Celtic and Rangers will play their Scottish Premiership and Premier Sports Cup derby matches this season without any away supporters present.
The agreement, described as a "temporary arrangement," was reached between the two Glasgow clubs and the Scottish Professional Football League following months of discussion stemming from crowd trouble at Ibrox on March 8. That match, a Scottish Cup quarter-final, was marred by unrest and pitch invasions from both sets of fans after Celtic won a penalty shootout. Around 8,000 Celtic supporters had been present, a figure much higher than recent league derbies due to different ticketing rules that apply in the Scottish Cup.
BBC Sport reported that the Scottish FA subsequently launched an independent review into the events surrounding that match. Last month, the Scottish FA announced that both clubs would be required to play their next Scottish Cup home matches behind closed doors.
The first fixture affected by the new arrangement is the Premier Sports Cup tie at Ibrox on September 13. Celtic Park then hosts the league meeting a week later on September 20. Rangers had proposed offering Celtic a reduced away allocation of 300 tickets for the cup tie, but Celtic rejected the offer. The ban on away supporters is now the agreed outcome for all Old Firm matches for the duration of this season.
In a statement, the SPFL said the arrangement "will allow both clubs, together with the SPFL, Police Scotland and other relevant stakeholders, to give proper consideration to the findings and recommendations of the independent review, take forward the necessary actions and ensure sufficient time is available to plan future fixtures thoroughly."
The statement added that the move "will also provide greater certainty for supporters and those involved in matchday planning, while avoiding repeated uncertainty around ticketing arrangements for individual fixtures," and that "all parties have committed to working constructively during this period, with safety and security remaining the priority."
Away fan allocations at Old Firm derbies have been a contentious issue for years. Celtic supporters have not received the full Broomloan Road Stand allocation at Ibrox since away numbers were reduced to fewer than 1,000 in 2018. Since then, allocations at both grounds have shifted repeatedly, ranging from roughly 800 down to zero, in a series of reciprocal reductions between the clubs. The independent review's full findings are expected to inform how future fixtures are planned once the temporary ban is lifted.
