Confirmed ticket allocation makes SPFL's Celtic blunder even worse

By John McGinley

April 28, 2023

Only 1,264 Celtic supporters will get the chance to see Ange Postecoglou’s team clinch the Scottish Premiership title at Tynecastle next week, the club confirmed on Friday.

Celtic play on the road at both Hearts and Rangers in the opening two matches after the top six split. With no fans at Ibrox either, it means that there is a very limited opportunity for supporters to see the title confirmed in the flesh over the coming weeks.

The Bhoys have tens of thousands of regularly-paying fans and you would have thought it is in the league’s interest from a promotion, marketing, spectacle and hype viewpoint to engage as many of them as possible for what could be such a triumphant moment.

Tynecastle allocation compounds SPFL error for Celtic fans

A home match against St Mirren or Aberdeen next weekend would have been the perfect occasion for fans to cheer on the Bhoys as they push to get over the trophy-winning line, now needing just two more points.

Sadly, the vast majority of Celtic fans will be restricted to watching via television. The 1,265 lucky enough to attend in Edinburgh are only around 2.5% of Celtic’s season ticket holders.

The games against Hearts and Rangers are at least being shown live on Sky Sports, but that’s not really the point when league officials often speak so bullishly about protecting the match experience.

I understand it’s difficult for the league to make every club and every set of supporters happy with their fixture selections – with TV and police considerations to take into account, too.

However, it seems with their last batch of fixtures that the SPFL and Sky Sports haven’t managed to serve any fans well, regardless of who you support. For example, the decision not to show any of the relegation deciders live is a travesty.

Those in charge definitely could have done a bit better across the board here. As usual, it’s paying supporters who lose out on a memorable experience.

Thankfully, if the league is clinched, there will be a trophy day and a big presentation at Paradise to look forward to, come the end of May.

In other news, BBC confirm upcoming broadcast boost for Celtic fans after ticket lockout.