The Rangers – If you’re going to San Francisco

The Celtic Star

·26 février 2025

The Rangers – If you’re going to San Francisco

Uncle Sam is rumoured to coming to Glasgow town. Be afraid, very afraid, or maybe not...

Jefte of theRangers appears dejected at the end of the Scottish Cup match between Rangers FC and Queens Park at Ibrox on February 09, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The media has been awash with news of the potential takeover of the loss making The Rangers Football Club by a cluster of American investors, led by the Leeds United owners who own the San Francisco 49s franchise.

Vidéos OneFootball

The giddy Keith Jackson of the Daily Record last week broke the news that soon every other media outlet was reporting, and it had theRangers support celebrating like they had just overturned our 13 point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership and had wiped out all their painful memories of losing to Celtic in the final of the Premier Sports League Cup win and to Queen’s Park in the Scottish Cup at Ibrox, the first time in the 13 year history that they’d been beaten by a lower league club at home in a cup tie. You would have to go to bonusfinder.ie to find a bigger win than that one, although it was the same weekend that Plymouth Argyle knocked Premier League leaders Liverpool out of the FA Cup!

Cyriel Dessers of theRangers reacts to a missed chance during the Scottish Cup match between theRangers and Queens Park at Ibrox on February 09, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

It was the same Keith Jackson writing in the Daily Record who broke the news back in 2010/11 of a certain billionaire whizz kid by the name of Craig Whyte. I believe ‘wealth off the radar’ was Keith’s actually description of Craig Whyte, who later explained that even he was shocked by this description. Whyte explained that he was managing client assets running into billions, but this wealth belong to his clients and obviously not him.

Craig Whyte

Quickly Celtic fans dismissed Whyte’s ‘billionaire’ status afforded to him by Keith Jackson at the Daily Record and instead described Whyte as a ‘thousandaire’ was turned out to be as accurate as it was amusing.

However theRangers support lapped it up at the time. They really are a gullible and clueless lot mainly due to the nonsense they are fed by Scottish based hacks like Keith Jackson. You would think that there would be some caution this time around and they would want to know the structure of any deal involving the club and the bundle of assets that goes with it. There admittedly seems some credibility to the rumours although as per usual it’s exaggerated more than a tiny bit.

Jefte of theRangers dejected at the end of the Scottish Cup match between theRangers and Queens Park at Ibrox on February 09, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Reportedly it’s the owners of NFL side The San Francisco 49ers, who are also the owners of Championship leaders Leeds United, who are willing to invest into the company that owns the latest Ibrox club. Although it’s not a joint ownership in conjunction with the NFL side as some wildly and incorrectly reported.

It’s not the complete Scottish and European domination that the SMSM would have you believe, and a simple read of the proposed bid would tell even the simplest of minds just that.

For instance the excited hacks have already showed that they’ve let their hearts rule their heads over the news. One article hilariously explained how a tie up with the 49ers would be beneficial to the Ibrox club due to their player trading model. Eh? I’m shaking in my boots at the thought of the Ibrox club having the best line backers and quarter backs to call upon.

Jack Butland of theRangers is seen at full time during the Premiership match between theRangers and St. Mirren at Ibrox on February 22, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

They also had the gullible Ibrox supporters dreaming by reporting that a massive war chest would be available to make them a force to be reckoned with. But as we know due to FFP rules it’s nigh on impossible to do so. Something that the very same article later explained!

While discussions are taking place there is also the matter of buying out the existing shareholders who collectively have invested up to £100m in the club to keep it afloat since Charles Green’s company was launched off a shelf in a lawyers office in Glasgow. That is an expensive purchase and that’e before they look at infrastructure, first team development, a new management team and paying off the Philippe Clement and his entourage which reportedly will cost just over £7m.

theRangers manager Philippe Clement is seen during the Premiership match between theRangers and St. Mirren at Ibrox on February 22, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

It only works as a business if they can get the better of Celtic in the title race and that has happened only once, during the Covid season when Celtic, without the backing of the supporters, simply wasn’t; at the races. Clement at one point last season, round about this time of year, got his nose in front but no sooner had that happened before they blew up in spectacular fashion and the elite manager that is Brendan Rodgers, with the quality tried and tested squad simply cruised away for a comfortable title victory.

This season there has been no challenge to speak of and Celtic are 16 points clear before the whistle in blown on Barry Ferguson’s time as interim theRangers boss. Tellingly the former Kelty Hearts, Alloa and Blackpool manager (where he failed at them all) is also the bookies odds on favourites to get the job on a permanent basis in the summer.

Fans of theRangers display a tifo prior to the Premiership match between theRangers and St. Johnstone at Ibrox on January 12, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Ferguson may turn out to be a decent manager back at the club he loves, much the same way that Neil Lennon had his successes as Celtic manager. But neither are elite football coaches or managers – like Brendan Rodgers.

So there is so much more to this than theRangers support is considering. At the moment their club is owned essentially by rich ‘Rangers men’ who are considerably less wealthy than before after ploughing their fortunes into the bottomless pit that is theRangers. If the Yanks gain control, what happens next and thereafter will be well and truly outwith the control of theRangers support, rich or not.

Celtic v theRangers – Scottish Premiership – Celtic Park. Barry Ferguson in the stands during the match at Celtic Park, which Celtic won 3-0 on Sunday September 1, 2024. PA Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

I just wish I had some magic beans to sell, I’d make a fortune due to the Ibrox supporter base.

Just an Ordinary Bhoy