{"id":596039,"date":"2026-05-21T11:07:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T11:07:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/596039\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T11:07:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T11:07:09","slug":"spfl-to-issue-celtic-points-deduction-punishment-as-photographic-evidence-emerges-from-scenes-vs-hearts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/596039\/","title":{"rendered":"SPFL to issue Celtic points deduction punishment as ‘photographic evidence’ emerges from scenes vs Hearts"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Celtic<\/p>\n

(Credit: Imago)<\/p>\n

\"Ciaran <\/p>\n

Thu 21 May 2026 9:49, UK <\/p>\n

Celtic<\/a> will most likely receive a suspended points deduction and a fine for their fans invading the pitch against Hearts. <\/p>\n

That is according to former Aberdeen chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking to Football Insider, who believes the authorities will sweep the situation under the carpet.<\/p>\n

Celtic fans ran onto the pitch following Callum Osmand\u2019s 98th minute goal which clinched the Scottish Premiership title against Hearts, who only needed a point on the final day to win the trophy themselves.<\/p>\n

Whilst the SPFL have released a statement saying that the match was not abandoned, there is uncertainty over whether referee Don Robertson blew the final whistle.<\/p>\n

It is not the first time this season that Celtic fans have entered the field of play<\/a>, with their Scottish Cup match against Rangers in March ending with supporters of both clubs clashing on the pitch.<\/p>\n

\u26bd Celtic Matchday \u26bd<\/p>\n

>Team news, line-ups, expert previews and verdicts, and tactical analysis for every Hoops fixture.<\/p>\n

VISIT THE CELTIC MATCH HUB<\/a> <\/p>\n

MORE FOOTBALL INSIDER STORIES<\/p>\n

Celtic told pitch invasions \u2018have got to be stopped\u2019<\/p>\n

Aberdeen\u2019s former chief Keith Wyness \u2013 who served as CEO at Pittodrie between 2000 and 2004, had lengthy spells as the chief of Everton and Aston Villa and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs \u2013 would like to see Celtic given a big punishment to put an end to fans invading the pitch.<\/p>\n

Speaking on the new edition of\u00a0Football Insider\u2018s Inside Track podcast<\/a>, Wyness thinks Hearts should be awarded the title if the game was abandoned.<\/p>\n

PositionClubPoints1stCeltic822ndHearts803rdRangers724thMotherwell61How the top four of the Scottish Premiership table finished for the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n

He told\u00a0Football Insider\u2018s Inside Track podcast: \u201cThere\u2019s photographic evidence I\u2019ve seen of Celtic players and substitutes running onto the pitch when the game is still being played, and before the ball was put in the net for the third goal. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey were actually encroaching onto the pitch. All sorts of things can happen. My gut feeling is, having observed Scottish football and having been part of it for many years, the powers that be will cave in and give Celtic a big fine and a small suspended points deduction for next year. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ll try and sweep it all under the carpet that way. What I\u2019d rather see is if this game was abandoned, they would give the actual trophy to Hearts. This tries to put an end to fans coming onto the pitch in situations like that. That\u2019s the bigger issue. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve already had it at the Old Firm game earlier in the season. It\u2019s got to be stopped and the only way to do this is to make something as dramatic as this. There\u2019ll be a lot of flak, but I\u2019m afraid that\u2019s the only way I can see it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Martin O\u2019Neill urged to remain at Celtic<\/p>\n

Celtic now have their full focus on their Scottish Cup final against Dunfermline at Hampden Park, which could be the last game for interim boss Martin O\u2019Neill.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Neill is only contracted until the summer, and Celtic are expected to hire a new permanent manager once the season ends.<\/p>\n

Wyness told Football Insider that O\u2019Neill should not remain in the Celtic dugout beyond this season<\/a>, and he has urged the 74-year-old to move into a position behind the scenes.<\/p>\n

The Glasgow club have not had a Head of Football Operations since Paul Tisdale left in January, whilst keeping O\u2019Neill would be a positive move with the fanbase.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"(Credit: Imago) Thu 21 May 2026 9:49, UK Celtic will most likely receive a suspended points deduction and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":596040,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[10043,59,92607,143467,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-596039","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-celtic","tag-gb","tag-hearts","tag-keith-wyness","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596039","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=596039"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596039\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/596040"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=596039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=596039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=596039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}