Some Celtic fans are likely to miss out on tickets for next month’s Betfred Cup semi-final against Hibernian, after the club announced that a ballot would be in place.
Neil Lennon takes his Hoops side to Hampden to take on his old team on the 2nd November. The Saturday 5:30pm kick-off will also be on BT Sport and it seems that some Celtic fans will have to make do with watching it on the television.
The club released a statement on Thursday blaming an “insufficient allocation of tickets” for the required ballot. They say that supporters in the ‘Home Cup ticket scheme’ who paid for tickets for the earlier round ties against Dunfermline and Partick Thistle will be entered into the draw.
Tickets from the match vary from £25 in the traditional Celtic end to £30 in both the North and South Stands.
Betfred Cup tickets will be given to Celtic fans through a ballot
Last month we told you how the SPFL had decided to allocate the vast majority of Hampden to Celtic fans for the fixture. It’s hard to put an exact value on the number of tickets but it’s fair to estimate that it equates to around 30,000 or so.
Celtic have around that number on the HCTS so that would explain why a ballot is needed. By that logic, the vast majority of those applying should get tickets although others not on the scheme will miss out.
There is also the likely chance that Hibernian won’t sell out their smaller allocation and tickets will be handed back to Celtic. Hopefully the SPFL have far greater control over the Leith side this time round and ensure that they sell the tickets in a way that will maximise the Hampden crowd.
The game should be a great occasion. Played on a Saturday night in front of a pretty full Hampden, it’s exactly what Scottish football should be all about. Hopefully the majority of Celtic fans who want to go can be there.
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