The upcoming 2026 World Cup will feature exactly zero Scottish referees. Unsurprisingly, this news won’t shock domestic football fans, Celtic supporters, or even a certain Michael Stewart.
But be careful how strongly you voice your opinion on the Scottish Football Association and its officials, as Stewart found out the hard way, criticising the SFA can land you in a spot of bother, or in his case, banned from Hampden altogether.
That’s happened with the former Hearts midfielder, but it has taken another odd twist ahead of Celtic’s Scottish Cup semi-final clash against St Mirren on Sunday.
Stewart’s employers at Premier Sports didn’t take the ban lying down. In a brilliant act of defiance, he ended up broadcasting Dunfermline’s win over Falkirk live from the Hampden car park.
In a brilliantly odd yet petty twist, he won’t even be able to do that anymore because the SFA have now banned him from setting foot in the car park as well.
Banning a pundit over comments about referees: the right decision or setting a dangerous precedent?
Embarrassing from SFA as Michael Stewart gets further ban ahead of Celtic vs St Mirren in Scottish Cup semi-final
All Stewart has done is be critical of officials in Scotland this season. As mentioned above, no Scottish referees will be at this summer’s World Cup, and 170 have been selected.
There is a reason behind that!
Yet, here is Stewart, being critical of the officiating in Scotland. Simply stating what others think, whether you like him or not, and now getting stupid bans for it.
Is it a surprise? No, because it’s not the first type of ban, and it certainly won’t be the last. It happens across the game, and it won’t stop, even Celtic have handed out their fair share over the years.
Nonetheless, this was the statement put out by Premier Sports, which was reported by The Scotsman, regarding Stewart’s ban from the Hampden car park.
“Following today’s Scottish Cup semi-final, where Michael Stewart was unable to broadcast from inside Hampden and instead contributed from our production truck, we have now been informed by the SFA that he is also banned from the stadium car park.
“This further escalation is deeply disappointing and has left Premier Sports, the SFA’s broadcast partner, scrambling to find solutions for our exclusive coverage of Celtic v St Mirren tomorrow.
“We also wish to reiterate our full support for Michael Stewart as a valued member of our team, and we will continue to seek alternative ways to ensure he can remain involved in our coverage of matches from Hampden.”
It will be interesting to see what stunt Premier Sports pulls next. Perhaps they will make Stewart broadcast and commentate from the local chippy?
Either way, the moment you start banning individuals for their strong opinions, especially when there is merit to it, then you start setting a dangerous precedent.
And the SFA have certainly outdone themselves here.
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