dictated this number could be set at zero.

And now the Daily Mail report Hearts are ready to lodge a formal complaint to the league’s governing body later this week ahead of their trip to Ibrox on October 16.

It’s stated both they and Motherwell want a response by the end of September but that the SPFL will only consider the issue if Hearts press ahead with a complaint.

The issue became farcical last week when Celtic refused to allow Raith Rovers 1,000 tickets despite Celtic Park looking just half full for the Premier Sports Cup tie against the Championship side. Celtic are at Aberdeen on October 3 and away to Motherwell on October 16.

Seven matches into the season the SPFL hasn’t taken any action against the Ibrox club who have ignored the sponsorship deal with cinch to provide trackside and backing board advertising as well as carrying the logo on the shirt.