Hearts, Hibs and other fans praised for 'incredible support' after 'significant attendances' in early season

A general view of Hibernian fans during a William Hill Premiership match between St Mirren and Hibernian at the SMiSA Stadium, on August 04, 2024 | SNS Group

Scottish football fans have been praised by SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster following ‘significant attendances’ across the country in the opening weekend of the 24/25 season.

Celtic’s clash with Kilmarnock saw the single biggest attendance of the opening weekend with 58,712 at Celtic Park for the reigning champions 4-0 win over the Ayrshire side. Meanwhile, East End Park welcomed a bumper attendance for a club outside of the top flight with 7,595 attending the derby clash between Dunfermline Athletic and newly promoted Falkirk which was won by the Bairns.

A statement from the SPFL said: “More than a quarter of a million fans have flocked to SPFL grounds across the country on the opening two league weekends of the 2024/25 season. An impressive 255,850 attended matches across the William Hill Premiership, William Hill Championship, William Hill League 1 and William Hill League 2 at the start of 2024/25.

READ MORE: EVERY SCOTTISH PREMIERSHIP CLUB’S OPENING HOME ATTENDANCE RANKED FROM LOWEST TO HIGHEST

“Crowds have risen steadily since the SPFL was launched in season 2013/14, with this season’s aggregate more than 50,000 higher than the 201,828 who attended the first two rounds of that season.”

Doncaster added: “It’s really positive to see such significant attendances right across the country on our opening two weekends of the league season.  Scottish football fans are renowned for their incredible support, so it’s great to welcome more than a quarter of a million supporters to league games across our four divisions already this season.

“Our game has enjoyed record yearly attendances for two consecutive seasons now in the SPFL, and these strong opening weekend crowds are more good news for Scottish football.”