NafisaRangers have been handed another huge opportunity to make their mark in the Premier Sports Cup after the quarter-final draw produced the Old Firm fixture everyone wanted to see.
But while Rangers supporters celebrated the prospect of hosting Celtic at Ibrox, the reaction from across the city was very different.
Celtic supporters quickly turned their attention away from the glamour of the fixture and towards something they believe is much harder to explain.
And once the numbers started circulating, one particular Rangers statistic immediately became the centre of attention.
The Gers have apparently not been drawn away from home in a domestic cup tie for around three years.
That has prompted some Celtic supporters to ask an uncomfortable question: is Rangers simply experiencing an extraordinary run of luck, or is there something more going on behind the scenes?
To be absolutely clear, there is no evidence that Rangers have been involved in corruption or that any cup draw has been manipulated. The suggestion is coming from supporters reacting to what they regard as an astonishing statistical coincidence.
But that has not stopped the debate from exploding online.
Rangers keep getting home advantage
The latest draw has only intensified the frustration.
Rangers defeated St Mirren 5-1 to reach the last eight, with Derek McInnes finally securing his first victory as Rangers manager in emphatic fashion.
Then came the quarter-final draw.
Instead of being sent on the road, Rangers were handed another home fixture.
And not just any home fixture.
Celtic are coming to Ibrox.
That means McInnes’ first Old Firm meeting as Rangers boss will take place in front of the Ibrox support, with a place in the semi-finals at stake.
From a Rangers perspective, it could hardly have been a more attractive draw.
But Celtic supporters immediately began looking backwards.
The claim doing the rounds is that Rangers’ last domestic cup away tie came all the way back in January 2023.
If that sequence is correct across the relevant competitions, it means Rangers have gone roughly three years without being required to travel for a domestic cup tie.
And that is the statistic that has left some supporters scratching their heads.
“How is that even possible?”
The reaction from Celtic supporters has been predictable.
Some have simply described it as unbelievable luck.
Others have taken the more suspicious route, questioning whether there could be something happening behind the scenes.
The argument is straightforward.
Cup draws are supposed to be random.
Sometimes a club gets a favourable sequence of home draws.
Sometimes another club is forced to travel repeatedly.
But when one of Scotland’s biggest clubs appears to go such a long period without being drawn away, supporters are naturally going to notice.
Especially when that club repeatedly finds itself playing knockout football at its own stadium.
That does not, however, prove anything improper.
A random draw can produce extremely unusual sequences.
That is the whole point of randomness: unusual things can happen.
And then Celtic were drawn
Perhaps the funniest part of the entire situation for Celtic supporters is what happened next.
Rangers didn’t just receive another home tie.
They received Celtic.
For McInnes, it represents an enormous opportunity.
His Rangers side had endured a difficult beginning to the campaign, but the 5-1 victory over St Mirren finally gave the new manager some breathing room.
Now he has been handed Celtic at Ibrox.
It is exactly the sort of fixture Rangers fans would have wanted if they were allowed to choose their preferred quarter-final scenario.
And that is precisely why the draw has attracted so much attention.
Is it corruption? Absolutely not based on the evidence
This is where the viral claims need to be separated from the facts.
There is currently no evidence that Rangers have corrupted, influenced or manipulated the League Cup draw.
The fact that Rangers have apparently avoided an away cup tie for an extended period is, by itself, not evidence of wrongdoing.
Football draws are capable of producing remarkably unusual patterns.
The same applies to repeated home draws, repeated away draws or particular clubs avoiding each other for years.
It can look suspicious without actually being suspicious.
And there is an important distinction between saying “this is an incredible coincidence” and saying “the draw was fixed.”
The first is a perfectly reasonable reaction.
The second requires evidence.
None has been presented here.
But Celtic fans aren’t going to stop talking about it
That probably won’t matter much to supporters who have already made up their minds.
For Celtic fans, the timing is simply too perfect.
Rangers have avoided away cup football for years, according to the statistic being circulated, and now they have been handed Celtic at Ibrox in one of the biggest domestic cup ties possible.
For Rangers, meanwhile, there is absolutely nothing to complain about.
They have a home stadium, their supporters behind them, a manager who has finally got his first win and a chance to eliminate their biggest rivals before reaching the semi-finals.
McInnes could hardly have asked for a better first taste of the Old Firm.
And Celtic will now have to travel across Glasgow knowing that Rangers’ extraordinary run of favourable cup draws has once again produced a home fixture.
Whether it is nothing more than remarkable luck or a statistic that deserves closer examination, one thing is certain:
Celtic fans are going to be talking about this one all the way until kick-off.
Nafisa
