Domestic abuse cases soared by 43 per cent in Scotland on the day of the Old Firm game at Hampden.

Police Scotland confirmed there were 210 reported incidents of domestic violence on the day Rangers and Celtic squared up to each other in their Scottish Cup semi-final, compared to 146 reports on an average Sunday.

Officers say they can't attribute the spike in abuse directly to the derby, but the majority of the extra calls were recorded in the Glasgow area on April 17.

Chief Superintendent Barry McEwan told The Times: "Following the recent Scottish Cup semi-fianl between Rangers and Celtic at Hampden it's disappointing to see an increase in reported incidents of domestic abuse.

"Dealing with this remains a priority for Police Scotland, one which we pro-actively addressed prior to this match taking place.

He added: "Our officers have detected around 60 per cent of the domestic crimes commited that day and will continue to pursue the outstanding crimes and target those offenders that cause harm to their victims."

Police said they made nine arrests “in and around the ground” for alleged offences which included sectarian singing and pitch incursion.

Rangers booked their place in the Scottish Cup final, winning 5-4 on penalties after the game had finished 1-1 after 90 minutes and 2-2 at the end of extra time.