Sir Rod Stewart has called on Scottish football authorities to introduce a system that forces officials to declare their allegiances, insisting it would help guarantee truly impartial refereeing.
The outspoken Celtic supporter raised the issue while discussing Rangers’ early penalty against Kilmarnock, even though he openly accepted the decision itself was correct.
Rangers went on to secure a 5–1 victory over the struggling Ayrshire side, cutting the gap to leaders Hearts to three points and moving above Celtic into second place. The game turned sharply after just four minutes when Dom Thompson was sent off for a challenge on Djeidi Gassama inside the box, with James Tavernier converting the resulting spot kick.
While Rugby Park boss Neil McCann said he had no complaints about referee David Dickinson’s call, Stewart was far less convinced. Speaking on talkSPORT alongside fellow Celtic fan Alan Brazil, the music icon vented his frustration.
He said: “It’s funny, I have to bring this up. Rangers get a penalty and straight away all my pals in Scotland are on the phone saying ‘same old bias’. Why can’t something be done about it?
“In the Premier League they try to make sure referees aren’t linked to clubs. Why can’t we do that in Scotland? I know officials are vetted and asked who they support, so why not make it clear and remove any doubt?
“I’ve seen the incident. It was a penalty and it was a red card. But the question remains, why can’t we have referees everyone believes are unbiased?”
Brazil pushed back by highlighting the familiar divide between supporters. “If you ask my colleague, who supports Rangers, he’ll tell you the opposite. He thinks Celtic get all the decisions,” he said. “Growing up watching Celtic, I always felt we were on the wrong end of calls, but Rangers fans will never agree.”
Stewart replied: “Exactly, so how do we fix that? It doesn’t reflect well on Scottish football when this argument never goes away.”
The exchange ended with a light hearted twist when co host Gabby Agbonlahor shared a message from Rangers legend Ally McCoist, suggesting the Celtic aligned panel were feeling the pressure as the title race heats up.
“He’s texting me saying there’s panic setting in,” Agbonlahor laughed. “He reckons they’re all panicking.”