Scottish clubs are set to step up their efforts to challenge the ban on the sale of alcohol in football grounds.
The moves comes after St Johnstone chairman Adam Webb branded the current legislation ‘discriminatory’ and ‘offensive.’
St Johnstone are one of a number of clubs pursuing applications to establish pre-match fan zones next season.
And the Scottish football authorities hope the widespread implementation of controlled zones selling alcohol to fans in supervised conditions will persuade Holyrood to relax a ban introduced as a response to disorder between Rangers and Celtic fans at the 1980 Scottish Cup final.
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First Minister John Swinney recently warned that the government were ‘not sympathetic’ to the idea of reviewing the legislation. Privately, however, senior figures inside Hampden believe that stance could change after next year’s Scottish parliamentary elections. Successful fan zones up and down the country, they believe, can hope to accelerate the process.
St Johnstone chairman Webb told Herald Sport: “We intend to have a fan zone operating before our games and if you do that for a season and there are no reports to the police of any problems then it should be able to be expanded.
“We need to take gradual steps and adopt a logical, rational approach instead of the current one size fits all.
“The situation is unique to Scottish football and the ‘one size fits all’ attitude is so unfair. It makes no sense.
“We understand that there has been violence at certain games and certain clubs and that the police probably ought to have a role in whether or how alcohol can be sold at certain games. I get that.
“But when Saints are playing clubs where there is no real history of animosity in the Championship and we still can’t have an open situation where people who want to drink can have a beer then that makes no sense.
“Where there is a game where violence might be anticipated, then conditions will be placed upon alcohol sales. We understand that, but I think it’s time to take it forward and review this.
“You look at other sports in Scotland enjoy carte blanche to sell alcohol, like rugby.
“That would anger me as a Scottish football fan and I would be lobbying my political parties and if they heard that from enough fans, loudly enough, then maybe the law would change and we wouldn’t have to be sneaking around the edges on this.
“The ban is discriminatory, it’s offensive and it makes all football fans out to be hooligans. And that’s just not true.
“There are clubs and games where there would be no problem at all and this law has to go.
“I’m okay with gradual change, but we can’t just take no for an answer forever.”
Mindful of the divisive nature of the debate, Webb believes fan zones are a logical starting point.
“Let’s make sure everyone feels comfortable about it. In the Premiership there is obviously more sensitivity and concern, but you could still have some test policies, some test program, that could be tried out over a season. New things could be tried.”
While the SPFL and SFA have continued to quietly lobby the Scottish Government on the issue, their cause was undermined by various instances of crowd disorder towards the end of the season.
Scenes in Glasgow city centre were followed by a bottle being thrown on the pitch during the Rangers-Celtic game at Ibrox, while Aberdeen defender Jack McKenzie was struck on the face by the back of a seat thrown from the stand during a game against Dundee United.
In a statement yesterday the SPFL revealed that notices of complaints have now been raised against Aberdeen, Celtic and Partick Thistle over incidents which occurred at the end of the season.’
