CELTIC have confirmed away fans will be allowed into Parkhead for the Glasgow derby next month.
The ban on travelling supporters has at last been lifted following a breakthrough in negotiations between the champions and Rangers which has brought an end to the two-year lock-out.
There will be around 2,500 followers of the Govan club among the 60,000 sell-out crowd in the east end of Glasgow for the match on Sunday March 16 which is scheduled for a 12.30pm kick-off.
The dispute dates back to 2018 when David Murray, then the Ibrox club’s owner, reduced the away allocation for all visiting fans – including the Hoops.
FINAL SAY…Celtic players prepare to line up ahead of the League Cup Final triumph over Rangers in December at Hampden where fans of both clubs occupied opposite ends of the stadium.
Following the Covid pandemic, around 700 away supporters were allowed to attend the derbies at both grounds.
However, the agreement was scrapped after some unacceptable situations during the 2023 New Year meeting with the Celtic hierarchy citing fears over fan safety. In the aftermath of that fall-out, they refused future allocations to their city rivals.
The SPFL stepped in last season to demand the clubs end the stalemate over access to visiting supporters.
An agreement was reached to allow a five per-cent away allocation at each venue, starting this campaign, but that was not implemented after the Hoops powerbrokers wrote to their Govan counterparts ahead of this season’s first all-Glasgow encounter on September 1 to say they would not be welcoming away fans.
Celtic had spent a six-figure sum preparing for Ibrox followers, but they claimed their opponents had issued no guarantees the Hoops fans would be similarly treated in the away fixture.
The response from Govan was to ban Celtic supporters from the ground on January 2.
WHERE DID EVERYONE GO…two fans have the Rangers end to themselves after Celtic’s 1-0 Scottish Cup Final win at Hampden on May 25 2024.
Now, following constructive talks involving all parties, the match next month will see away fans at Parkhead while Rangers will reciprocate by allowing Hoops supporters back to Ibrox for the post-match fixture.
Celtic announced the move and said: “We can confirm that following the previous SPFL determination from last year and with necessary requirements being addressed, away supporters will be present at the next two Glasgow derby matches this season at Celtic Park (March 16) and Ibrox.
“Allocations will be around 4% of saleable capacity at both stadia.
” Further ticket information will be provided in due course.”
