Soccer Football - Scottish Cup - Final - Aberdeen v Celtic - Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain - May 24, 2025 Celtic fans inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Russell Cheyne
Yesterday the Green Brigade and The Bhoys both released statements slamming the club over the League Cup semi-final ticketing policy.
Both organisations say they will boycott the game.
That reaction is understandable given their long list of grievances. But the most worrying charge is the claim that Celtic are taking tickets from ordinary supporters, handing them to corporate clients and selling them at a huge markup.
As David Faulds from the Celtic Star pointed out this morning, that pretty much invalidates the whole reason for joining the Home Cup Ticket Scheme.
Our club really knows how to do outreach to fans, doesn’t it?
At a time when it should be seen to be taking supporters’ wishes into account, it behaves like this. The result is mind-blowing tone-deafness. It seems as if they are in charge of a club where everything is smooth sailing. As a result, the directors can get away with anything.
Yet we are in the middle of a major fan rebellion.
In spite of that, the level of contempt has never seemed higher, and you have to wonder what people in the boardroom are thinking. They assume this will not inflame things further. This, in fact, could be the spark that lights up the whole thing.
The Home Cup Ticket Scheme is now in the crosshairs of fans.
I’ve written about it several times and have argued that it is a coercive structure intended to trap supporters. The only tangible benefit used to be better access to tickets for Hampden and other tricky away games.
If the club is going to behave like this, one of the principal reasons fans join the scheme is being negated. Whether the club realises it or not, while it counts supporters’ money it has given up a little of its leverage.
Some people still think I’m wrong about this club’s strategic failings, but the evidence is overwhelming. I no longer feel the need to defend the point.
Look at how we behave in transfer windows: leaving deals to the last minute, selling players before their replacements arrive. Those are examples of a lack of strategic thinking. If the board could follow the thread that binds action to reaction and consequence, it would avoid obvious bear traps. This is another one. It involves squeezing every last pound out of the hospitality crew while weakening the very structure that underpins the Home Cup Ticket Scheme.
The club appears incapable of following cause and effect. It’s the same principle that underlies the manager mess.
This board permits attacks on our manager.
How does this help us replace him in the summer?
It is as if they do not grasp the seriousness of what they have done. Their policies often weaken the club instead of strengthening it.
If you wanted to fuel a fan revolution, this is exactly how you would behave. Many supporters pulled out of the Home Cup Ticket Scheme as a consequence of the club’s summer behaviour. Although there has been no formal call for a mass boycott of the scheme, that time is rapidly approaching.
In my view the scheme needs not a tweak but wholesale destruction — smashed with a wrecking ball. If joining the Home Cup Ticket Scheme reduces your chances of getting important tickets for Hampden because of the club’s own actions, then this morally bankrupt board gives you no reason to remain in it.
I remain convinced the scheme must go. In giving tickets to coporate bigwigs instead of fans, the club is making our case for us.
Simple changes won’t fix it; it needs ripping out by the roots.
Instead of blunting that argument, the board seems determined to give fans ever more reason to consider the harshest possible measures.
I said previously, not only in articles but online, that I thought it would take an absolute calamity to get us to the point where fans might have to consider the harshest possible measures to accomplish the goals of the Collective. It would require behaviour of unbelievable arrogance and disregard for supporters to push fans to that kind of action.
And yet every day, little by little, by the actions of these directors, we move a step closer to exactly that sort of response. It is beyond belief.
I reluctantly rejoined the HCTS as I have done for the last 18 years against my better judgement but I pretty much immediately regretted it and decided to empty my account before the payment for the cup game and the braga game payments were due and they emailed saying I had been removed from the scheme. After reading this, I definitely made the right decision! The club is run by morons and I can’t see my season ticket being used for a while now. Yeah I know the damage is done, they have the money for the season ticket but we won’t shift these clowns without drastic measures. Am I right in saying there is a meeting at Grace’s tonight? Very intrigued to see how that goes given the disgraceful behaviour of the board on monday night.
There have always been hospitality tickets for cup semi finals and finals, and I’ve bought a few over the years. But you had to be a season ticket holder to apply for one, and they were inevitably sold out very quickly. For example one of the hospiality tiers used the Kerrydale suite and that wasn’t much more than about 550 places. I don’t know the situation now, but if tickets have been withdrawn from access to season ticket holders and the HTC, then that is clearly wrong if they are going instead to corporate sponsors or others of that ilk.
Fast buck FC , that’s what this board should be known as… a bunch of spivs fleecing the fans without an ounce of shame, scandalous behaviour but again that’s what they’re world class at doing, nothing more.
I agree with a lot of your article James. Its a disgrace the tickets are being taken away from the ordinary supporters.
I think we also agree with each other on the pyro. It is illegal dangerous and affects the health of our more vulnerable supporters. I think that we agree about the Scottish football authorities taking stronger action to tackle pyro and this might work. The threat from UEFA has been pretty successful in curtailing the behavior.
Im happy enough with the tickets taken away from the GB as they are the main protagonists. If the Bhoys wish to back them fair enough. It will be disgrace if the opposition don’t also ban the union bams from the semi.
The tickets our ultras are not getting should be given to the ordinary fans though. The GB and Bhoys tickets should be a couple of thousand at least and even with the 500 ban there will be plenty left over. Scandalous if these tickets go corporate.
Our fans have been criticised by the GB and others for not creating atmosphere without the Ultras.
Here is the chance to prove them all wrong!
Joined HCTS a few seasons ago..got a semi final ticket a few times but have never managed to get a final ticket yet.
As a 68 year old pensioner I phoned ticket office and asked if the reason I was always unsuccessful was because I got a concession and that I was willing to pay full price, was told best way to make certain of a ticket was to get a celtic park lounge and bus to stadium hospitality ticket. Expressed my feelings on thus at the time with the ticket office, weren’t interested.
Also emailed ticket office to say to cancel my direct debit this season as a protest to the board, emailed back saying that I was to late informing them and monies were going to be taken in the next few days.
Luckily bank cancelled when I explained the situation.
They don’t a damn for the fans.
Great article again James. My understanding is that they source out venues in Glasgow to use for the hospitality tickets for the pre food away from Celtic park, St Luke’s & Glasgow green west brewery is two of them. Is there a view to boycotting these venues if ? accurate
Could this be the boards way of recouping some of the revenue lost by fans not buying merchandise or food. If so it’s shoot themselves in the foot time as they’ve just pissed people off more. It’s fair that people who done the crime should do the time by missing out on tickets but not taking more away from a reduced allocation to cover up the mess made by the board. It’s getting near boycott o clock.
I said previously the only way to hurt Lawell & co is to cease the purchase of ALL cup tickets, cease the purchase of merchandise.
We all love Celtic but Lawell loves himself, he only shows complete contempt for the Fans.
See how well he does without any.
The SPFL also need to act if The Celtic Hierarchy are selling tickets to corporate money men, will those money men fill our end of Hampden, will those money men fill Celtic park, he’ll no.
Change has to be enforced quickly or we are just accepting the status Quo.
Hail Hail
They are getting worse by the fuckin day so they are !