Rangers sit third in the Scottish Premiership table, trailing Celtic by four points and Hearts by seven, with the season approaching its defining stretch. Against that backdrop, Celtic have confirmed that Rangers’ supporter group the Union Bears will not receive an allocation for the upcoming Old Firm derby at Celtic Park.
Keith Wyness, former Aberdeen chief executive and a seasoned football consultant who led Pittodrie between 2000 and 2004 before serving as chief at both Everton and Aston Villa, backs Celtic’s decision completely. Speaking on Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness said that both the Union Bears and Celtic’s own Green Brigade have shamed their respective clubs.
He argued that Celtic’s approach was entirely fair, adding that more moderate supporters from either side could easily fill those allocations. Wyness pointed specifically to trouble like pitch invasions and the wearing of masks inside grounds as the kinds of incidents that simply have no place in the modern game. He was careful to note that the ban targets the Union Bears specifically, not Rangers’ travelling support as a whole, and reckons both clubs know exactly who the repeat offenders are.
He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “As I understand it, it’s not away fans overall, it’s just the Union Bears.
“That’s where I am in complete agreement with Celtic in the way they’ve approached this. But of course, it’s very dangerous to get involved between Celtic and Rangers because no one side will ever give way to the other.
“It’s perfectly fair to say that some of the Green Brigade from Celtic and the Union Bears from Rangers have brought, I think, some disgrace on each of their clubs. The clubs do know who they are, and they should be excluded from Old Firm games.
“There are plenty of more moderate Rangers or Celtic fans who could fill an allocation. That’s what should be encouraged until there’s some decent behaviour. I mean, turning up in your Spider-Man mask and pitch invasions, that shouldn’t be the sort of thing that football is about.”
Does banning the Union Bears actually solve anything for Rangers?
EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND – MAY 04: Danny Rohl, Head Coach of Rangers, looks on prior to the William Hill Premiership match between Heart of Midlothian and Rangers at Tynecastle Park on May 04, 2026 in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Photo by Zak Mauger/Getty Images)
To be honest, it probably won’t change much in the short term, and Rangers supporters have every right to feel that something is unresolved here. Celtic’s Green Brigade have faced their own share of trouble on multiple occasions, and the fact that they aren’t facing similar treatment this time makes the whole thing feel one-sided, regardless of how reasonable Wyness sounds on paper.
Rangers, already fighting to close a gap at the top of the table, head into Celtic Park under enough pressure without the additional distraction of a contested ticketing row. The Union Bears bring a real spark to the stands, and not having them there definitely weakens the away end.
But here is the more uncomfortable truth: if the behaviour Wyness describes is accurate, then Rangers’ long-term reputation matters more than one vocal section’s attendance. Defending bad behaviour just because it comes from your own end benefits nobody, least of all Rangers.
