Ibrox Stadium
CHAMPIONS
Six years ago, Rangers chairman David
Murray decided the only way for the club
to go was up.
Rangers have acted fast to meet both
the requirements of the Taylor Report,
legislation introduced by the Government
to make top stadia all-seater after the
Hillsborough Disaster in 1989, and the
ever-growing popularity of the team. A
new 7,300 capacity seated area was built
on top of the existing stand, including
spacious corporate hospitality facilities.
Work began in 1990 and was completed
in December 1991 at a cost of £20 mil
lion, funded largely by the sale of deben
tures. This was only the first step. Before
the 1993-94 season, the pitch was low
ered by 10 inches and an extra 1,500
seats were installed around the stands,
Ibrox is arguably the finest club ground
in Britain. In order to comply with the
Taylor Report's deadline of August 1994,
the club undertook a programme of reno
vation of the East and West Enclosures at
the front of the Main Stand. That made the
ground all-seated.
The capacity of Ibrox Stadium before
the renovation work began stood at
44,500. However, with stringent safety
guidelines to meet, capacity dropped to
around 38,500 before topping 50,411
prior to this season once the whole work
was completed.
Rangers have played at the current
Ibrox Stadium since 1899, but before
then led a somewhat nomadic existence.
The club played their first matches at
Fleshers Haugh on Glasgow Green in
1873, but two years later moved to a new
pitch at Burnbank, off the Great Western
LEAGUE
Ibrox - the home of Rangers FC
Road in Glasgow's West End. They stayed
there for only a season, however, before mov
ing across the River Clyde in 1876 to take up
the ground at Kinning Park which had earlier
been used by the famous Clydesdale Club
for both cricket and football.
Rangers soon outgrew the facility and in
1887 moved to Ibrox to play on a pitch
which stood at the site of the present day
Edmiston House. The club's remarkable
growth continued throughout the period
and in 1899 they moved to the purpose-
built Ibrox Park next door.
Of the old Ibrox Park - for many years
with a capacity of approximately 118,000
and the largest ground in Europe after
Hampden Park - only the distinctive South
Stand from 1928 remains. Its beautiful red
brick frontage, fortunately, is classed as a
listed building, although the interior has
been modernised. The record attendance
at Ibrox is 118,567 on 2nd January 1939
when Rangers played Celtic.
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