Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers hits out at Scottish Cup Final ticket allocation

BRENDAN RODGERS has hit out at the SFA over their ticket allocation for the Scottish Cup Final.

The Hoops have been disappointed to learn they could receive nearly 700 tickets less than Aberdeen for the showpiece.

That is due to an uneven split involving segregation in upper stands.

The finalists receive roughly 20,000 each, with the remainder of the 52,063 capacity going to the ‘football family’.

Rodgers said: “It’s a strange one. I always think the Cup Final should be balanced. It should be 50-50.

“I find it staggering that a club like Celtic which is third or fourth highest average attendance in Britain – not just in Scotland – is getting less than Aberdeen, I find astonishing.

“I can only hope they will look at that. I don’t know what the reason would be. But it shouldn’t be that Celtic go into the game with less tickets than Aberdeen, that’s for sure. At worst with the figures we have, it should be 50-50. At worst.”

Celtic confirmed that a number of proposals to maximise their allocation had been put forward at an operations meeting at Hampden. “These included – a review of segregation arrangements; reconfiguration of the Upper South Stand; the creation of a neutral area to best accommodate supporters through the ‘football family’.

“However, these positive suggestions have not been accepted and this will mean a number of our supporters will miss out.”

The SFA responded with a statement of their own,which said: “The allocation of tickets has been handled in full consultation with both participating clubs and the available seating at Hampden Park will be split on a 50/50 basis, as has been standard practice in previous cup finals where a sell-out crowd is anticipated.

“It should also be noted that one of the reasons Celtic will potentially receive fewer tickets than Aberdeen is that the East Stand, Celtic’s preferred stand for Scottish Cup matches at the National Stadium, contains fewer seats than the West Stand.

“In addition, the ‘football family’, made up of Scottish FA members, commercial partners, other recognised football organisations and staff, have the right to buy match tickets for the final.”