August 7 – Scottish clubs Hearts and Partick Thistle have each been fined £2,500 by the Scottish FA for going to court to try and stave off their respective relegations.
The pair were relegated to the second and third tier respectively and after league reconstruction talks broke down decided to go down the legal route, unhappy that their demotions had been made on a points-per-game basis.
The court of session in Edinburgh referred the matter to the Scottish FA for arbitration, and their relegations were confirmed in a unanimous decision.
SFA rules state that “no member or associated person shall take a dispute which is referable to arbitration in terms of Article 99 to a court of law”.
Both clubs could theoretically have been expelled by the governing body, but instead they’ve both been hit with the lower end of penalty.
Responding to the fines, the clubs released a joint statement which said: “Hearts and Partick Thistle acknowledge the decision of a Scottish FA Judicial Panel earlier today.
“Whilst we are naturally disappointed by this outcome, we nevertheless consider that the sanction applied by the Panel reflects that the petition issued by the clubs before the Court of Session was brought in good faith.
“We look forward to putting these matters behind us and focusing on the season ahead.”
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