Scottish football has been rocked by a landmark ruling as the Scottish Professional Football League officially confirmed that traveling supporters will be completely shut out from all Old Firm clashes for the remainder of the 2026/27 campaign. The sweeping decision applies to every upcoming encounter between Celtic and Rangers in both the Scottish Premiership and domestic cup competitions, turning one of world football’s most fiery rivalries into home-fans-only affairs.
The dramatic intervention follows an independent safety review commissioned by the Scottish FA into serious crowd trouble during March’s Scottish Cup quarter-final at Ibrox, which found that life-threatening violence was narrowly avoided amid pitch invasions and clashes. Ahead of the scheduled Premier Sports Cup tie on September 13, Rangers had proposed cutting Celtic’s visiting allocation to just 300 tickets based on local security assessments. After Celtic rejected that drastic cut and appealed to league authorities, the SPFL brokered a complete temporary ban alongside Police Scotland and both clubs to allow time for comprehensive safety measures to be established.
The ruling immediately impacts two high-stakes encounters set for later this month, starting with the Premier Sports Cup tie at Ibrox before the teams head to Celtic Park for a crucial league fixture on September 20. While league authorities describe the ban as a temporary measure subject to ongoing review, both clubs now face a season devoid of away noise in their derby fixtures as stakeholders attempt to rebuild matchday safety protocols from the ground up.