The atmosphere at Celtic Park on Sunday, May 10, 2026, was as electric as any in the history of the fixture, but as the dust settles on Celtic’s 3–1 victory, the conversation has shifted from the scoreline to the technology behind the decisions. In a match that officially ended Rangers’ title hopes, the performance of the officiating team and VAR John Beaton has come under intense scrutiny from pundits and former referees alike.
The primary point of contention occurred in the first half when Celtic defender Alistair Johnston was shown a yellow card for a heavy sliding challenge on Rangers winger Mikey Moore. While referee Nick Walsh opted for a booking on the field, slow-motion replays quickly sparked a firestorm. Former Rangers striker Kris Boyd and pundit Michael Stewart both characterized the challenge as “wild,” arguing that the contact above the ankle constituted a “red card all day long.” The fact that VAR did not recommend an on-field review for a potential upgrade to a red card has been described by some former officials as a “staggering” oversight.
This latest controversy arrives at a time when faith in the Scottish FA’s Key Match Incidents (KMI) panel is a major talking point. Fans and social media accounts have recently been recirculating a report from February 2024, in which an independent panel identified 13 significant VAR errors across a single round of fixtures—including a famous missed handball by Alistair Johnston in a previous derby. The resurgence of this “13 mistakes” statistic highlights a lingering frustration among supporters regarding the consistency of the technology in high-stakes matches.
Despite the outcry over the Johnston incident, the match continued with Celtic capitalizing on their momentum. Goals from Yang and Daizen Maeda ultimately overturned Mikey Moore’s early opener, securing a win that leaves Celtic just one point behind league leaders Hearts. For Rangers, the defeat is a bitter pill to swallow, made worse by the feeling that the game’s disciplinary narrative might have been different had the VAR intervened.
As the Scottish Premiership moves into its final weeks, the pressure on the SFA’s independent panel to provide clarity is mounting. With the title race now a two-horse sprint between Hearts and Celtic, the demand for officiating transparency is at an all-time high. For now, the “13 mistakes” of the past remain a haunting benchmark for a league still searching for the perfect balance between human judgment and technological precision.
