Supporters of Celtic and Rangers clashed amid a pitch invasion in Sunday afternoon’s Scottish Cup quarterfinal at Ibrox.
Celtic had emerged victorious in the match between the great rivals that make up Glasgow’s Old Firm, converting all their penalties to win the shootout 4-2 after a 0-0 draw at the end of extra time, but scenes of celebration in the away end were soon soured as fans made their way onto the Ibrox pitch. Rangers supporters soon followed with police forced to erect a human barricade between the two sides. Flares were thrown onto the pitch and television footage also showed one Rangers fan getting close to Celtic players after the final whistle had blown.
The incident did not ultimately boil over with most supporters from both sides off the pitch within 10 minutes of the initial pitch invasion.
The Scottish Football Association (SFA) confirmed that an investigation would begin immediately following the match, which came as Ibrox hosted 7,500 Celtic fans, the biggest travelling contingent at the ground since 2018. Scottish Cup regulations allow away teams to request an allocation up to 20% of tickets, while for Premiership matches this season, the two clubs have provided away allocations of around 2,500.
A statement from the SFA read, “The Scottish FA condemns the behaviour from supporters entering the field of play following today’s Scottish Gas Scottish Cup Quarter-Final at Ibrox Stadium. An investigation will be carried out immediately in line with the Judicial Panel Protocol.”
Speaking in his post match press conference, Rangers head coach Danny Rohl said he had left the field before the turmoil broke out, adding, “We all know all the emotional situations after the game. Nobody likes to see this. I think it was a great atmosphere for 120 minutes, it should be like this. All the other things shouldn’t be in the stadium or around football.”
In a post-match interview his Celtic counterpart Martin O’Neill said, “You’re asking me a lot of political questions in this moment when I’m in a euphoric state. The fans have spilled over, big scenes at the end, all over the place. I’m not diminishing it at all, I will have a think about it and speak to you in due course.”
On the field, it was James Tavernier and Djeidi Gassama who missed the decisive penalties for Rangers, Tomas Cvancara beating Jack Butland as Celtic won a Scottish Cup tie at their rivals’ home for the first time since 1957.
Why Rangers-Celtic is one of football’s most fraught rivalries
The two biggest clubs in Glasgow have dominated Scottish football since the formation of the Scottish Football League in 1890. One hundred and thirty six years later, more than 40 since anyone else won the league, Celtic and Rangers find themselves tied on 55 league championships each. Across European men’s football these two rank at the very top in terms of silverware. The story of the Old Firm, however, is about more than just what happens on the pitch.
The rivalry between Rangers and Celtic is suffused with the sectarian politics of Glasgow, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Rangers’ support has historically been drawn from Protestant communities and is often understood as representing both native Scots and those from Ulster. Celtic’s support has tended to come from Irish Scots and the Republic of Ireland and the side from Parkhead largely drew their support from those with Catholic backgrounds. In the history of this rivalry, religion has mattered a great deal, indeed it is only as recently as 1989 that Rangers’ unwritten rule of not signing Catholic players came to an end.
In 2026, the rivalry may not be as directly related to religion but there are pronounced dividing lines between the two supporters. In recent years Celtic have found themselves sanctioned by UEFA for pro-Palestine displays among their supporters while Rangers were punished by European football’s governing body last year for a banner held aloft by their supporters during a game against Fenerbahce that proclaimed “Keep woke foreign ideologies out — defend Europe.”
The long-standing political, religious and social tensions of the Old Firm were not, however, behind the reduced allocations of recent years. In 2018, Rangers cut away tickets following an upturn in season ticket sales, resulting in a tit for tat cutting of away fans, a situation that was not eased by the pandemic. Away allocations rose to 2,500 last season and it was reported that Rangers agreed to the increased allocation for Celtic on the proviso that they would get similar numbers at any cup tie at Parkhead.
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