Scottish football was given a boost yesterday when Jason Leitch suggested that their may be a return of fans for this season’s Scottish Cup Final in a “gateway event” concept to trial supporters being in Hampden Park stadium prior to hosting the Euros this summer. However, the BBC’s Chris McLaughlin has just tweeted that there will not be fans in attendance at this year’s Cup Final due to preparation work being undertaken in the stands by Euro2020 staff.
The news comes as a crushing blow to the competition and supporters in Scotland.
No fans inside Hampden for this year’s Scottish Cup final. The stadium will be under control of @EURO2020 by that point and prep work will be ongoing in the stands. pic.twitter.com/LlhhlGhB9l
— Chris McLaughlin (@BBCchrismclaug) April 8, 2021
If Covid-19 restrictions are lifted to the point that supporters would be permitted to return then one would think that it would make sense to facilitate their attendance at the national cup final. With Celtic and Rangers facing each other in the next round, one of Celtic Park or Ibrox would be useful without giving undue advantage to any team (if either makes the final), meanwhile stadia outside of Glasgow would be a good option to explore.
Perhaps moving the venue is not feasible for other reasons, though the full details of this have not yet been explained. We will update on further news as it comes through.
In the meantime, Celtic must focus on navigating their fourth round tie at Ibrox next weekend.
