Epilogue:
The Scottish Football Association took a dim view of Chris Sutton’s comments after the Premiership showdown. They banned him for one match. On top of a previous three-match ban, Sutton was ruled out for the first four matches of the new season. The SFA remains powerless to make his allegations lie down in Coatbridge.
At the tail end of August, just as the Scottish season was about to kick in once again, UEFA saluted Celtic’s travelling support by giving them the organisation’s Fair Play Trophy, the first time in its history it had been awarded to a team’s fans rather than a club.
UEFA said: “Embracing the Porto fans who crossed their paths, they converted the city into one huge fiesta and, whether they saw the dramatic final from the stands at the Estadio Olímpico or not, created an atmosphere that the locals will never forget. On behalf of them and the game of football, UEFA can only invite everybody to take their hats off and salute the ‘Bhoys’ from Glasgow.”
FIFA, football’s global governing body, later endorsed UEFA’s decision. For the first time in its history, it awarded its own worldwide Fair Play Trophy to Celtic’s fans. They were, officially, the best supporters on the planet.
It was a view echoed in Seville. The City’s Mayor, Alfredo Sanchez Monteseirin wrote to Glasgow’s Lord Provost, Liz Cameron, with his personal thanks for an invitation to the party. Sr Monteseirin said:
“I am writing from Seville to you on the excellent behaviour, good fun and good manners shown by thousands of Celtic supporters during their stay in our city. You should feel proud to have fans such as these in Glasgow who give their city and country a good name.
“I would like to send publicly the congratulations of the City of Seville to the fans and, in general, to all the citizens of Glasgow. We hope to see you again in Seville on a similar occasion, when you will surely be luckier on the playing field.”
On September 1, 2003, UEFA fined Porto £25,000 for a breach of regulations. Apparently, some of the tickets they were allocated for the match found their way onto the black market…
Steve Brennan
Steve Brennan’s latest book, The Hat in the Middle, is available now from amazon.com. Shiny Side Up, his first book, is also available as a paperback from amazon.com. His only work of fiction, Radiant Princess, can be found at amazon.com as paperback and e-book.
