Police Scotland chief constable Jo Farrell accused Scottish football authorities of allowing violence to go unchecked, warning disorder is escalating into a significant public safety issue. Addressing the Scottish Police Authority, she said clubs lack accountability and authorities shrug off pitch invasions. Her remarks follow scenes at the Celtic-Hearts title decider and the Old Firm cup tie, which produced 47 arrests.

Farrell wants the SFA and SPFL to impose a strict ladder of sanctions on clubs whose supporters cause trouble. She proposed cutting fan allocations by 20%, then 40%, and eventually forcing teams to play behind closed doors if violence persists. Farrell argued policing alone cannot solve the problem when court cases take months, stripping incidents of immediate consequences and leaving matchday disorder effectively consequence-free.

Trouble has flared across multiple fixtures, including Motherwell versus Celtic, Hamilton versus Clyde, and March's volatile Scottish Cup quarter-final between Celtic and Rangers. Hearts condemned Celtic after fans stormed the pitch following the title-clinching victory, branding the atmosphere menacing and threatening. Celtic manager Martin O'Neill rejected claims the scenes embarrassed Scottish football, calling such criticism "nonsense" despite the club's apology to Hearts.

SPFL insists there is no place for disorder, while Justice Secretary Neil Gray pledged to expand Football Banning Orders. Glasgow businesses near Trongate shut early during Celtic's title party as post-match celebrations spilled into disruption. Farrell made plain that arresting offenders weeks after the fact fails to deter crowd trouble, and only decisive regulatory action from football authorities will close the enforcement gap.