Scottish FA turn on their own women’s team and say they are ‘hugely disappointed’ by the squad

The Scottish FA have hit back at its women’s national team players after the entire squad publicly slammed their ticketing policy.

Every player posted a joint statement on social media on Tuesday night which called out the SFA for making only a limited number of tickets available for their crucial World Cup qualifier against Spain at Hampden Park.

Only six sections of the stadium – P1-3 and L4-6 – have been made available and all are close to being sold out. The SFA are yet to announce whether more tickets will be made available.

The Scots attracted a crowd of 6,445 for their qualifier with Hungary in October, which was a record for a competitive international women’s match. A crowd of 18,555 watched their pre-2019 World Cup friendly against Jamaica, which is the overall record.

The statement, attached with a picture of the stadium’s availability, read: ‘Following record attendances at recent women’s football matches, the SFA have only opened a fraction of a 50,000+ capacity Hampden Park.

‘How are we expected to grow the game when limited tickets are available for our supporters? Come on @ScotlandNT we can do better.’

But the SFA have responded with a strongly worded statement of their own, outlining their ‘disappointment’ at the squad’s actions.

‘The ticketing sales process used at Hampden Park is identical to most across Scottish football, with tickets sold in blocks, in line with ongoing demand,’ the SFA said.

‘This procedure is long-established for all events within our stadium – including the recent men’s UNICEF friendly against Poland – to optimise the atmosphere for each event.

‘The Scottish FA was therefore surprised by the flurry of identical social media posts last night from members of the Scotland Women’s National Team under the misapprehension that insufficient tickets are being sold for next Tuesday’s vital FIFA Women’s World Cup Qualifier against Spain at the national stadium.

‘Every seat in Hampden Park will be made available should the demand require it – and we urge football fans across the country to do their bit to support Pedro Martinez Losa and his team.

‘Indeed, the Scottish FA has already gifted 2000 to local clubs to help cheer on the team. It is also worth pointing out that for this match, the Scottish FA has allocated the biggest marketing spend for a Scotland Women’s National Team game, which has included prominent player-focused Bring The Noise outdoor and social media advertising.

‘The staff who will work tirelessly until kick-off to promote the match have been hugely disappointed by the post, especially when the question could have been answered easily, and without negative headlines and ill-informed sharing.

‘The timing was especially disappointing given the posts were published midway through the Scotland Women’s Under-19 team’s UEFA EURO Round Two victory against Kazakhstan in Edinburgh. That this match was streamed live, with dedicated production and commentary, should reinforce the Scottish FA’s commitment to women’s football at all levels.

‘We hope the SWNT can refocus and inspire the nation against Spain on Tuesday.’

Scotland Women have been playing their games at Hampden since September. They are second in their World Cup qualifying group and are well placed to finish second. Spain, who have won every game without conceding a goal, top the group.