While Celtic’s busy run of fixtures starts to take shape, there are plenty of topics to discuss surrounding every facet of the club on and off the pitch.
Casting the mind to an alternative viewpoint occasionally can be an intriguing way to gauge general sentiments on several issues. Not everything people want to hear about the Bhoys is directly related to matters on the field, although most of it isn’t too far off.
Nevertheless, Celtic FC SLO John Paul Taylor hinted at an interesting point earlier this week when providing travel arrangements for fans heading to Germany next week as Brendan Rodgers’ men take on Borussia Dortmund at Signal Iduna Park.
As seen above, match tickets for the Champions League affair enable train travel everywhere in the North Rhine-Westphalia region via certain rail platforms up until 03:00 in the early hours.
German football, in general, is seen as one of the most fan-friendly environments in terms of fan experience worldwide, so feel free to call out any unfair yardsticks mentioned.
Either way, it does plant the seed of wondering what Celtic could be looking to improve in that respect, especially surrounding matchday travel.
The Celtic fan experience and matchday scope for enhancement
Many Celtic fans travel to home matches on supporters buses, and there will also be supporters within walking distance to the ground. Still, inter-city, there could be scope for some form of discussion about subsidised travel on public transport.
Celtic SLO Taylor also pointed this out, stating the club has written to First Bus regarding the potential for First Bus to replicate Aberdeen FC’s pilot scheme of free matchday journeys to and from games, as he stated on X.
He also made clear that the subject is something there is a desire for engagement around moving forward, which is a positive development.
Obviously, there is a wide discrepancy in support between the two clubs in the conversation, not to mention the stadium infrastructure and the size of the city in which they are located.
Regardless, if Champions League-level institutions like Borussia Dortmund can configure ways to make life easier for fans on the day of a game, Celtic could also tap into this mindset if circumstances align.
Brighton & Hove Albion are another club where their following can benefit from free trips to and from the Amex Stadium via any Brighton & Hove bus between the hours of 11.30 am to 9 pm in the event of an afternoon kick-off providing you have a match ticket [Brighton & Hove Buses].
Looking at evening fixtures, the deal runs from 4.15 pm to midnight unless the brief explicitly says that free travel isn’t viable.
A similar logic can be applied to railway networks. There is a market to tap into for Celtic that could be worth exploring via collaboration should all parties be willing to entertain new ideas. By highlighting a few examples, you see that the notion isn’t impossible.
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