Letter: New ball game

What else should we remember amidst the anguish of relatives of those who perished in the 1971 Ibrox disaster (your report, 4 January)? It can't be just that the safety of football fans at matches has to be paramount.

It ought to be that the whole experience of going to a game needs to change so that more people can feel comfortable in our stadiums.

This isn't just a question of the many physical changes - seating, heating, catering, hospitality facilities - that have occurred in the past 40 years.

It has to be about what it feels like for women, young people and ethnic minorities, who are a potential market for football which has not been sufficiently explored . Many, I'm sure, would be prepared to pay to go to a game if they could be assured there would be no obscene chanting as well as more concern for their actual comfort.

The culture of football has changed markedly since the 1970s. There is now a recognition that fans should be treated as customers. This is a response to better standards of housing, more and more television coverage, and competing outlets for entertainment.

We no longer live in a world when it was just as warm going to a football match as it was staying in the house.

Sadly, it took the sort of disaster commemorated with such dignity at Ibrox on Monday to bring the world of soccer to its senses.

But there is no case for complacency. Football in Scotland needs to make the changes that will ensure its survival. That means making the kind of moves that will make a much wider section of society feel at home in any stadium. That may mean further restrictions on what fans are allowed to chant at any ground in the country. It may be a price worth paying to ensure the reputation and prosperity of the game.

Bob Taylor

Shiel Court

Glenrothes, Fife