History of Rangers

Club Overview

Rangers Football Club are an association football team based in Glasgow, Scotland, who currently play in the Scottish Premier League. They have won a world record 51 league titles,[3] and have won more major trophies than any other football club in the world.[4] The club are nicknamed the Teddy Bears, from the rhyming slang for Gers, which in turn is short for Rangers, and the fans are known to each other as "Bluenoses". The club's correct name is simply Rangers F.C., although they are sometimes referred to as Glasgow Rangers for European matches to avoid confusion.[5]

Rangers' players and fans today are multi-national and of various religions, although the club have traditionally been identified with and favoured the Protestant and Unionist community of Scotland, as well as the Ulster Unionist community in Northern Ireland. For most of their history, Rangers have enjoyed a fierce rivalry with their cross-city opponents Celtic,[6] and the two are collectively known as the Old Firm.

The club's home is the all-seated 51,082-capacity Ibrox Stadium in south-west Glasgow

Club History

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.[7] In May of that year the first match was played, a 0–0 draw in a friendly against Callander F.C. on the public pitches of Glasgow Green. The only other match played that year was another friendly against a team called Clyde (not the present-day Clyde) resulting in an 11–0 victory and featuring the debut of the club's blue strip.[8] 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.[8] 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 largely comprised 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 51 championships.[8] 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.

1919–1939 The Struth Years The 1919/20 season heralded the dawn of a new era for Rangers as manager William Wilton and number two William Struth initiated a Rangers dominance that was to last until the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939. Though winning this season with 31 wins out of 42 games and scoring 106 goals, it was overshadowed by the subsequent death of manager, William Wilton. Taking over the manager's mantle, William Struth guided Rangers to a further 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.[9]

1970s 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 Colin Stein had equalised for Rangers. As the 80,000 strong crowd was trying to disperse at full time, many fell down the stairway 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;[10] 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.[10] 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 beat 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.[11]

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.

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 current 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.[12]. It was announced on 4 January 2007 that Le Guen had left Rangers by mutual consent.

Walter Smith's return (2007–present) 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.[14]

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. But the adventure continued as they progressed 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.[15]

The 2008–09 season saw Rangers make a below-par start to their UEFA Champions League campaign as they drew 0–0 at home to the Lithuanian club FBK Kaunas. The away leg ended in a 2–1 defeat, having taken the lead through Kevin Thomson Rangers were beaten by a free-kick from Nerijus Radžius and a late header from Linas Pilibaitis.

Club Rivalries

Celtic fc

Stars of the Current Squad

Kris Boyd Barry Feguson Alan McGregor

Club Legends

Ally McCoist

Most Appearances

Record appearances John Greig, 755, 1960–1978

Record league appearances Sandy Archibald, 513, 1917–1934

Record Scottish Cup appearances Alec Smith, 74

Record Scottish League Cup appearances John Greig, 121

Record European competition appearances Barry Ferguson, 82

Most Goals

Record goalscorer Ally McCoist, 355 goals, 1983–1998

Most goals in one season Jim Forrest, 57 goals, 1964–65

Most league goals in one season Sam English, 44 goals, 1931–32

Most league goals Ally McCoist, 251 goals

Most Scottish Cup goals Jimmy Fleming, 44 goals

Most League Cup goals Ally McCoist, 54 goals

Most European goals Ally McCoist, 21 goals

Player Recognition & Awards

Team Honours

Honours

League Scottish League championships (51) 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.

Cups Cup Winners' Cup winners (1) 1972 Scottish Cup winners (32) 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. 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.

Club Management

Management Position Name Manager Walter Smith, OBE Assistant Manager Ally McCoist, MBE First Team Coach Kenny McDowall Reserve Team Coach Ian Durrant Under-19 Team Coach Billy Kirkwood Goalkeeping Coach Jim Stewart Fitness Coach Adam Owen Club Doctor Paul Jackson Physiotherapist Pip Yeates Chief Scout Ewan Chester

Uniforms

Stadium

Sponsors

Craling

Important Links

References