Ian Maxwell, chief executive of the Scottish Football Association (SFA), has responded to ongoing controversy surrounding a missed penalty claim in the Premier Sports Cup final, attributing officiating mistakes to “human nature.” The incident, which saw Rangers denied a penalty for a potential foul on winger Vaclav Cerny, sparked a reaction from Rangers’ new CEO, Patrick Stewart. Just days into his role, Stewart demanded clarity from the SFA as to why the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) did not intervene during the match against Celtic.
Referee John Beaton acknowledged a foul on Cerny but, after reviewing the situation, awarded a free-kick instead of a penalty, despite replays indicating the foul occurred inside the penalty area. Celtic later triumphed 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out after a thrilling 3-3 draw over 120 minutes. Rangers manager Philippe Clement described the failure to review the incident as “really weird,” and former referee Bobby Madden expressed his disbelief that no penalty was given.
Reports suggest that the VAR officials, Alan Muir and assistant Frank Connor, will be absent from any William Hill Premiership fixtures this weekend following the incident.
Despite the criticism, Maxwell remains confident in the overall functioning of VAR, emphasizing that while mistakes are inevitable, the system has helped reduce errors significantly. Speaking at the Pitching In campaign launch—an initiative to inject £50 million into improving national football facilities over the next five years—Maxwell stated, “Mistakes will happen, that’s part of football. We’re constantly striving to minimize them, and VAR has helped with that in the majority of cases.”
Maxwell acknowledged that human errors will always be a part of football, especially with referees involved in decision-making. “That’s just human nature,” he said. “This is the first time I’ve been asked about a VAR decision this season. Since Willie Collum became head of refereeing, there’s been more transparency, which has been a breath of fresh air. We want to build on that moving forward.”
He also emphasized that contentious decisions have always been part of the game, and will continue to be. “There’s no end to debates over refereeing decisions,” Maxwell explained. “Football fans will always have different opinions on whether a decision was right or wrong—that’s what makes the sport so passionate.”
Away from the VAR controversy, Rangers are also grappling with issues related to fan behavior. The recent match at Hampden Park was delayed due to smoke from pyrotechnics set off by supporters, and reports of clashes between Rangers and Celtic fans surfaced before the match. SPFL officials have raised alarms about the increasing disorder at games, particularly involving pyrotechnics, which have been used frequently in recent semi-finals. Maxwell condemned the behavior, saying, “The disorder we saw this weekend is unacceptable. We need to eliminate pyrotechnics from the game.”
He highlighted that the problem is not unique to Scotland, noting that pyrotechnics have become a growing issue in football globally. “The vast majority of fans don’t want pyrotechnics in stadiums, and we’re even seeing people leave games early because of smoke-related breathing issues,” Maxwell added. “It’s a serious problem, and we must work with the SPFL, Scottish Government, and Police Scotland to find a solution. This growing trend is unwelcome in Scottish football, and it needs to be addressed.”
