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Glasgow Live
Glasgow Live
Sport
Mark McDougall

Neil Doncaster predicts Celtic and Rangers fan boost as he targets increased crowd return

SPFL chief Neil Doncaster insists he's hopeful that 'decent numbers' can be back inside stadiums for the start of the new season.

With Rangers looking to finally celebrate their league title win with supporters and Celtic welcoming a new manager, both clubs and the rest of Scottish football are desperate for fans to get back in the stadium.

And the SPFL boss reckons the number of fans who were at Hampden for Monday's Euro 2020 opener as well as the crowds at places such as Wembley and the Wimbledon tennis final show how things are getting back to normal.

And while it might not be full capacity, Doncaster hopes that there will be good crowds inside Ibrox and Celtic Park for the beginning of the new season, and right across the country.

He said: "I'm certainly hopeful that, as every day passes and more of the population get vaccinated, clearly that improves our prospects of being able to get fans back in stadia in decent numbers.

"It was a real privilege to be at Hampden on Monday. You could see the excitement of so many fans who were desperate to get back to watching live football.

"It's vitally important we get as many fans back watching football at stadia as soon as possible.

"If you look at what's happening south of the border, they are ramping up the attendance at Wembley. You will see a very restricted attendance at Wembley this Friday but greater numbers later in the tournament. And Wimbledon tennis finals will have 100 per cent capacity crowds.

"So clearly we are working closely with the Scottish Government to get as many fans back safely as soon as possible.

"They are ongoing conversations led by the Scottish FA and the Joint Response Group. I think everyone understands how crucially important it is to get as many fans back as soon as possible."

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