Cost Prevents Dedicated Fanzones for Football Celebrations in Glasgow
Glasgow City Council has stated that establishing dedicated fanzones for football supporters to celebrate their clubs winning trophies is not feasible due to financial constraints.
Following Celtic's dramatic 3-1 victory over Hearts that secured the SPFL title, clashes occurred between Celtic fans and police in the city's Trongate area on Saturday. This incident adds to a series of disturbances in the city centre linked to football celebrations that have resulted in damage to parts of the city.
Business Perspectives and Council Funding Stance
Several local businesses expressed to BBC Scotland News that an organised fan celebration area would be advantageous. However, the city council emphasized that any such event would require funding from the football clubs themselves.
Police reported that two officers sustained serious injuries during the disturbances, which led to 14 arrests.
Glasgow City Council noted that the number of participants in the celebrations was "significantly down" compared to previous years.
Calls for Proactive Measures and Fanzone Proposals
Glasgow MSP Paul Sweeney, speaking on BBC's Radio Scotland Breakfast programme, suggested that future celebrations should be held in designated areas such as Glasgow Green rather than on city streets.
"We need to see more proactivity. There were proactive measures to strip down bus shelters and put hoardings in place - that's anticipating disorder.
Why don't we go further and create a fanzone somewhere like Glasgow Green, that's easily accessible, with a large spillover area and distance between buildings, so the risk of vandalism is low.
The relevant club could contribute to the financial costs of that, rather than the disorganised hemming in of fans on city streets.
I am astonished at the lack of leadership and the failure to anticipate this situation yet again. It's not good enough."
Despite these suggestions, Glasgow City Council informed BBC Scotland News that creating a fanzone is not affordable unless the clubs cover the expenses. A council spokesman also expressed skepticism about the likelihood of individuals intent on fighting attending a fanzone.
Aftermath in the Trongate Area
On Monday morning, hoardings remained around bus shelters in the Trongate area, and broken glass from shattered bottles littered the streets.
Local Business Views on Fanzones and Police Presence
Several businesses in the area agreed on the potential benefits of an established fanzone.
Lewis Maddock, co-owner of the Through the House café on High Street, noted that most fans were well-behaved, with only a minority causing issues. He advocated for a designated space for celebrations.
"Perhaps there needs to be more from the council or the police to put pressure on Celtic or the SPFL to actually do something.
Glasgow Green would be the obvious choice, as it's a big space, but there'll be other green spaces in the city too that could work."
Maddock also mentioned limited communication from the council or police with local shops and cafes, and that a heavier police presence this year resulted in more fans being corralled together on Saturday.
Jan Moffat, an employee at a nearby Greggs outlet, commented on the atmosphere created by the fans.
"It's not the colour of the scarves, it's who's wearing them. A fanzone would be perfect - there'll be people who won't come out to the town because of this (fans gathering).
You don't want to spoil people celebrating, but it does impact your business and there's a limit to it. Have them do it somewhere else, like Glasgow Green."
Impact on Cultural Venues
Neil Murray, executive director of the Tron Theatre, reported that the venue had to cancel two performances on Saturday, resulting in a loss of approximately £8,500. He described the exterior of the building being left "like a public toilet" after the celebrations.
Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime programme, Murray said:
"We had staff in yesterday at seven in the morning taking down boards we had put up to protect the building, and sweeping away glass and human waste from around the building.
It's not on and that's five years of this now. It's untenable year on year. Any decent city would not allow this to happen."
He further expressed concern that it appeared two clubs, Celtic and Rangers, "have the right to take over the city," and emphasized the need for an "organised, authorised celebration."
Other businesses, who preferred to remain anonymous, also supported the idea of a fanzone, noting that the fan gatherings in the Trongate area have forced them to close earlier than usual each year.
'Unacceptable Ad Hoc Celebrations'
Celtic fans have frequently gathered in the Trongate area after league victories in recent years, while Rangers supporters caused damage to George Square following their title win in 2021.
A Glasgow City Council spokesman stated:
"Glasgow is unique in Europe in that a team from the city has won the league every season for the last four decades.
This means we are likely to have fans celebrating in most years and, while the city has offered clubs senior technical support, it is clearly not possible for the council to bear that cost.
We have been working with the city's two biggest clubs for the last year to look at how we reduce unacceptable ad hoc celebrations.
Although the behaviour of a minority of supporters on Saturday was deplorable, the numbers attending Trongate and Merchant City were significantly down on previous years.
However, it simply isn't credible to think that people who want to fight among themselves, vandalise buildings and infrastructure and throw bottles at the emergency services will attend a fanzone – or that any responsible organiser would consider letting them in."
Celtic did not respond to a request for comment.
