Former Scottish football officials have reportedly been left fuming after tickets for the Scottish Cup final between Celtic and Rangers were pulled by the Scottish FA.

It's claimed retired referees and linesmen have been informed the usual complimentary tickets to the showpiece final at Hampden - which include a lunch - have been withdrawn over security and segregation concerns.

The Scottish Sun reports head of referee operations Crawford Allan told former referees the annual event would not go ahead in an email.

The communication read: "We are sorry to announce there is a high risk that the Scottish Cup Final luncheon may not take place due to issues within the stadium, including security and segregation.

"We all share your frustrations at this news and the issues have been escalated to the Chief Executive."

It added: "If you are looking to attend the Scottish Cup Final, we would therefore suggest you apply for your tickets via the link below, and then claim back the cost of your two tickets.”

READ MORE: Kick-off time of Scottish Cup final between Rangers & Celtic

It's reported around 40 officials were told to buy tickets for the match and claim the cost back in expenses after the complimentary briefs were pulled.

In previous years officials have regularly been handed free tickets for the match and lunch with some ex-referees acting as observers to score the referee handling the final.

The report goes on to quote an unnamed ex-referee who insisted the Scottish FA has "lost the dressing room" over the action.

He said: “Everyone’s raging, it’s absolute nonsense.

“There’s never been an issue with safety or security before, no matter who’s been in the final, so it feels like there’s more to it than the letter claims.

“We’re thinking they just don’t want us there. The SFA has lost the dressing room when it comes to how referees feel and now they’ve lost the observers as well.”