Editing Rangers F.C. (section)

==Supporters and rivalries==
{{main|Rangers F.C. supporters}}
{{see also|Club 1872|Rangers Fans Fighting Fund|2008 UEFA Cup final riots}}
Rangers are one of the best supported clubs in Europe, the figure for the [[2017–18 Rangers F.C. season|2017–18 season]] being in the 20 largest home league attendances in Europe.<ref name="Average home attendance">{{cite web|url=http://www.fitbastats.com/rangers/club_records_league_attendance.php|title=Average Home League Game Attendances|publisher=fitbastats|author1=Bobby Sinnet|author2=Thomas Jamieson|access-date=14 July 2014|quote=2013/2014 42,938|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120911123438/http://www.fitbastats.com/rangers/club_records_league_attendance.php|archive-date=11 September 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> A study of stadium attendance figures from 2013 to 2018 by the ''[[International Centre for Sports Studies|CIES Football Observatory]]'' ranked Rangers at 18th in the world during that period, with Rangers' accounting for 27.4% of total Scottish attendance, placing them 8th overall for national attendance share.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47929074|title=Celtic & Rangers among top 20 most watched clubs|work=BBC Sport|date=16 April 2019|access-date=17 April 2019}}</ref>

The Rangers Worldwide Alliance is a network of supporters clubs that was set up for the benefit of the club and the fans. There are more than 600 registered supporters clubs with over 30,000 registered members and these continue to grow, in keeping with the vision the club initially had. There are also many unregistered supporters clubs currently active. The official club website lists over 100 supporters' clubs in Great Britain and Northern Ireland,<ref name="UK supporters clubs">{{cite web|url=http://www.rangers.co.uk/fans/uk-supporters-clubs|title=UK Supporters Clubs|publisher=Rangers F.C.|access-date=24 August 2012|quote=There are more than 600 registered supporters clubs with over 30,000 registered members and these continue to grow, in keeping with the vision the club initially had.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006051133/http://www.rangers.co.uk/fans/uk-supporters-clubs|archive-date=6 October 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> with over 100 further clubs spread across over 35 countries around the world.<ref name="World support clubs">{{cite web|url=http://www.rangers.co.uk/fans/global-supporters-clubs|title=Global Supporters Clubs|publisher=Rangers F.C.|access-date=24 August 2012|archive-date=17 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121117010901/http://www.rangers.co.uk/fans/global-supporters-clubs|url-status=dead}}</ref> It includes representatives from all over the globe – including Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South America and Australia – as well as closer to home in the United Kingdom. Beyond Europe, there are supporters clubs registered in far-flung locations such as Nigeria, South Africa, Cameroon, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Israel, Qatar, Bahrain, China, India, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, United States of America, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica. One of Hong Kong's most popular football clubs, [[Hong Kong Rangers FC|Hong Kong Rangers]], was set up by an expatriate fan.

Rangers fans have contributed to several records for high attendances,<ref name="End to end stuff">{{cite book|title=End to End Stuff|publisher=Random House|author=Scott, Les|year=2008|page=17|isbn=9780593060681|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cqhm26eVPYMC&q=end+to+end+stuff|quote=The Record attendance for a friendly match in the United Kingdom is 104,493, who saw Rangers lose 3–2 to Eintracht Frankfurt at Hampden Park on 17 October 1961.|access-date=24 August 2012}}</ref> including the highest home attendance for a league fixture, 118,567 on 2 January 1939.<ref name="Record attendance"/> Rangers record highest attendance was against [[Hibernian F.C.|Hibernian]] on 27 March 1948 in the [[Scottish Cup]] semi-final at [[Hampden Park]]. Rangers beat [[Hibernian F.C.|Hibernian]] 1–0 in front of a packed 143,570 crowd.

In 2008, up to 200,000 Rangers supporters, many without match tickets, travelled to Manchester for the [[2008 UEFA Cup final|UEFA Cup Final]].<ref name="Rangers invasion: your views">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2008/05/15/150508_rangers_invasion_feature.shtml|title=Rangers invasion: your views
|date=15 May 2008|access-date=15 May 2008|quote=It was always going to put a massive strain on the city. An invasion of up to 200,000 Rangers supporters for the UEFA Cup Final in Manchester swamped the city's pubs and bars and the dedicated fan zones.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925071448/http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2008/05/15/150508_rangers_invasion_feature.shtml|archive-date=25 September 2015|url-status=live|publisher=BBC Manchester}}</ref><ref name="Fans pile into manchester">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/police-to-boost-security-for-rangers-manchester-visit-2063388.html|title=150,000 Rangers fans descended on the city for the Uefa Cup final in 2008|work=The Independent|date=27 August 2010|author=Nisbet, John|access-date=24 August 2012|quote=But the chief executive at Rangers, Martin Bain, insists there will be no repeat of the scenes of crowd misbehaviour which marred the club's last visit to Manchester. Some 200,000 Rangers fans descended on the city for the Uefa Cup final in 2008 and trouble started when a giant screen failed to work.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111225325/http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/police-to-boost-security-for-rangers-manchester-visit-2063388.html|archive-date=11 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> Despite most supporters behaving "impeccably",<ref name="Fans riot in manchester">{{cite news|url=http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/football/147730-rangers-fans-clash-with-riot-police-after-uefa-cup-final-defeat|title=Rangers fans clash with riot police after Uefa Cup final defeat|work=Metro|date=14 May 2008|access-date=24 August 2012|quote=GMP would like to stress that the vast majority of supporters have behaved impeccably and came to Manchester clearly intent on enjoying the carnival atmosphere.|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130114031330/http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/football/147730-rangers-fans-clash-with-riot-police-after-uefa-cup-final-defeat|archive-date=14 January 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> Rangers fans were involved in [[2008 UEFA Cup final riots|serious trouble and rioting]]. A minority of fans rioted in the city centre, clashing [[violence|violently]] with police and damaging property, resulting in 42 being arrested for a variety of offences.<ref name="Majority fans well behaved">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/may/15/ukcrime1|title=Rangers fans clashed with riot police|date=15 May 2008|access-date=24 August 2012|quote=A full inquiry was under way today after Rangers fans clashed with riot police in Manchester last night after their team's defeat by Zenit St Petersburg in the Uefa Cup final.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120727045212/http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/may/15/ukcrime1|archive-date=27 July 2012|url-status=live|work=The Guardian|author1=Carter, Helen|author2=Orr, James}}</ref><ref name="Minority of supporter riot">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7400641.stm|title=Rangers fans take long road home|date=15 May 2008|access-date=24 August 2012|quote=A number of supporters clashed with riot police after a big screen in Manchester broke down. Officers later confirmed 42 people had been arrested.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104072130/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7400641.stm|archive-date=4 November 2013|url-status=live|work=BBC News}}</ref><ref name="Fans chase police">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/7402858.stm|title=CCTV shows fans chasing police|work=BBC News|date=15 May 2008|access-date=24 August 2012|quote=Police in Manchester have released CCTV images showing up to 200 football fans chasing officers and attacking one of them after the Uefa Cup final.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320134311/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/7402858.stm|archive-date=20 March 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2022, Rangers also took the largest ever travelling support abroad when an estimated 100,000 fans arrived in Seville for the [[2022 UEFA Europa League Final|UEFA Europa League Final]].<ref name="bbc.co.uk"/> No arrests were made in Seville as Rangers supporters impressed the Spanish police with their good behaviour.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/rangers-in-seville-no-arrests-as-gers-fans-impress-spanish-police-with-their-good-behaviour-3701690|title=Rangers in Seville: No arrests as Gers fans impress Spanish police with their good behaviour|work=The Scotsman|author=Wilkie, Stephen|date=19 May 2022|access-date=5 July 2022}}</ref>

Supporters group [[Club 1872]] are the ninth-largest shareholder of the club.

{{wide image|2008_UEFA_Cup_Final_-_Piccadilly_Gardens_-_Rangers.jpg|1000px|alt=A panorama of Rangers supporters at the 2008 UEFA Cup final, in the Piccadilly Gardens fan zone. This picture was taken during the day before the match against Zenit Saint Petersburg on 14 May 2008.|A panorama of Rangers supporters at the 2008 UEFA Cup final, in the Piccadilly Gardens fan zone. This picture was taken during the day, before the match against Zenit Saint Petersburg on 14 May 2008.}}

===Rivalries===
[[File:Oldfirm.jpg|thumb|Rangers fans (right) at an Old Firm match away to Celtic in 2004]]
The club's most distinct rivalry is with Glasgow neighbours [[Celtic F.C.|Celtic]]; the two clubs are collectively known as the [[Old Firm]]. Rangers' traditional support is largely drawn from the [[Protestantism|Protestant]] [[Unionism in Scotland|Unionist]] community, whilst Celtic's traditional support is largely drawn from the [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] community. The first Old Firm match was won by Celtic and there have been over four hundred matches played to date. The Old Firm rivalry has fuelled many assaults, sometimes leading to deaths, on Old Firm derby days; an activist group that monitors [[Sectarianism|sectarian]] activity in Glasgow has reported that on Old Firm weekends, admissions to hospital emergency rooms have increased over normal levels and journalist [[Franklin Foer]] noted that in the period from 1996 to 2003, eight deaths in Glasgow were directly linked to Old Firm matches, as well as hundreds of assaults.<ref name="101 places not to see before you die">{{cite book|title=101 Places Not to See Before You Die|publisher=Harper Collins|author=Price, Catherine|year=2010|isbn=9780061787768|url=https://archive.org/details/101placesnottose00cath|url-access=registration|quote=On Old Firm weekends, admission rates for local hospitals increase ninefold, and the cumulative total for arrests at Old Firm games is the highest in the world.|access-date=24 August 2012|pages=[https://archive.org/details/101placesnottose00cath/page/174 174], 175}}</ref><ref name="old firm dnt need big stars">{{cite news|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/old-firm-dont-need-a-messi-1089843|title=Old Firm don't need a Messi or Ronaldo to be biggest derby in world, says Ali Russell|work=Daily Record|date=18 December 2011|access-date=24 August 2012|author=Haggerty, Anthony|quote=RANGERS operations chief Ali Russell insists the Old Firm rivalry is the biggest in the world – because a billion fans tune in to watch two teams devoid of world stars.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731184909/http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/old-firm-dont-need-a-messi-1089843|archive-date=31 July 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Aberdeen F.C.–Rangers F.C. rivalry|bitter rivalry]] with [[Aberdeen F.C.|Aberdeen]] developed following an incident in the 1979 League Cup final when Rangers' [[Derek Johnstone]] provoked the fury of the Dons support with what they believed was a blatant dive but which resulted in the dismissal of Aberdeen's [[Doug Rougvie]] and a Rangers victory.<ref name="When two tribes go to war">[http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/when-two-tribes-go-to-war-1.200148 When two tribes go to war] ''The Herald'' (Glasgow). Retrieved 30 November 2013.</ref> Then, the following season, Aberdeen's [[John McMaster (footballer, born 1955)|John McMaster]] had to be given the [[Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation|kiss of life]] at Ibrox after a stamp on his throat by [[Willie Johnston]].<ref name="When two tribes go to war"/> Relations between fans were further soured during a league match on 8 October 1988, when Aberdeen player [[Neil Simpson]]'s tackle on Rangers' Ian Durrant resulted in Durrant being injured for two years.<ref name="Rangers aberdeen rivalry">{{Cite web|date=2019-02-06|title=Aberdeen v Rangers: a rivalry inflamed by a terrible tackle|url=http://www.theguardian.com/football/that-1980s-sports-blog/2019/feb/06/aberdeen-rangers-horrific-tackle-changed-rivalry-durrant-souness|access-date=2021-02-10|website=The Guardian|language=en}}</ref> Resentment continued and in 1998 an article in a Rangers match programme branded Aberdeen fans "scum", although Rangers later issued a "full and unreserved apology" to Aberdeen and their supporters, which was accepted by Aberdeen.<ref name="Rangers issue apology to Aberdeen">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-rangers-apologise-to-aberdeen-1185731.html|title=Rangers apologise to Aberdeen|access-date=28 January 2010|work=The Independent|date=18 November 1998|quote=RANGERS ISSUED a full public apology to Aberdeen last night for labelling a section of the Pittodrie club's support "scum" in last Saturday's Ibrox matchday programme. Stewart Milne, the Aberdeen chairman, protested to Bob Brannan, the Rangers chief executive, yesterday about the anonymous article which also branded the Dons' team as "under-achievers and money-grabbers"|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121108223605/http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-rangers-apologise-to-aberdeen-1185731.html|archive-date=8 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="History of bad blood">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/1770821.stm|title=A history of bad blood|date=19 January 2002|access-date=28 January 2010|work=BBC Sport|quote=The catalyst for the recent venom between the two sets of supporters was the 1988 incident involving Neil Simpson and Ian Durrant.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120709164336/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/scotland/1770821.stm|archive-date=9 July 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

Rangers' relaunch in the Third Division in the 2012–13 season led to the club's original rivalry with [[Queen's Park F.C.|Queen's Park]] being renewed for the first time since 1958 in the league. Rangers and Queen's Park first played each other in March 1879, some nine years before the start of the Old Firm rivalry.<ref name="Old rivalry 1">{{cite news|url=http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/sfl-division-three/rangers-v-queen-s-park-renewing-an-age-old-rivalry-1-2575574|title=Rangers v Queen's Park: Renewing an age-old rivalry|work=The Scotsman|author=Smith, Andrew|date=14 October 2012|access-date=14 October 2012|quote=IT HAS been billed by the Ibrox club as the "original Glasgow derby". It might equally be argued that their hosting of Queen's Park in the Third Division on Saturday is the newest Glasgow derby.<br />...<br />Although the teams last met in a League Cup tie 21 years ago and regularly jousted in the Glasgow Cup in the two decades before that, there has not been a league meeting since 1958, the year Queen's Park last played top-flight football. The fact the confrontation has returned to the calendar in a wholly different form was best encapsulated by Rangers ambassador Sandy Jardine.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121118161221/http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/sfl-division-three/rangers-v-queen-s-park-renewing-an-age-old-rivalry-1-2575574|archive-date=18 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Old rivalry 2">{{cite news|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/old-rivalry-renewed.19134396?|title=Old rivalry renewed|work=The Herald|location=Glasgow|date=14 October 2012|access-date=14 October 2012|author=Fisher, Stewart|quote=Queen's Park and Rangers, two teams that first met competitively in a Scottish Cup tie in March 1879, some nine years before Celtic were formed, meet in an Irn-Bru Third division encounter at Ibrox.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121016233432/http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/old-rivalry-renewed.19134396|archive-date=16 October 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> Matches with Queen's Park were advertised as the "[[Original Glasgow derby]]" by Rangers and the Scottish media; and as the "Oldest Derby in the World" by Queen's Park.<ref name="Oldist derby in the world">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/rangers/9621143/Rangers-and-Queens-Park-ready-to-resurrect-worlds-oldest-derby.html|title=Rangers and Queen's Park ready to resurrect world's oldest derby|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=19 October 2012|access-date=16 January 2013|author=Forsyth, Roddy|quote=The Old Firm collision it most certainly is not – to the relief of Glasgow's constabulary and A&E departments – but Saturday afternoon's visit of Queen's Park to Ibrox will draw the UK's second biggest crowd and resurrect a fixture that first appeared in the records in 1875 when the pair played a charity match in aid of fire victims.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130112104214/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/rangers/9621143/Rangers-and-Queens-Park-ready-to-resurrect-worlds-oldest-derby.html|archive-date=12 January 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Sectarianism===
{{main|Sectarianism in Glasgow}}
[[John Ure Primrose]], chairman of Rangers from 1912 to 1923, has been described as sharpening Rangers' Protestant Unionist identity and anti-Catholic identity, contributing to the absence of openly Catholic players from the team.<ref name="Protestant">{{cite book|title=Fear and loathing in world football|publisher=Berg Publishers|author1=Armstrong, Gary|author2=Giulianotti, Richard|year=2001|pages=25, 26|isbn=1-85973-463-4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CJxIbXQfE1IC|access-date=15 August 2012|quote=Primrose was associated with the most virulent anti-Catholic and anti-Irish sentiment, and was openly allied with the orange order.}}</ref> From the early 20th century onwards, [[Rangers F.C. signing policy|Rangers had a policy of not signing Catholic players]], or employing Catholics in other prominent roles.<ref name="Non catholic signing policy">{{cite book|title=The Old Firm: Sectarianism, Sport and Society in Scotland|publisher=John Donald Publishers|author=Murray, William J.|year=2000|pages=60,64,65,189|isbn=9780859765428}}</ref><ref name="Non catholic signing policy 2">{{cite book|title=Football: A Sociology of the Global Game|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|author=Giulianotti, Richard|year=1999|page=18|isbn=9780745617695|quote=Historically Rangers have maintained a staunch Protestant and anti-Catholic tradition which includes a ban on signing Catholic players.}}</ref><ref name="Non catholic signing policy 3">{{cite book|title=Glasgow, the Uneasy Peace: Religious Tension in Modern Scotland, 1819–1914|publisher=Manchester University Press ND|author=Gallagher, Tom|year=1987|page=[https://archive.org/details/glasgowuneasypea00gall/page/300 300]|isbn=9780719023965|url=https://archive.org/details/glasgowuneasypea00gall|url-access=registration|access-date=18 August 2012|quote=The conflict in Ireland failed to be the catalyst which swept the religious cobwebs from the Ibrox-based club's terraces and boardroom. One of its managers even had no qualms in the 1970s about urging his players to roar out the loyalist battle-cry 'No Surrender' as they ran up the tunnel at Ibrox.}}</ref><ref name="Non catholic signing policy 4">{{cite book|title=Graeme Souness: A Manager's Diary|publisher=Mainstream Publishing|author1=Souness, Graeme|author2=Gallacher, Ken|author-link1=Graeme Souness|year=1989|page=17|isbn=9781851582242|quote=For years Rangers have been pilloried for what the majority of people saw as discrimination against one section of the population. Now we have shown that this unwritten policy at Ibrox is over. It's finished. Done with.}}</ref>

In 1989, Rangers signed [[Mo Johnston]], "their first major Roman Catholic signing".<ref name="First roman catholic">{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19890711&id=Qw01AAAAIBAJ&pg=5286,2680408|title=Ibrox lands double coup with Johnston|work=The Herald|location=Glasgow|date=11 July 1989|access-date=18 August 2012|author=Laing, Allan|page=1|quote=Rangers yesterday paraded their latest, and most controversial signing, Maurice Johnston, in the process demolishing any remaining they were sectarian, and upstaging their arch-rivals Celtic.}}</ref> Johnston was the first high-profile Catholic to sign for the club since the [[World War I]] era, though other Catholics had signed for Rangers before.<ref name="Non catholic signing policy" /><ref name="Other catholics had signed before">{{cite book|title=Football Against the Enemy|publisher=Orion|author=Kuper, Simon|author-link=Simon Kuper|year=2006|isbn=0-7528-4877-1}}</ref> Since Johnston's signing, an influx of overseas footballers has contributed to Catholic players becoming commonplace at Rangers.<ref name="Influx of foreign unwritten rule abolished">{{cite web|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/books/2012/03/celtic-firm-rangers-football|title=Decline and fall of the Old Firm|work=New Statesman|date=18 March 2012|access-date=18 August 2012|author=Kuper, Simon|quote=In the past 15 years, both clubs have tried to stamp out bigotry, largely for pragmatic reasons. The IRA guff puts off sponsors and when the market in foreign footballers opened up in the 1990s, the old prohibition on signing Catholics became irksome for Rangers. Many of the foreign players who have since come to Glasgow must have struggled to remember whether they were playing for the Protestant team or the Catholic one.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111063511/http://www.newstatesman.com/books/2012/03/celtic-firm-rangers-football|archive-date=11 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1999, [[Lorenzo Amoruso]] became the first Catholic captain of the club.<ref name="First catholic captain">{{cite news|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/former-old-firm-italians-give-1038540|title=Former Old Firm Italians give their take on derby clash|date=7 October 2009|access-date=18 August 2012|work=Daily Record|quote=I've been Rangers' first Catholic captain|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731181321/http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/former-old-firm-italians-give-1038540|archive-date=31 July 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

Rangers 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-sectarian and anti-racist campaigns.<ref name="Rangers and celtic team together to tackle sectarianism">{{cite news|url=http://www.scotsman.com/sport/spl-remains-tight-lipped-over-report-on-parkhead-chanting-1-830134|title=SPL Remains tight-lipped over report on Parkhead chanting|work=The Scotsman|author=Rumsby, Ben|date=18 February 2009|access-date=18 August 2012|quote=THE Scottish Premier League has confirmed it has received the match delegate's report from the Old Firm derby but refused to divulge if alleged sectarian chanting from Rangers fans was mentioned within it.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021134034/http://www.scotsman.com/sport/spl-remains-tight-lipped-over-report-on-parkhead-chanting-1-830134|archive-date=21 October 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|Racism has been directed at players on the pitch at Rangers games, including at former Celtic player Bobo Balde.<ref name="Root out racism">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2003/mar/10/newsstory.sport6|title=Rangers to root out racists|work=The Guardian|date=10 March 2003|access-date=19 August 2012|quote=Rangers chairman John McClelland has vowed to root out the racist fans who booed whenever Celtic's Bobo Balde and Momo Sylla had possession during his club's Old Firm derby defeat on Saturday.|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130114025212/http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2003/mar/10/newsstory.sport6|archive-date=14 January 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>|group="n"}} [[William Gaillard]], UEFA's Director of Communications, commended the SFA and Scottish clubs, including Rangers, for their actions in fighting discrimination.<ref name="UEFA applaud rangers for fighting sectarianism">{{cite news|url=http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/top-football-stories/sfa-praised-for-stance-on-bigotry-1-725107|title=SFA praised for stance on bigotry|work=The Scotsman|access-date=24 August 2012|date=13 November 2006|author=Wright, Angus|quote="Education and prevention is what we are really looking at and Scotland is a great example of somewhere where that has done a tremendous amount in practically eradicating the worst features of discrimination."|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019032211/http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/top-football-stories/sfa-praised-for-stance-on-bigotry-1-725107|archive-date=19 October 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> In September 2007, UEFA praised Rangers for the measures the club has taken against sectarianism.<ref name="UEFA praise rangers for there work">{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/scotland/article2501036.ece|title=Uefa praises Rangers for action on bigotry|work=The Times|date= 21 September 2007|access-date=22 March 2009|author=Spiers, Graham|author-link=Graham Spiers}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref name="Uefa praise rangers work 2">{{cite web|url=http://empower-sport.com/focus/scottish-premier-league/43-no-surrender-to-bigotry-.html|title=No Surrender to Bigotry|work=Empower-Sport British Supplement|publisher=Empower-Sport|date=20 February 2009|access-date=18 August 2012|author=Sekar, Satish|author-link=Satish Sekar|quote=Both UEFA and FIFA hold Rangers up as a positive example of a club determined to tackle the problem that threatens its future. And the SFA joins in that praise. "On the sectarianism front Rangers have tried to develop a policy across the Protestant/Catholic divide," says Mr Mitchell. "They have imposed a large number of life bans on supporters who have been identified and found guilty of sectarian behaviour." And Rangers is not alone in taking such action. "Generally speaking it is by the clubs," he says. "If there is a criminal prosecution that has an effect as well, but the clubs themselves have taken that action off their own back, because they have the right to decide who can come into the stadium or not."|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110815161655/http://empower-sport.com/focus/scottish-premier-league/43-no-surrender-to-bigotry-.html|archive-date=15 August 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

However, sectarian chanting by supporters has continued to incur criticism and sanctions upon the club as well as convictions against individuals identified.<ref>[http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/14172111.SPFL_may_take_action_against_Rangers_over_sectarian_singing/ SPFL may take action against Rangers over sectarian singing] ''The Herald'' (Glasgow), 29 December 2015.</ref><ref>[http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/rangers-fan-jailed-for-three-months-1399629 Rangers fan jailed for three months for sectarian chanting at football ground] ''Daily Record'' (Scotland), 26 October 2012.</ref> In 1999, the vice-chairman of The Rangers Football Club Ltd, [[Donald Findlay]], resigned after being filmed singing sectarian songs during a supporters club event.<ref name="Findley songs inquiry">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sport/football/scottish_premier/357392.stm|title=Findlay songs inquiry launched|date=9 June 1999|work=BBC News|access-date=18 August 2012|quote=The Faculty of Advocates is to investigate complaints against the leading Scottish lawyer Donald Findlay QC after he was captured on camera singing sectarian songs.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120124044538/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sport/football/scottish_premier/357392.stm|archive-date=24 January 2012|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Findley caught singing songs">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/im-catholic-in-a-football-sense-1097932.html|title=I'm Catholic in a football sense|work=The Independent|date=4 June 1999|access-date=18 August 2012|author=O'Sullivan, Jack|quote=Findlay, Scotland's leading criminal lawyer, is a Protestant and proud of it. But he was embarrassed to be caught on video singing sectarian songs. They included "The Billy Boys", a verse of which goes: "We're up to our knees in Fenian blood, Surrender or you die, We are the Billy Boys."|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216081910/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/im-catholic-in-a-football-sense-1097932.html|archive-date=16 December 2013|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Findley interview">{{cite press release|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2002/07_july/01/donald_findlay.shtml|title=On the Ropes – Donald Findlay QC|publisher=BBC Press Office|author=Humphrys, John|author-link=John Humphrys|date=2 July 2002|access-date=18 August 2012|quote=Donald Findlay QC tells John Humphrys about the effect singing sectarian, anti-Catholic songs at a party for Glasgow Rangers had on his life, and how he, at one stage, even contemplated suicide.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181104062632/http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2002/07_july/01/donald_findlay.shtml|archive-date=4 November 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> UEFA's Control and Disciplinary Body has punished Rangers for incidents during European ties, most notably [[Villarreal CF|Villarreal]] in 2006,<ref name="Fans singing 1">{{cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/news-media/news/01b5-0f84878f639f-ae9d924c5922-1000--rangers-appeal-upheld/|title=Rangers appeal upheld|publisher=UEFA|date=25 May 2006|access-date=18 August 2012|quote=UEFA appealed against the decision on 12 April by the Control and Disciplinary Body to find Rangers not guilty of alleged discriminatory chants by the club's supporters at both legs of the tie, on 22 February at Ibrox and 7 March at El Madrigal. Rangers have been fined €19,500 and severely warned about their responsibility for any future misconduct by their fans in relation to sectarian and discriminatory behaviour.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130604131843/http://www.uefa.com/uefa/footballfirst/matchorganisation/disciplinary/news/newsid=424237.html|archive-date=4 June 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> [[CA Osasuna|Osasuna]] in 2007,<ref name="Uefa fine rangers and osasuna">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/r/rangers/6564745.stm|title=Uefa fine for Rangers and Osasuna|work=BBC Sport|date=3 May 2007|access-date=18 August 2012|quote=Rangers have been fined £8,280 by Uefa for the behaviour of their fans during their match against Osasuna – but the Spanish club must pay £31,000.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130114143525/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/r/rangers/6564745.stm|archive-date=14 January 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> [[PSV Eindhoven]] in 2011,<ref name="Fans singing 2">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/12996888.stm|title=Rangers to contest Uefa sectarian singing charge|work=BBC Sport|date=7 April 2011|access-date=18 August 2012|quote=Rangers are to face a Uefa disciplinary hearing over allegations of sectarian singing during last month's Europa League match away to PSV Eindhoven. The club's chief executive Martin Bain says they are "utterly dismayed" by the decision and that they will defend the club's position "vigorously".|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314141118/http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/12996888|archive-date=14 March 2012|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Fans singing 3">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/13218273.stm|title=Uefa fines Rangers and bans fans for one away game|work=BBC Sport|date=28 April 2011|access-date=28 April 2011|quote=Uefa has fined Rangers 40,000 euros (£35,652) and banned its fans from the next away European game for sectarian singing in a match at PSV Eindhoven.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120507084751/http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/13218273|archive-date=7 May 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> and at Ibrox in 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/49449628|title=Rangers: Uefa orders Ibrox section to close after 'sectarian singing'|publisher=BBC|date=23 August 2019|access-date=23 August 2019}}</ref> In February 2015, following sectarian singing from Rangers fans at a match at Raith Rovers, the [[Scottish Professional Football League|SPFL]] came in for criticism for their failure or inability to deal with the issue.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/31629957 Sectarian chants provoke SPFL review of spectator misconduct] BBC, 28 February 2015.</ref> However, there have been cases of the police and courts taking action, with Rangers fans having been charged, convicted and jailed for sectarian behaviour.<ref>[http://www.scotsman.com/news/three-rangers-fans-guilty-of-sectarian-behaviour-1-3751234 Three Rangers fans guilty of sectarian behaviour] ''The Scotsman'', 22 April 2015.</ref>

Rangers' use of orange and blue change strips, first worn in 1993–94,<ref name="Rangers away historical kits" /> once in 2002–03<ref name = "2018–19 kits"/> and reintroduced in 2018–19<ref name="2018–19 kits" /> and 2022–23,<ref name="Rangers 22-23 Third Kit Released"/> has caused controversy because the colours are seen as referencing the [[Orange Order]].<ref name="2018–19 kits" />

===Friendships===
Supporters of Rangers have a fan friendship with the Northern Irish club [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]], dating back to 1920. Two of the founders of the club Moses and Peter McNeil have a Northern Irish connection through the County Down birth of their mother Jean Bain, who after moving to Scotland for work in the mid-19th century married a Scotsman, John McNeil. From Rangers formation to the present day, the club have had 32 players who were born in either Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and previously Ireland (from 1882 to 1950). A number were former Linfield players, and they have contributed much to the success of Rangers Football Club. Three former Northern Irish players have captained Rangers – Bert Manderson, John McClelland and Steven Davis; six from a Northern Irish connection have been elevated to the Rangers 'Hall of Fame' and one – Jimmy Nicholl – was the club's assistant manager in 2018.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Little |first1=Ivan |title=Ulster's strong influence in the formation and history of Rangers FC is brought to book |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/ulsters-strong-influence-in-the-formation-and-history-of-rangers-fc-is-brought-to-book-38010580.html |access-date=13 April 2019 |publisher=Belfast Telegraph |date=10 November 2019}}</ref>

The fans of Rangers also have a fan-friendship with the German club [[Hamburger SV]], dating from the 1970s when Scots moved to the German port in search of work and reinforced by their shared affection for the midfielder [[Jörg Albertz]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Magee |first1=Will |title=Old Firm, New Bonds: The Politics Tying Big European Clubs to Celtic and Rangers |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/old-firm-new-bonds-the-politics-tying-big-european-clubs-to-celtic-and-rangers/ |access-date=12 June 2018 |publisher=Vice News |date=30 November 2017}}</ref>
This link was formalised in February 2021 with the formation of an official club partnership between the two sides.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.rangers.co.uk/article/rangers-and-hsv-enter-club-partnership/68dtIhjgBv7ljtzkffl5qD
|title=Rangers and HSV enter club partnership |publisher=Rangers FC |date=10 February 2021 |access-date=10 February 2021}}</ref> Conversely, Celtic fans have a long-standing friendship with Hamburger SV's [[Hamburg derby|city rival]]s, [[FC St. Pauli]]. The friendship exists due to both the Rangers-HSV affinity and the shared left-wing politics of Celtic and St. Pauli fans.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.espnfc.com/story/967760/the-enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend|title=The enemy of the enemy is my friend |last=Hesse |first=Uli |date=11 October 2011 |website=ESPN FC |access-date=19 April 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=McDougall |first=William |year=2013 |title=Kicking from the Left: The Friendship of Celtic and FC St. Pauli supporters |journal=Soccer and Society | volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=230–245 |doi= 10.1080/14660970.2013.776470|s2cid=144966781 | issn = 1466-0970}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Magee |first1=Will |title=Old Firm, New Bonds: The Politics Tying Big European Clubs to Celtic and Rangers |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/old-firm-new-bonds-the-politics-tying-big-european-clubs-to-celtic-and-rangers/ |access-date=12 June 2018 |publisher=Vice News |date=30 November 2017}}</ref>