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Danny Law: It’s time for Scottish football’s alcohol ban to be lifted

Fans have returned to Scottish football after the easing of coronavirus restrictions.
Fans have returned to Scottish football after the easing of coronavirus restrictions.

It is about time that Scottish football fans were able to watch their team play with a pint in their hand.

Ron Gordon, the Hibernian owner, has confirmed that the SPFL review commissioned by five SPFL clubs, including Aberdeen, will look at lifting the alcohol ban.

Booze has been banned at Scottish football games since the infamous Scottish Cup final riot of 1980 – apart from those fans who shell out for hospitality and are permitted to drink before and after games as well as a quick tipple at half-time.

Aberdeen, Dundee, Dundee United, Hearts and Hibernian have commissioned Deloitte to look at ways of doubling the revenue received by Scottish clubs.

Allowing fans to drink at games would definitely be one way of helping to achieve this.

It is commonplace in Scottish football to see a large amount of fans arriving bang on kick-off time as they opt for an extra drink at a nearby pub rather than head to the stadium early.

This does little to help build atmosphere at games and if fans knew they could buy a drink at the ground they would be less likely to binge-drink prior to games.

The alcohol ban for rugby matches at Murrayfield was lifted in 2007 and, as anyone who has been to watch the Scotland rugby team play would know, the SRU make a hefty amount from being able to sell pints to fans on a match day.

Aberdeen fans were back in Pittodrie in great numbers for the first time since March 2020.
Aberdeen fans have returned to Pittodrie in good numbers this season.

Scottish football fans should be entitled to do the same.

It is understandable that there will be hesitancy over allowing alcohol back to Scottish football grounds.

Those concerns could be mitigated by preventing alcohol sales at powderkeg fixtures, such as the Old Firm derby.

Would allowing fans to have a pint at a game between Aberdeen and Livingston seriously risk an increase in fan disorder at Pittodrie? It seems unlikely.

It is time for a proper review and a trial at low risk games.

Football fans south of the border are set to be allowed to enjoy a drink at their seats.

It is already possible to buy and drink alcohol in the concourse but a fan-led government review is expected to pave the way for alcohol to return to the stands for the first time since 1985.

If this move comes to fruition, it would increase the demand for fans in Scotland to be entitled to do the same.

Many Scottish football fans will be sceptical about how much the SPFL review will achieve.

Too many similar reviews have come and gone in years gone by which vowed to change Scottish football for the better but offered little if any actual meaningful action to make that happen.

But if it manages to pave the way for fans to enjoy a pint at the game it would be a big step forward.

Scottish rugby fans have been able to enjoy a pint at the game since 2007.

It is wrong that Scotland rugby fans can cheer their team on with a pint in their hand but the Tartan Army at Hampden are not trusted to do the same.

Bringing alcohol back to the stands could be done gradually and it would be a game-changer for clubs such as Aberdeen.

It could also provide a major financial boost for smaller SPFL clubs such as Cove Rangers, Peterhead and Elgin City.

The reluctance from the government and police is understandable but the time is right for Scottish football fans to be trusted to enjoy a pint at the game once more.