New figures cast doubt on the link between Rangers and Celtic matches and domestic violence

Previous research has shown cases of women being beaten by thug partners surge on days when the Old Firm clash.

But it’s now been found that incidents also fall by up to 7% when the two clubs are playing other teams.

Researchers examined crime trends in the Strathclyde area between 2003 and 2011.

They found domestic violence peaked at weekends and during the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Incidents also soared by a staggering 39% on Old Firm derby days.

But when only Celtic are playing, the figures drop 7%, and there is a 4% decline when Rangers are in action.

The study by Strathclyde University and King’s College London – published in the Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics – states: “This strikes us as very surprising.

“This suggests it is not football in general that is associated with domestic violence, but Old Firm matches in particular.”

The link between the Glasgow clubs’ fans and violence in the home has proved controversial.

Before last year’s League Cup semi-final, when the teams went head-to-head for the first time in nearly three years, the former head of the police’s Violence Reduction Unit, John Carnochan, sparked fury by saying: “You can say it’s just picking on Rangers and Celtic fans, but there are 50,000 men at the match and the odds are a lot of them will be abusers.”

But Dr Stuart Waiton – senior sociology lecturer at Abertay University in Dundee – claims the latest study proves supporters have been unfairly targeted.

He said: “Domestic violence is nothing to do with being a Celtic or Rangers fan.

“It’s clearly more to do with weekends, Christmas holidays and large numbers of people going to pubs all day when a big match is on television – in other words when people tend to drink a lot in a few hours.

“What team you support is as relevant to domestic abuse as the colour of your socks or your star sign.

“It’s time for an end to the authorities’ demonisation of Old Firm supporters and football fans in general.”

However, Dr Marsha Scott, of anti-domestic abuse charity Scottish Women’s Aid, said the focus on the Old Firm was not helpful

She added: “It encourages misinformed linkages between football fans in general and incidents of domestic abuse.

“It would be interesting to unpick exactly what does happen on these days [when Rangers and Celtic play each other] because I’m not confident that we or the police or researchers really know at the moment.”

A Police Scotland spokesman said when the teams met last year the number of incidents of domestic abuse was only two more than the average number of incidents on a Sunday that year.

She added: “Police Scotland recognise that while alcohol contributes to or even escalates domestic abuse incidents – we do not see it as a causal factor for domestic abuse.

“The use of alcohol is not a defence or an excuse for domestic abuse.”