UEFA orders Scotland fans to remove celebration videos from X

Scotland fans have criticized UEFA after videos of fans celebrating their team’s World Cup qualification were removed from social media.

The Scottish Football Supporters’ Association (SFSA) has received emails from European football’s governing body alleging it had shared footage showing television coverage of Scotland’s match against Denmark on X without permission.

Posts shared by the SFSA showed fans across the country celebrating Tuesday night’s match, as Scotland secured a place in the World Cup for the first time since 1998.

Several videos have been removed due to copyright infringement and the SFSA account has been banned.

Paul Goodwin, co-founder of the SFSA, has questioned the fairness of this claim.

He said: “It is hard to believe that UEFA are so out of touch with reality that they have demanded X remove images of cheering fans in pubs in Glasgow, Stirling and Dundee where some of our members were celebrating a glorious evening for the nation.

“It really speaks of people who have no idea about football, making decisions.”

Tuesday’s match was available live for free on BBC Scotland and BBC Two. Rights vary elsewhere.

One of the removed videos showed a packed pub in Inverurie erupting when Scott McTominay scored with a bicycle kick three minutes into the match.

Mr Goodwin added: “Yes, the match was in the background, but these clips were of fans watching the match which was being watched legally on the BBC, and their average duration was 40 seconds.”

“So it’s difficult to broadcast a game to a global audience.”

The group received emails from lawyers on behalf of UEFA after the posts were flagged for violating UEFA rules on match footage.

Goodwin said he was “shocked” when the videos were deleted and the group’s account banned.

He added: “Perhaps our message to UEFA is best summed up in the chant usually directed at match referees, ‘You don’t know what you’re doing.’

Scotland qualified for their first World Cup since 1998 with a memorable 4-2 win over Denmark at Hampden.

Goals from Scott McTominay, Lawrence Shankland, Kieran Tierney and Kenny McLean secured Scotland’s place in the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

In addition to fan reactions, video edits of the goals, particularly McTominay’s bicycle kick, were widely shared on social media sites, including X as well as Instagram and TikTok.

Scottish Labour’s culture spokesman Neil Bibby described the removals as “clumsy”.

He said: “Scotland’s win on Tuesday night was a historic moment for the country.

“But it was also a great advertisement for the beautiful game around the world.

He added: “I hope that the European Union will reconsider its position, not least because these clips powerfully demonstrate the exciting and dramatic moments that international football can create.”

UEFA frequently removes YouTube videos due to strict copyright enforcement.

UEFA owns the broadcast rights to its matches and generally restricts the uploading of match footage by unofficial channels and fans.

According to UEFA rules, the governing body “is the exclusive owner of all intellectual property rights to the competition, including any existing or future rights in all types of audio and visual material for the competition.”

UEFA has been contacted for comment.