JOHN Swinney has defended the Scottish Government’s decision to make football matches effectively “spectator free”, saying the cap on fans sends a “clear signal” that social interaction must be cut to reduce the spread of Covid.

It comes after Nicola Sturgeon announced new restrictions to stem the Omicron variant, which saw the cancellation of Hogmanay events across Scotland.

For indoor standing events, there will be a limit of 100, for indoor seated events it will be 200, and for outdoor events, it will be 500 seated or standing.

This has caused upset among many football fans who won’t be able to attend upcoming matches.

READ MORE: Football fans and hospitality firms react to new Covid restrictions

A video shared on social media showed some fans at a Hibernian v Aberdeen match chanting songs against the booster vaccine and Nicola Sturgeon, thought to be in response to the curb on outdoor events.

On Thursday, SNP MSP John Mason asked why the cap on the number of people attending football matches isn’t varied between stadia.

Mason said different clubs have vastly different numbers of people attending their matches, with bigger clubs having huge stadiums that can pack tens of thousands.

But Swinney said the current rules send a “clear signal” to Scots that social interactions must be cut to stop the spread of Omicron.

Swinney said: “We’ve got to take decisions based on making sure such judgments are effective.

“If for example, we have a multiple range of options about outside venues, take for example, the model that Mr Mason has put to me of a variation reflecting stadium size and stadium facility, then I think we lose clarity of message, which is a rather blunt one.

“And I make no apology for it being so blunt, that we need to quite simply reduce the degree to which people interact.”

Swinney said a total of 500 as a maximum for outdoor events “sends a very clear signal to people in the country that we have to reduce that interaction”.

He continued: “For example, out of 500 at a Rangers scheme, compared to a crowd of 50,000, which would normally be of that order, it makes a very clear, significant point that we have to reduce dramatically the level of social interaction if we want to interrupt the circulation of Omicron.

“There is a simple clarity that is necessary in that respect.

Swinney added that the Government has to consider which policies will lead to a drop in cases.

“And that's about recognising that there will be limitations on the degree to which venues can accommodate individuals,” he said.

“As for the specific numbers, well, there is no perfect science here other than the fact that I would come back to my first point, which is we've got to take clear and understandable decisions, which are set within the policy choices that we make, which are about reducing the social interaction between individuals.”

It comes after Swinney on Tuesday said that the Scottish Football League Cup Final “could well have been” a super spreader Covid-19 event.

“I think it stands to reason that if we have large numbers of people, 50,000 fans travelling towards a sporting event in one particular part of the country, using multiple modes of transport and interacting with each other – there is a very high danger that will be a super spreader event,” he said.

“I regret the fact we didn’t make this decision earlier.”

Reacting to the restrictions on outdoor events, Scottish Football Supporters Association said it will lead to “significant revenue shortfalls” to clubs.

The group said the rules “ shock to the finances of many clubs”.

It added: “Local derbies and the festive feel-good factor is the highlight of the season to many and football proceeding with just 500 fans is also a major organisational nightmare for our bigger clubs.”