Earlier this afternoon, Rangers announced that a limited number of new kits would be available from the club’s online store.
Moments after the launch, the site has crashed. This was just a taste of the immense demand from kit hungry Rangers supporters.
The site was giving a 502 bad gateway to fans within the first half hour of the kits going on sale.
A notable omission
There’s been no mention of Sports Direct. The Mike Ashley company has been involved in a legal wrangle with the Gers for years and fans aren’t sure what to make of it.
Neither are we – we don’t know the ins and outs of the deal. Nor would we speculate to them.
Sports Direct and Rangers have had a frosty relationship for years. The previous kit deal earned Rangers a miserable amount of the cash spent on merchandise compared to other kits deals at other clubs.
This led to a fan boycott on kits and meant that the Gers lost a valuable revenue stream. The already cash-strapped club needed to get the deal back on level terms, and it seems now there’s been a breakthrough.
Another huge development for fans
Light Blues fans have been starved of buying the new kits of their heroes. Just as much as the club have been starved of the revenue.
Parents couldn’t buy their kids tops. Kids couldn’t buy their parents merchandise. All at a time when Celtic were rampant. It felt like a serious kick in the stones.
But one thing is true – this is a huge development. It’s no surprise that the site has went down. Fans are chomping at the proverbial bit to get their hands on a new top.
Whether that’s tonight, or when the kits launch proper, it doesn’t matter.
Rangers stand to make a fortune.
And there will be Rangers tops everywhere.
