Hate Thy Neighbour Part 4: Old (Firm) Habits Die Hard

Debate can go around for eternity on what the best or biggest derby in world football is. Some would point to the atmosphere and intimidation of the Istanbul derby between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, others turn their heads towards the scale and star power of El Clásico, but a constant in this discussion is The Old Firm.

Celtic and Rangers have been the two powerhouses of Scottish football with 106 league titles between them.

The rivalry is surrounded by historic achievements and success, but also by extreme controversy and division. The Old Firm goes well beyond football.

With that controversy comes discussion and questions, what is the current climate surrounding the rivalry and it's baggage like? How does it reflect on Scottish football? And is there a future where the derby isn't fueled by often discriminatory hatred?

Sectarianism in Glasgow

Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups. Religion is a common fuel for sectarianism and has been prevalent in Glasgow in the sectarian divide between Catholics and Protestants. Glasgow's hub for this division is The Old Firm with the majority of Celtic supporters identifying as Catholic and most Rangers fans identifying as Protestant.

Despite the issue spanning back many years due to the economic hardship leading to settlement of Irish Catholic immigrants in the city's east end, sectarianism's role in football culture allowed it to continue. A 2003 study by Glasgow City Council revealed that 65% of respondents felt that sectarian violence was very or quite common.

More recently, research highlighted in a 2013 report from the Scottish Government said:

“The use of sectarian language and humour may have become so deeply assimilated into these young people's social identity that it has become normalised.”

Today, there is still fear of sectarianism in Glasgow in public spaces as videographer for Rangers, Jess Kirton, expressed:

"I wouldn't go to town with my Rangers branded clothing on even coming back from work I just wear a big coat. Maybe it's just me being a bit delicate I'm not sure."

Kirton's concern and hesitance to show off her colours is shared as a story from The Scotsman writer Graham Falk, who supports Sunderland and Rangers, shows. He told me:

"I was meeting a friend I go to Sunderland games with in Glasgow for a gig. He's from Irish heritage and he's a Celtic fan. We don't judge each other on that. He told me where he was so I went and met him and without thinking I had a royal blue t-shirt on.

"I turned onto the Gallowgate (a predominantly Celtic area) for the first time and as soon as I entered the bar I knew I'd made a mistake. There was a lot of questions on if I was a Rangers fan or what Irish folks songs I knew. My mate had to say I was a Sunderland fan and we made a swift exit."

Division Beyond Religion

Of course the Catholic and Protestant divide is the largest factor between the two Glaswegian giants, but the two fanbases have taken polar opposite stances on socio-political debates.

Belfast born Ian Murtagh, a sports journalist with over 35 years experience and a Celtic supporter said:

"They've taken opposite sides in the Middle Eastern debate as you'll see Celtic fans with the PLO flags and Rangers with the Star of David.

"You've of course also gotten the Brexit debate. Celtic were seen as very anti-Brexit and Rangers fans were very pro. It's a bizzare situation where the instinct is to support polar causes."

Even in national football, Murtagh explained how this continues:

"Rangers fans will accuse Celtic fans of not supporting Scotland and Celtic will say why do you support England? A lot of Rangers fans like England and the national anthem whereas Celtic lean more towards Ireland. I'm an Ireland fan. Even though I'm from Belfast I support the Republic."

Falk believes that the current climate of the political world helps feed into this:

"There are elements of both sides wanting to get rid of it (sectarianism), but with every opinion being absolutely spilt at the minute, it allows things that should be going out of fashion to still exist."

An Outside View

Given the size of the two Old Firm clubs and the amount of attention put towards them, it can often slip the mind that there are nine other sides in the Scottish Premiership. It rarely gets take into consideration how the derby and it's connotations are seen in the wider scope of Scottish football.

Scottish football YouTuber and Motherwell fan Gordon 'Goggsy' Bonnes said:

"I despise The Old Firm because of what they stand for. I have friends who support both purely for football and I am happy about that. For me as a football fan who has nothing to do with religion, it goes completely against what I stand for."

Goggsy also spoke on frustration of the attitude towards football fans in Scotland relating to the derby:

"I was on a night out in Sunderland and somebody asked me who I supported and I said Motherwell. They followed up with what's your big club? People don't realise that there's plenty of people in Scotland who do not care about the Old Firm."

As much as he may not care for the two clubs, Bonnes said they're size is helpful to to the league:

"Having an extra home game against Rangers and Celtic could fund the wages for our next star striker."

The Potential to Move Forward

Despite division being very much still present in Glasgow, steps are being taken to try and eradicate this form of bigotry.

Social Inclusion Officer for Glasgow City Council, Mark Adams outlined his and the city's goals for tackling sectarianism:

"My biggest education programme is Sense Over Sectarianism. We want every child to have had anti-sectarianism education.

"Our main intervention age is 11-12 years old so they're old enough to have experience but young enough to have an open mind."

With this programme children read a novel called 'Divided City', which addresses sectarianism and racism against asylum seekers. Adams noted that the story tends to stay with kids and is well remembered when the programme engages with them at older ages.

The plan of the programme is to attack the issue head on and address it on sight, as Adams explained:

"We have a lot of casual sectarianism. The problem with the throwaway language, a lot of people don't know what the language they're using actually means. So if we tell kids in the schools why these words shouldn't be used, they're less likely to use them and so are the younger children.

"We never turn a deaf ear. The one thing I tell teachers is always challenge sectarianism when they hear it and ask why they're using that language."

As proud of the programme as Adams is, he stressed that the two Old Firm clubs need to do more to help:

"They put out messages saying it isn't acceptable at games, but if you're admitting there's a problem then you're responsible for doing something about it."

Adams put forward his vision for Scotland in 20 years time, when his education can be passed down:

"We want everyone to be informed and be apart of the change. We want to empower enough people to challenge it and understand why it's unacceptable."

Many on both sides want this type of attitude to be reinforced, while others see no light at the end of the tunnel. The work being put in to bring the city closer together is monumental, only time will tell if it pays off.