Police Scotland’s latest comments on Celtic title celebrations raise one obvious question. If authorities knew these scenes were coming, why did there still appear to be so little infrastructure in place to manage them safely?
Speaking after Celtic’s Premiership title celebrations, Assistant Chief Constable Mark Sutherland said: “No matter which team wins the league, there has to be a contingency in place that supports safe celebrations at the ground, and away from the ground.”
On the surface, that sounds entirely reasonable. In reality, it also exposes a contradiction.
We had written weeks before Celtic officially sealed the title, discussions had already taken place involving Police Scotland, the SNP, Glasgow City Council, and Celtic over how celebrations could potentially be managed around the city.
That is why the latest comments do not fully add up.
Police condemn Celtic fan title celebrations. They knew for weeks it was going to happen.
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Police Scotland already knew Celtic’s title celebrations were coming
Celtic winning the league was not an unforeseeable event. Neither were large supporter gatherings around Celtic Park and Trongate.
Authorities had already publicly acknowledged concerns around possible title celebrations long before the trophy was secured. There had already been warnings about potential flashpoints and conversations around contingency plans.
That is what makes the aftermath difficult to fully understand.
If all parties knew tens of thousands of supporters were likely to gather, then questions have to be asked about whether enough preparation, traffic management, transport planning, stewarding, and supporter infrastructure was actually put in place beforehand.
The reality is simple. Massive title celebrations are now part of modern football culture when Celtic win major honours. Pretending otherwise achieves nothing.
Condemning Celtic fan violence does not remove planning responsibility
At the same time, any violence, disorder, vandalism, or attacks on emergency services should be unequivocally condemned. There is no defence for that behaviour and it should never be tolerated around football celebrations.
But acknowledging that reality does not remove the equally obvious question surrounding preparation.
Both things can be true simultaneously. Individuals who crossed the line should face consequences. Authorities should also explain why there still appeared to be such limited infrastructure around an event they already knew was likely to happen.
Sutherland’s comments are important because they effectively acknowledge that these celebrations require organised planning both at and away from the stadium.
If that is now the accepted reality, then the focus moving forward should be on creating safer and better managed environments for supporters, residents, emergency workers, and the city itself instead of repeating the same cycle every single year.
Police Scotland cannot acknowledge these scenes were foreseeable while also avoiding questions about why the preparation still appeared so limited.
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