Scottish football hasn’t always been given the respect it deserves. It isn’t held in the same regard as the English Premier League, La Liga or the Bundesliga. But Scottish football has a long history of having some of the most passionate fans, and games, in the world.
You can’t talk about Scottish football without talking about one of the most infamous rivalries in the game, Celtic vs Rangers. The “Old Firm” derby is the prime example of the amount of passion the game holds in Scotland, and a smart man would always bet on a spicy game every time these two foes meet.
Celtic and Rangers both call Glasgow home, but their rivalry exists for a number of reasons. This rivalry has been going on since the late 1800’s, and even though it has toned down a bit as the years have gone by, it is still a very fiery affair whenever these two teams meet.
The rivalry is centred around 3 main aspects, religion, Northern Ireland politics, national identity, and social ideology. Celtic have identified as Catholic, while Rangers identify as Protestant.
Politically, one identifies as Loyalists, the other, Republicans, one identifies as British, the other as Irish Scots, and one side is Socialist while the other is Conservative. Considering differing political and religious ideologies is a recipe for disliking people, a rivalry is obvious.
Looking past the incredibly well-known rivalry, there is something about Scottish football that is different from the other leagues. The Premier League, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga may have the glitz and glam and the massive names, but Scottish football seems to still have that raw passion that football is meant to have, that other leagues have lost because of the fame and money.
It can be argued that Scottish football isn’t even that good, the standard of play is lower than other, more exciting leagues. This is a fair enough argument, Rangers and Celtic have been the dominant forces for years, with other teams usually just playing for third place.
As mentioned above, the bigger leagues across the globe have always had more money, attracted the best players, and have some of the best teams in the world. They play beautiful football, put on tactical masterclasses, and generally give the fans what they want, enjoyable football.
Nobody is saying that Scottish football doesn’t provide fans with any of this, but what makes it different is the grit. You watch any Premier League and you’ll see big, strong players flailing on the floor after being on the receiving end of a tackle that wouldn’t hurt a mouse.
On the other hand, you watch a Scottish football game and all hell is breaking loose before the 10 minute mark. Players tackle harder, fans scream louder, the intensity is turned up to 100 the moment the whistle blows, and it doesn’t take a break.
The Old Firm derby isn’t the only derby in Scotland either, there may not be many teams in their top league, but there are still some feisty affairs apart from Celtic and Rangers. Aberdeen vs Dundee, Hearts vs Hibs, Dundee vs St Johnstone, all rivalries that bring the same emotion and passion to a football stadium.
Much like most football derbies across the globe, the Old Firm derby is no stranger to violence. Fights, riots, storming the field, throwing whatever fans can get their hands on at each other, all par for the course.
Once again, the years that have passed have toned this down a bit, but after a derby at Ibrox or Celtic Park, each set of fans go their separate fans, escorted by policemen on horseback, ready to break up and fight that may ensue.
Nobody is saying that the bigger leagues don’t have this type of passion, it is more the fact that fans express it differently. You look at the famous Turkish derby of Fenerbahce vs Galatasaray, or in Greece with Panathinaikos vs Olympiacos. Fights, flares, and general violence and unrest is par for the course during these games, because it isn’t about having the best team or players in the world, it is about what your team means to you, and how much you love them.
These types of rivalries are embedded into children when they are young, they love their team from the moment they start watching football because their father, grandfather, great grandfather all loved the same team. This is where Scottish football is different.
The support that Scottish fans have for their team goes beyond winning trophies, having the best stadium, manager, players, it goes beyond that because their level of passion and support will never change no matter what.
In 2012, Rangers were in administration and dropped down a few leagues. This made zero difference to their fans, who still packed the stadiums and sang the songs of support for their team week in and week out.
Football lives in the blood of these supporters, and no loss and no negativity makes them think twice about getting up every day and being a Rangers fan, being a Celtic fan, or a Hearts or Hibs fan, it’s for life, and tuning into an Old Firm derby will prove it to you from the first minute.
