Arabic version: مراجعة ديربي أولد فيرم تدعو إلى عقوبات أشد على الجماهير

According to BBC News, an independent review into disorder at the Old Firm Scottish Cup quarter-final at Ibrox in March has called for football authorities to impose tougher penalties on unacceptable fan conduct. Rangers and Celtic both face disciplinary charges after incidents the review said came within a very small margin of becoming a violent mass confrontation.

The 37-page report was led by sports event consultant Mark Blackbourne. It concluded that recorded unacceptable conduct by fan groups and individuals is rising, citing pyrotechnics, thrown objects, pitch incursions, anti-social behaviour and targeted intimidation of players and officials across the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons.

Blackbourne said existing disciplinary measures were too modest, too deferred and too inconsistently applied to change behaviour. He proposed immediate restrictions on crowd numbers as an opening sanction for serious incidents, rather than fines or suspended punishments. The report also said section closure, rather than ticket reduction, should be the standard first response to confirmed unacceptable conduct.

Celtic won the cup tie on penalties before hundreds of visiting supporters carried out what the report described as a wholly inexcusable pitch invasion. Rangers supporters then staged an immediate hostile counter-invasion. Police took four minutes and 28 seconds to establish control, during which the report said life-threatening violence was possible. It also raised concerns over security, risk assessments, ticketless supporters entering the stadium and the policing of fans outside the ground.

The review criticised both clubs’ handling of Ultras groups, describing them as organised entities requiring an intelligence-led, multi-agency response. It said the Scottish FA and SPFL have powers including financial penalties, points deductions and expulsion, but questioned whether there is sufficient will to use them more severely.