‘Limited’ crowd allowed at Scottish Cup final
THE SFA have confirmed there will be a limited number of fans in attendance at the Scottish Cup final this season.
A statement confirmed supporters will be permitted to watch the game between Hibs and St Johnstone from inside Hampden despite initial fears there would be no such permission from the Scottish government.
The governing body for Scottish football went on to reveal they would be submitting an appeal to improve the number of fans allowed inside for the showpiece final on May 22 from the usual 500 under level two restrictions.
The statement read: “The Scottish FA has today received approval from UEFA to a revised proposal that will enable a limited number of supporters to attend the Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park on May 22.
“We have now made a submission to Scottish Government for permission to increase the number of spectators from the maximum 500 permitted under Level 2 restrictions.
“We are grateful to UEFA for removing the condition that required the final to be played behind closed doors, after the postponement of the tie from May 8 to 22 due to the suspension of football during the second wave of the pandemic.
“We are pleased that UEFA have now agreed to a proposed solution prior to Hampden Park hosting four matches, each in front of 12,000 supporters, as part of UEFA EURO 2020. We await a positive response from the Scottish Government and will communicate final confirmation of maximum supporter numbers with Hibernian and St Johnstone as soon as possible to enable ticket sales to proceed.”
Aberdeen had initially offered to host the final at Pittodrie to allow some fans to attend but there is a sense of relief that Hampden in Glasgow will now be able to do so. The SFA also looked at the possibility of taking the final to Celtic Park or Ibrox with no joy.
UEFA, meanwhile, take control of Hampden this weekend to prepare for Euro 2020 fixtures and had originally refused the idea of fans inside the ground for the Scottish Cup final. Though they now appear to have compromised on the issue.