Rangers

Full name	Rangers Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Gers, Teddy Bears, Light Blues
Founded	1873[1]
Ground	Ibrox Stadium (Capacity: 51,082[2])
Chairman	Alastair Johnston
Manager	Walter Smith
League	Scottish Premier League
2008–09	Scottish Premier League, 1st
Home colours Away colours Third colours
Current season

Rangers Football Club are an association football team based in Glasgow, Scotland, who currently play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears (from the rhyming slang for the same) and the Light Blues,^[3] and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses.^[4] They are sometimes referred to as Glasgow Rangers, although the word Glasgow does not form part of the club's official title.^[5] The club is incorporated as The Rangers Football Club plc.^[6] The club's home is the all-seated 51,082-capacity Ibrox Stadium in south-west Glasgow.

Rangers have won 52 domestic league titles, more than any other team in the world. They have won the Scottish League Cup 25 times — more than any other Scottish club — and the Scottish Cup 33 times.^[7] In 1961 Rangers were the first British team to compete in a European final when they reached the final of the European Cup Winners' Cup. They won the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1972, having been the runners-up in 1961 and 1967, and were runners-up in the 2008 UEFA Cup Final. An estimated 150,000 Rangers fans made the journey to Manchester for the final, most of whom did not have tickets.

Rangers' players and fans today are multi-national and of various religious and political affiliations, although the club have traditionally been identified with and favoured the Protestant and Unionist community of Scotland, as well as the Unionist community in Northern Ireland. For most of their history, Rangers have enjoyed a fierce rivalry with their cross-city opponents Celtic,^[8] and the two are collectively known as the Old Firm.

History

This section may be too long to read and navigate comfortably. Please consider moving more of the content into sub-articles and using this article for a summary of the key points of the subject. (September 2009)

Formation and early years

The four founders of Rangers - brothers Moses and Peter McNeil, Peter Campbell and William McBeath - met in 1872 and named their team after an English rugby club upon seeing the name in a book.^[9] In May of that year the first match was played, a 0–0 draw in a friendly against Callander F.C. on Glasgow Green.^[10] The official founding of Rangers is recognised as taking place in 1873, when the club held its first annual meeting and staff were elected. The first season's fixtures were all friendlies, as the deadline for joining the Scottish Football Association had been missed, meaning the team did not take part in the inaugural Scottish Cup.^[10] By 1876 Rangers had their first internationalist, with Moses McNeil representing Scotland in a match against Wales, and by 1877 Rangers had reached a Scottish Cup final. The first ever Old Firm match took place in 1888, the year of Celtic's establishment. Rangers lost 5–2 in a friendly to a team composed largely of "guest players" from Hibernian.

The 1890–91 season saw the inception of the Scottish Football League, and Rangers were one of ten original members. By this time Rangers were playing at the first Ibrox Stadium. Rangers' first ever league match took place on 16 August 1890 and resulted in a 5–2 victory over Heart of Midlothian. After finishing equal-top with Dumbarton a play-off was held at Cathkin Park to decide the who would be champions. The match finished 2–2 and the title was shared for the only time in its history, the first of Rangers' world record 52 championships.^[10] Rangers' first ever Scottish Cup win came in 1894 after a 3–1 victory over rivals Celtic in the final. By the turn of the century Rangers had won two league titles and three Scottish Cups.

The Wilton years

Rangers were in the ascendancy at the turn of the century, winning the championship seven times between 1900 and 1918 (with four League title in a row). The season of 1898–99 was particularly memorable, in that it saw the Gers win all 18 league games to establish a perfect record.

But between 1902 and 1910, Celtic took over as the dominant force, and though Rangers had the chance to foil a third League and Cup double in 1909, the Scottish FA withheld the Cup due to disgraceful scenes after a pitch invasion by a drunken fans. The Hampden Riot had written itself a sorry page in the history books, and both clubs were ordered to compensate hosts Queen's Park for the damage caused by their fans.

Having lost the title in 1919 they responded in 1920 with one of the best seasons in their history as manager William Wilton and his right hand man Bill Struth retained the title netting 106 goals in 42 league games. However, in May 1920 the clubs first ever manager, William Wilton, died in a boating accident and Bill Struth was subsequently appointed manager.

Struth's era

The 1920-21 season heralded the dawn of a new era for Rangers as manager Bill Struth initiated a period of Rangers dominance that was to last until the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939. Struth guided Rangers to 14 titles before the war. This period was also noteworthy for the attendances. On the 2 January 1939 a British league record was broken as 118,567 fans turned out to watch Rangers beat Celtic in the traditional new year holiday old firm match.^[11]

The post-war seasons saw Rangers well on top, but not before a boardroom coup in the summer of 1947. The board of Rangers had previously been an amateur body made up of former players, but when chairman James Bowie suggested a 71-year-old Struth retire in order to allow a younger man to take charge, a revolution occurred. Bowie was forced out the chair and was said never to have set foot in Ibrox again, such was his disdain for the circumstances of his departure.

Under Symon

Symon became manager in June 1954 and continued Struth's success winning six league championships, five Scottish Cups and four League Cups. He also became the second manager to win the domestic treble in season 1963–64.

In season 1956–57 Symon took Rangers into the European Cup for the first time but it ended abruptly, going out on to French team Nice. The following season however saw Rangers suffer their worst ever defeat to their arch rivals Celtic, losing 7–1 in the 1957 Scottish League Cup Final. They did however reach the semi-finals of the European Cup in 1960 losing eventually to German club Eintracht Frankfurt by a record aggregate 12–4 for a Scottish team. In 1961 Rangers became the first British team to reach a European final when they contested the Cup Winners' Cup final against Italian side Fiorentina, only to lose 4–1 on aggregate. Rangers suffered yet more despair in the final of the same competition in 1967, losing 1–0 after extra time to Bayern Munich.

After these disappointments, the pressure was on Symon and he paid the penalty of Celtic's success in Scotland and Europe in October 1967, giving way to his former assistant David White after rejecting a move to make him general manager with White in charge of team affairs.

White takes charge

David White was installed as Rangers' fourth manager in November 1967. White became the first Rangers manager not to win a major trophy. The lack of honours during his reign at Ibrox, however, masks the fact that he did improve the team during a difficult period and Jock Stein's Celtic side were at the peak of their success. In his first season as manager, the team suffered only one defeat - 3–2 at home to Aberdeen in the final game. Yet Rangers finished runners-up in the league to Celtic. The team also reached the 1969 Scottish Cup Final, only to lose out to their Old Firm rivals again by 4–0.

In Europe, White's team enjoyed two good runs in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in successive years. In 1967–68, Rangers reached the quarter-finals, losing to Leeds United 2–0 on aggregate. The following season they went one better and got to the semi-finals where they again went down 2–0 on aggregate, this time to Newcastle United. The good showing in Europe did not continue though, and when White completely under-estimated Polish side Górnik Zabrze, he was removed as manager. White's side had lost 3–1 in Poland and when the return leg at Ibrox began, he was promising to, "attack, attack, attack!" in order to progress. The second-leg result ended in a 3–1 home defeat for the Gers. The next day, 27 November 1969, White's assisant Willie Thornton took over as caretaker and the club began to look for a new manager.

European success and national tragedy

The 1971 Ibrox disaster overshadowed what happened on the pitch to a large extent in the early 1970s. On 2 January 1971, in the final minutes of the New Year's Day Old Firm game with the score set at 0–0, Jimmy Johnstone scored for Celtic. Within seconds of the match restarting Colin Stein equalised for Rangers and, as the 80,000+ strong crowd was trying to disperse at full time, many fell down stairway 13 at the Copland Road end of the ground. Their momentum led to large scale crushing and 66 people died. It was initially thought the crush was caused by Rangers fans rushing back up the stairwell after the equaliser;^[12] however, a later enquiry said that the crush was likely to have happened ten minutes after the final whistle and to have been triggered by someone falling on the stairs.^[12] A benefit match to raise funds for the victims' families took place after the disaster. A joint Rangers and Celtic team took on a Scotland XI at Hampden watched by 81,405 fans.

In 1972, Rangers defeated FC Dynamo Moscow to win the Cup Winner's Cup, their first and only European trophy to date. Captain John Greig received the trophy in a small room within the Nou Camp due to a pitch invasion by Rangers fans.^[13]

Jock Wallace becomes manager

Wallace's managership of Rangers saw the club achieve a period of sustained success. His first season as manager - the club's centenary year - culminated in a 3–2 Scottish Cup win over Celtic. A nine-year period of Celtic dominance in the league was ended in 1974–1975 as Rangers captured what was to be the last championship of its kind. The new ten-team Scottish Premier League saw Rangers crowned inaugural champions, as part of a triumphant domestic treble. After a barren subsequent season, 1976–1977, Wallace presided over the club's fourth domestic treble in 1977–1978.

This burst of success from the mid-1970s saw Rangers once again established as Scotland's most successful club. In 1978 Wallace, suddenly and unexpectedly, announced his resignation while refusing to divulge the reason for his departure. In his wake, Rangers turned to another of the stalwarts of the great side of the mid-to-late 1970s, the captain John Greig.

Greig: Captain to Manager

Greig's tenure began promisingly. The 1978-79 season could so easily have mirrored the previous. Despite a fixture pile-up which resulted from the club playing three league games in nearly three months, and some overly negative tactics from Greig, Rangers came close to winning a quadruple of trophies. Unfortunately it was not to be and the season ended with just the domestic cup double.

The following the season finished trophyless. Rangers finished an embarrassing fifth in the league, eleven points behind champions Aberdeen. Greig's efforts to restructure the team inherited from Wallace proved, for the most part, fruitless. The early years of the 1980s were ones of repeated frustration as the club continually failed to mount a challenge not only to Celtic, but to the resurgent New Firm of Aberdeen and Dundee United.

The gloom of under-performance in the league was punctuated only by periodic cup triumphs. The Scottish Cup win of 1981, in particular, saw a triumphant performance by the enigmatic winger, Davie Cooper. The League Cup proved fertile territory for Rangers throughout the fallow years of the early 1980s, but it was the failure to add to the league triumph of 1978 that saw the growing pressure on Greig culminate in his resignation as manager in October 1983. During this period attendances at Ibrox dwindled from an average 25,628 in season 1978–79 to 17,681 in 1982–83.^[14]

Return of Wallace

Rangers hoped to rekindle success by bringing Jock Wallace back to the club, following his exile in England with Leicester City. Wallace, though, was not the club's first choice: Jim McLean and Alex Ferguson, the then managers of the New Firm clubs, both rebuffed Rangers' advances^[15] McLean's brother Tommy was appointed caretaker manager and four games passed before a permanent manager was in position.

On 10 November 1983, Jock Wallace was persuaded by the Rangers board to leve Motherwell and return to the club. His aim was to restore the glory years of the treble-winning sides of the late 1970s. Wallace's initial impact was positive, the club did win a trophy, the 1984 Scottish League Cup. It was a thrilling extra time victory over Celtic, with Ally McCoist getting a hat-tick, in a 3-2 win that won them the cup. The following season the league form remained indifferent.

The continuing dominance of the great Aberdeen side of the 1980s, coupled with a Dundee United and Celtic team that offered periodic challenges to Aberdeen's ascendancy, put Wallace under increasing pressure. By the 1985–86 season Rangers had slipped to fifth place in the league and, with little evidence of improvement since the Greig era, it was inevitable that Wallace would be removed as manager. On 7 April 1986, Wallace resigned as manager, perhaps electing to jump before being pushed by the newly-appointed chairman David Holmes. Holmes had gone on record saying that the slump the club was in could not be allowed to go on.

The Souness Revolution

Holmes appointed Graeme Souness as Rangers' first player-manager. Souness had previously been playing in Italy with U.C. Sampdoria and made the move to Glasgow for a £300,000 fee. He brought in Walter Smith, from Dundee United as his assistant and ex-Coventry City manager Don Mackay as reserve-team coach.

Souness took advantage of the European competition ban imposed by UEFA on English clubs after the Heysel Stadium Disaster. Thanks to this and a sizeable tansfer kitty, he was able to attract the cream of English sides talent.^[16] The first of many international players arrived in the shape of Chris Woods, followed by the likes of England deputy captain Terry Butcher. The 1986–87 season was the first in eight seasons that Rangers finished top of the Scottish Premier Division. Also during that season, goalkeeper Chris Woods set the British football shut out record of 1196 minutes. From 26 November 1986, when he conceded a goal in a UEFA Cup 1-1 draw with Borussia Moenchengladbach, until 14 games later on 30 January 1987 when Adrian Sprott of Hamilton Academical knocked the Rangers out of the Scottish Cup by a single goal.

The following season Rangers could not build on the success of the previous, despite the arrivals of Trevor Francis, Ray Wilkins, Mark Walters, Mark Falco, John Brown and Richard Gough, who became Scotland's first £1 million player.

Nine in a Row

Every year from 1988–89 season until the 1996–97 season, Rangers won the league title. This 9 in a row achievement meant that they equalled Celtic's record. The first three of these seasons the club was managed by Graeme Souness, the later six under the stewardship of Walter Smith. By far the most exciting of these triumphs was season 19909-1991, when in the last few weeks of the season a sizeable Rangers lead was pegged back by Aberdeen FC (coincidentally this was around the time that Souness departed Ibrox to take over the vacant managerial post at Liverpool FC), leading to a last day title decider at Ibrox Stadium. A draw would be good enough for the Dons on the day, whilst victory by a two goal margin for the Gers would be enough to see them champions. Two goals from Mark Hateley, one either side of half time, gave league glory to Rangers and started a glorious run under the reign of new manager, Walter Smith.

The Little General

Dick Advocaat, nicknamed the Little General, succeeded Walter Smith on 1 June 1998. Advocaat, former manager of PSV Eindhoven, was only Rangers' tenth manager and the first non-Scot to hold the position. He was given resources on a scale never before handed to a Rangers manager but success outwith Scotland failed to materialise, and the costly legacy of Advocaat's time at Ibrox was a debt that would cripple the club for years. He also spearheaded the building of Murray Park - a £14m training complex at Auchenhowie.

In total Advocaat spent over £36 million on new players in just his debut season. Some - the Dutch internationals Arthur Numan and Giovanni van Bronckhorst - were successful; others - Andrei Kanchelskis, Colin Hendry - proved ineffectual. However, initially the big spending paid off. His first season saw Rangers sixith domestic treble. In the following season a domestic double was secured and in Europe there were signs of greatly improved performance in the Champions League, as Parma were defeated en route to qualification for the group stages of the competition.

Rangers entered Advocaat's third season emboldened by the capture of five of the six domestic trophies available in his first two years. However, while the club again qualified for the Champions League group stage, performances in the SPL began rapidly to disintegrate. Further high-profile signings - Tore André Flo for a club record £12 million, and the Dutch internationalist Ronald de Boer - could not reverse the decline. The club failed to win a major competition in the 2000–01 season, as Celtic swept the domestic board. Advocaat resigned in the December 2001 to take up a position of director of football, which he would leave after only 11 months.

Financial hangover under McLeish

Murray appointed ex-Aberdeen defender Alex McLeish as the clubs eleventh manager on 11 December 2001.^[17] McLeish's Rangers team won a Scottish Cup and League Cup double in his first half-season.

In his first full season as manager the club won its seventh Treble. The Scottish Premier League was won after an astonishingly tense run-in, with victory over Dunfermline Athletic, denying Celtic the title on goal difference. A victory over Celtic in the 2003 Scottish League Cup Final in March 2003, provided the first leg of the club's latest treble.^[18] A somewhat anti-climactic 1–0 victory over Dundee in the 2003 Scottish Cup Final the following May saw a successful end to the season. ^[19]

The following season, McLeish's initial period as manager proved difficult to sustain. The wage bill had to be slashed as the club embarked on an extensive cost-cutting programme. McLeish was to lose from his treble winning squad, defender Lorenzo Amoruso, winger Neil McCann amongst others and club captain Barry Ferguson. In their place McLeish was required to rebuild by wheeling and dealing and the selective use of Bosman free transfers. After a good start to the 2003-04 season, which saw the side lead the league and qualify for UEFA Champions League, a dramatic downturn in results meant that the season ended without a trophy. The following season the side again fell behind Celtic in the league and exited the Champions League at the qualifying stage. But going in to the final round of the SPL, Rangers needed to win at Hibernian and hope that Celtic would drop points at Motherwell to win the title.^[20] Motherwell defeated the Parkhead side, while Rangers edged out a tight 1–0 win at Easter Road. McLeish could celebrate his second, and Rangers' 51st, league title.

The 2005–06 season got off to a bad start, with Rangers only winning six league games out of the first 17, being knocked out of the League Cup by Celtic in the process. The period from October through to early December saw the team embark on, statistically, the worst run in their history, going ten games without a win.^[21] During this time, however, the club became the first Scottish side to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League.

Under Paul Le Guen

Paul Le Guen replaced Alex McLeish as manager after season 2005–06.

The season started poorly for Rangers, with a number of losses and draws against teams lower in the league, as well as their being knocked out of the League Cup by Division One side St. Johnstone. Rivals Celtic built a lead at the top of the table, while Rangers fought for second place alongside Hearts and Aberdeen. The first Old Firm match of the season resulted in a 2–0 defeat; the second - at Ibrox - was a 1–1 draw.

In the UEFA Cup Rangers became the first Scottish side to qualify for the last 32 of the competition in its then new format.

There had been rumours during the season of disharmony at Rangers, between Scottish and foreign units, with players including captain Barry Ferguson disapproving of Le Guen's strict disciplinarian stance.^[22] It was announced on 4 January 2007 that Le Guen had left Rangers by mutual consent.^[23]

Walter Smith's return

On 10 January 2007, it was announced that former manager Walter Smith was the new manager of Rangers, with Ally McCoist as assistant manager and Kenny McDowall as first-team coach.^[24]

The early season priority, qualification for the Champions League group stage was secured after aggregate victories over the champions of the Montenegrin and Serbian leagues, FK Zeta and Red Star Belgrade respectively. The campaign started well for Rangers with two victories but ultimately they did not progress from the group stages. They did progress to the final of the UEFA Cup, defeating Panathinaikos, Werder Bremen, Sporting Lisbon and Fiorentina along the way. The final was against Zenit St. Petersburg who are managed by former Rangers manager Dick Advocaat. They lost that match 2–0, amid serious disturbances caused by some supporters. Video evidence was released by the Greater Manchester Police of Rangers fans attacking officers in Manchester city centre following the defeat.^[25] An appeal was launched on Crimewatch in January 2009 in an attempt to trace 49 men in connection with the riots.^[26]

The UEFA Cup final defeat was followed by a 3-2 Scottish Cup Final win against Dumfries First Division Queen of the South.

In 2008–09 Rangers made a below-par start to their UEFA Champions League campaign, losing out in the knockout stage to FBK Kaunas of Lithuania. The financial consequences of the failures to qualify for the Champions League were revealed when the club posted a loss of £3.9m for the six months to December 2008, and in March offered staff the option of voluntary redundancy as a way of cutting costs.^[27] Despite a tight title race, on the final day of the league, Rangers managed to claim their 52nd league championship. With this success, Rangers gained automatic entry into the Champions League group stage. Rangers won the Scottish Cup for the 33rd time after defeating Falkirk 1-0 in the final, clinching a double in the process.

The 2009–2010 season saw Rangers make a start of three wins in the league followed by three draws. The first Old Firm game of the season resulted in a 2-1 victory for Rangers at Ibrox. During this time they were seeded for the UEFA Champions League group stage in pot 2 for the first time. They were drawn in a group with Spanish team Sevilla, Germans Stuttgart and Romanian champions Unirea. They started their European challenge with a 1-1 draw at Stuttgart followed by a 4-1 home defeat by top seeds Sevilla, another 4-1 home defeat from Romanian side Unirea left Rangers bottom of the group. Rangers were left with a small chance of qualifying from the group with a 1-1 draw away to Unirea, a match that was overshadowed by trouble in the Rangers fans section of the stadium^[28] and Rangers were charged by UEFA for "inappropriate conduct."^[29]

Club colours and crest

The club colours of Rangers F.C. are royal blue, white and red.

The team's home strip invariably features a royal blue shirt (often with white and/or red trim). Traditionally this is accompanied by white shorts (often with royal blue and/or red trim) and black socks with red turn-downs.^[30] However when wearing the 'home strip' Rangers will occasionally alter the shorts and socks, sometimes replacing the black socks with white ones; or replacing the white shorts and black socks combination with royal blue shorts and socks.

The basic design of Rangers away strips has changed far more than the traditional home strip. White and red have been the most common predominant colours for Rangers alternate strips, though dark and light blue have also featured highly.^[31]

In recent years, Rangers have also introduced a third kit.^[32] This is usually worn if both the home and away kits clash with their opponents. The colours used range from light blue to red to a very controversial orange (called tangerine by the club).^[33]

Sponsors and manufacturers

Year	Kit manufacturer[34]	Shirt Sponsor
1978–1984	Umbro
1984–1987		CR Smith
1987–1990		McEwan's Lager
1990–1992	Admiral
1992–1997	Adidas
1997–1999	Nike
1999–2002		NTL
2002–2003	Diadora
2003–2005		Carling
2005–2010	Umbro

Old Firm and sectarianism

The club's most distinct rivalry is with Celtic F.C, the other major football club based in Glasgow; the two clubs are collectively known as the Old Firm. Rangers' traditional support has largely come from the Protestant Unionist community. During the late 19th century, many immigrants came to Glasgow from Ireland. This was around the same time that both Old Firm clubs were founded (Rangers in 1873 and Celtic in 1888). Rangers came to be identified with the Scottish Protestant community.

Until Graeme Souness signed former Celtic player Mo Johnston, in 1989, Rangers were said by him to have had an "unwritten policy"^[35] of not signing any player who was Catholic;^[36] although Johnston was by no means the first Catholic to sign for the club,^[37] he was the first openly Catholic, high-profile player to sign for them since World War I.^[38]

In 1999, Rangers' vice-chairman Donald Findlay was forced to resign after he was filmed singing sectarian songs^[39] (The Billy Boys) at an event organised by a Rangers Supporters Club.

In 2002 the club dropped their controversial orange away strip after a "furious debate over whether Rangers were profiting from their sectarian overtones," though the club said their decision was "a commercial decision, not based on politics. We change the shirt every season with new designs to try to make it new and fresh."^[33] Anti-sectarianism campaigners and politicians had criticised the club's decision to market an orange shirt, as the colour is associated with the Orange Institution.

On 12 April 2006, following an investigation into the conduct of Rangers supporters at both legs of their UEFA Champions League tie against Villareal, UEFA imposed a fine of £8,800 on Rangers following the improper conduct of some of their supporters, notably the smashing of a window of the Villarreal team bus at the second-leg match in Spain on 7 March.^[40] However, UEFA declared the Rangers fans not guilty of alleged discriminatory chants.^[40] UEFA challenged the ruling, and their Appeals Body partially upheld it,^[41] fining the Ibrox club £13,500 and warning them as to their responsibility for any future misconduct.

On 9 June 2006, Rangers, in conjunction with representatives from several supporters clubs, announced that they would comply with three UEFA directives:

• The club were "ordered to announce measurable targets in order to reduce sectarian behaviour amongst its supporters".
• The club were "to control their anti-sectarian activities by producing comprehensive statistics that are communicated to the public".
• The club were "to make a public address announcement at every official fixture, be it international or domestic, stating that any sectarian chanting and any form of the song The Billy Boys is strictly prohibited".^[42]

Despite these measures, UEFA again fined Rangers (12,000 Euros) after some Rangers fans were filmed making sectarian chants and clashed with riot police during their defeat by Osasuna in the UEFA Cup in 2007.^[43][44] Osasuna were fined 45,000 Euros for their failings in organising the match and for their own supporters' behaviour. The Rangers Supporters Association secretary indicated his belief that a small minority of fans were to blame, suggesting "it doesn't matter how often they are told [to stop sectarian chanting], some people will just not listen."^[45]

In 2008, Rangers fans' singing of the Famine song, containing the lyrics "The famine's over now / Why don't you go home", caused controversy. The football club urged fans to stop singing the song, and warned they could be arrested for it.^[46] Rangers' chief executive Martin Bain also warned fans they could be arrested for singing the song, but would not condemn the chanting.^[47][48][49] He also said "Clearly some supporters feel aggrieved that a song they believe to be no more than a tit-for-tat 'wind up' of Celtic supporters should be singled out in this way and merit the attention of police, governments and anti-racist organisations".^[50] The song was condemned as racist by anti-racism group Show Racism the Red Card^[51] and described as "vile, vicious and racist" by Celtic chairman John Reid^[52] and complaints prompted Irish diplomats to contact the Scottish government.^[53] The Rangers Supporters Trust (RST), however rejected claims that the song was racist, saying : "Racism is not a wind-up, however distasteful, aimed at Scottish Celtic fans".^[54]

In November 2008, a fan was found guilty of a breach of the peace (aggravated by religious and racial prejudice) by singing the Famine song during a game on 9 November against Kilmarnock.^[55] In February 2009, sectarian chanting by some Rangers fans during an Old Firm match at Celtic Park was reported to the SPL by the match delegate, again relating to the chanting of the Famine Song.^[56][57]

Both the club and its fans are disparagingly nicknamed Huns by some fans of other teams.^{[58][59][60][61][62][63][64]} The Rangers Supporters Trust, in their statement defending singing of the Famine Song, described the nickname as "sectarian abuse".^[54] The anti-sectarian charity Nil By Mouth also considers "Huns" to be a sectarian insult.^[65] In 2008, a Celtic fan was convicted of a religiously aggravated breach of the peace for wearing a t-shirt with the slogan "dirty horrible huns".^[66]

Rangers' efforts to eliminate sectarianism

In recent times, both Rangers and Celtic have taken measures to combat sectarianism. Working alongside the Scottish Parliament, church groups, pressure groups such as Nil by Mouth, schools and community organisations, the Old Firm have endeavoured to clamp down on sectarian songs, inflammatory flag-waving, and troublesome supporters, using increased levels of policing and surveillance.^[67]

In August 2003 Rangers launched its 'Pride Over Prejudice' campaign to promote social inclusion, which has urged fans to wear only traditional Rangers colours and avoid offensive songs, banners and salutes. This involved publishing the 'Blue Guide', known as the "Wee Blue Book", which contained a list of acceptable songs and was issued to 50,000 supporters in August 2007.

In 2005, Rangers Football in the Community partnered with Celtic to form the 'Old Firm Alliance', an initiative aimed at educating children from across Glasgow about issues like healthy eating and fitness, as well as awareness of anti-social behaviour, sectarianism and racism.

The club's 'Follow With Pride' campaign was launched in 2007 to improve the club's image and build on previous anti-racist, anti-sectarian campaigns.^[68][69]

Rangers have a Sectarianism and Racism Monitoring Committee, which reports to the club's board on club policy relating to sectarianism, racism and equality.^{[citation needed]} In the past there has been racism directed to players on the pitch at Rangers games, from both home and opposition fans.^[70] The club, through the Rangers Study Centre, is also involved in the "Ready To Learn" project, along with Glasgow City Council. The aims of the project include raising awareness of sectarianism, racism and prejudice among young people in Glasgow.^{[citation needed]} In 2006 William Gallard, UEFA's Director Of Communications, commended the SFA and Scottish clubs, including Rangers, for their actions in fighting discrimination.^[71] Further, in September 2007, UEFA praised Rangers for the measures the club had taken against sectarianism.^[72]

Stadium and training facility

The club used a variety of grounds in Glasgow as a venue for home matches in the years between 1872 and 1899. The first was Flesher's Haugh, situated on Glasgow Green, followed by Burnbank in the Kelvinbridge area of the city, and then Kinning Park for ten years from the mid-1870s to the mid-1880s. From February of the 1886–87 season, Cathkin Park was used until the first Ibrox Park, in the Ibrox area of south-west Glasgow, was inaugurated for the following season. Ibrox Stadium in its current incarnation was originally designed by the architect Archibald Leitch, a Rangers fan^[73] who also played a part in the design of, among others, Old Trafford in Manchester and Highbury in London. The stadium was inaugurated on 30 December 1899, and Rangers defeated Hearts 3–1 in the first match held there.

Since 1899, two major disasters have taken place at the stadium. The first occurred in 1902 during a Scotland vs England international match, when a section of terracing collapsed, leading to the deaths of 26 people and over 500 injuries. The second disaster took place in 1971, during the traditional New Year's Day Old Firm match. As the crowd were leaving the match, barriers on the stairway to the rear of passageway 13 at the Copland End collapsed, causing a crush and resulting in the deaths of 66 people, with over 200 injuries. This led to a major redevelopment of Ibrox, overseen by the general manager Willie Waddell, including its conversion to an all-seater stadium. Ibrox was awarded UEFA five-star stadium status, now obsolete.^[74]

The stands in Ibrox are: The Bill Struth Main Stand (south; three tiers; the top one known as the Club Deck), Govan Stand (north; two tiers), and the Copland (east) and Broomloan (west) Stands (both two tiers), which are behind the goals. In addition to these, there are also the East and West Enclosures (in the lower tier of the Main Stand), and the two corners adjacent to the Govan Stand are filled in. As a result of work completed in the summer of 2006 to make the Bar 72 area situated in the Govan Stand, the total capacity of Ibrox is 51,082.^[2] On 22 August 2006, Rangers announced that the Main Stand would be renamed The Bill Struth Main Stand in September 2006 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of their former manager, who served Rangers for 34 years.^[75] There are currently plans underway for a redevelopment of Ibrox stadium which could result in Ibrox being rebuilt as a 70,000 seated stadium - which would make it the second largest club football stadium in Britain after Old Trafford. The official Rangers Website was quoted as saying: "We are analysing three strategies which would enhance the development of the existing outline planning proposals for the Hinshelwood area to the south of the stadium. One of the strategies includes the total rebuilding of Ibrox Stadium while retaining the brick facade, the tradition and the integrity of the Bill Struth Main Stand".^[76]

Rangers training facility is located in Auchenhowie, near Milngavie in Glasgow. The facility is known as Murray Park after chairman Sir David Murray. It was proposed by then-manager Dick Advocaat upon his arrival at the club in 1998. It was completed in 2001 at a cost of £14 million. Murray Park is the first purpose-built facility of its kind in Scotland, and incorporates features including nine football pitches, a state of the art gym, a hydrotherapy pool, and a video-editing suite. Rangers' youth teams are also accommodated at Murray Park, with around 140 players between under-10 and under-19 age groups using the training centre.^[77] Various first-team players have come through the ranks at Murray Park, including Alan Hutton, Chris Burke, Stevie Smith, John Fleck and Charlie Adam. International club teams playing in Scotland, as well as national sides, have previously used Murray Park for training, and Advocaat's South Korea team used it for training prior to the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Players

Current squads

First-team squad

As of 1 September 2009^[78]

No. Position Player 1 GK Allan McGregor 2 MF Maurice Edu 3 DF David Weir (captain) 4 MF Pedro Mendes 5 DF Saša Papac 6 MF Lee McCulloch 7 MF Steven Davis 8 MF Kevin Thomson 9 FW Kris Boyd 10 FW Nacho Novo 11 MF Jérôme Rothen (on loan from Paris St-Germain) 14 FW Steven Naismith 16 DF Steven Whittaker 18 FW Kenny Miller

No. Position Player 20 MF DaMarcus Beasley 21 DF Kirk Broadfoot 24 DF Madjid Bougherra 25 GK Neil Alexander 26 DF Steven Smith 27 FW Kyle Lafferty 29 MF John Fleck 45 FW Rory Loy 47 DF Jordan McMillan 48 FW Andrew Little 66 DF Daniel Wilson 67 MF Jamie Ness 69 MF Gregg Wylde

Players out on loan

No. Position Player 17 FW Andrius Velička (on loan to Bristol City) 22 DF Andy Webster (on loan to Dundee United) 46 DF Steven Kinniburgh (on loan to Oxford United) 54 DF Ross Perry (on loan to Oxford United) 62 GK Gary Inglis (on loan to Hamilton Academical)

Reserve and Youth squad

2009-10 transfers

Notable players

Internationalists

Team managers

Non-playing staff

Records

Club

Individual

All players are from Scotland unless otherwise stated.

Managerial

Name	League	Scottish Cup	League Cup	Europe	Total
Wilton, WilliamWilliam Wilton	8	1	0	0	9
Struth, BillBill Struth	18	10	2	0	30
Symon, ScotScot Symon	6	5	4	0	15
White, DavidDavid White	0	0	0	0	0
Waddell, WilliamWilliam Waddell	0	0	1	1	2
Wallace, JockJock Wallace	3	3	4	0	10
Greig, JohnJohn Greig	0	2	2	0	4
Souness, GraemeGraeme Souness	3	0	4	0	7
Smith, WalterWalter Smith	8	5	4	0	17
Advocaat, DickDick Advocaat	2	2	1	0	5
McLeish, AlexAlex McLeish	2	2	3	0	7
Le Guen, PaulPaul Le Guen	0	0	0	0	0

Honours

League

Scottish League championships (52)

1891, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1918, 1920, 1921, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1937, 1939, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1953, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2009.

Cups

Cup Winners' Cup winners (1)

1972

Scottish Cup winners (33)

1894, 1897, 1898, 1903, 1928, 1930, 1932, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1953, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1973, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2009.

League Cup winners (25)

1947, 1949, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1971, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2008.

Europe

Superleague Formula

Rangers Football Club has a team in the Superleague Formula race car series. The Rangers F.C. team has been operated by Alan Docking Racing. In 2008 Ryan Dalziel drove for Rangers F.C. in the teams maiden sason. James Walker also drove for the team in one round of the 2008 season and posted their best result, a fourth place finish.

For the 2009 season, the team were much more successful with Australian driver John Martin posting 3 podium places including one win at Donington Park.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rangers F.C.

• Club home page
• Rangers on BBC Sport: Club News – Recent results – Upcoming fixtures – Club stats

• Rangers History Project

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