Just a day without nonsense would be nice this summer but it doesn’t look like Rangers are about to get their act together anytime soon.
Ibrox isn’t going to be ready for the opening weeks of the season with the steel required for the cantilever in the Copland Road stand only just being put into place.
Philippe Clement has enough on his hands rebuilding the squad and this will be the last thing he needs with no idea yet where Rangers will be playing.
Hampden and Murrayfield have both been mentioned and they at least have big playing surfaces that will suit Rangers, if not necessarily the fans.
Rangers move would be bad move for fans
Speaking to Rangers News, football finance expert Adam Williams reckons one option is far from ideal from a supporters point of view:
“Murrayfield would present a different option (to Ibrox) given the fact that its capacity is significantly higher.
“Even with it being in another city, I think they could expect to sell it out on European nights and for some of the bigger Scottish Premiership matches.
“But from a fan point of view, you’d have to say that this scenario would be simply unacceptable.
“Back to Hampden, you’re having to pay for a new playing surface. I know some Premier League clubs pay up to £1m for their pitches. I’ve no idea what Rangers might pay, or to what extent this might be covered by insurance, but there will be another cost to bear there.
“All in all, and keeping in mind that there are a lot of variables, I’d expect the total cost of this saga to be in the low seven-figure bracket, which isn’t insignificant in the context of Rangers’ matchday revenue of around £40m per season.”
It has been suggested that the board will absord any additional costs, but this means nothing to the season ticket holders who have been severely disadvantaged.
Murrayfield might make more money but it won’t make fans happy
There is an obvious reason why Murrayfield is not ideal.
It has a bigger capacity and would potentially lead to the rent and expenses being covered, however, there is more than a financial cost to this situation.
Rangers fans travel from all over the country but the vast majority will be from Glasgow and traveling to and from Edinburgh isn’t a cost that many will have factored into their budgets when committing to following their club.
Then there is the social aspect of congregating at Ibrox every other Saturday and making the most of facilities like New Edmiston House.
The biggest letdown from Rangers has been the lack of communication.
When customers/fans pay for something, they have a right to know what exactly they are getting.
At the moment, Rangers fans have no idea what is going on.
Which only adds insult to injury.
