Rangers hope to be playing home games at Ibrox after the next international break but chairman John Bennett admits the return may “slip beyond” the end of September.
The club arranged to play their August Scottish Premiership, League Cup and European home fixtures at Hampden Park after a delay to works on the Copland Stand at Ibrox Stadium.
The hold up has been caused by late shipments of materials, with the first of three having already arrived and the second and third expected in August, “subject to slippage”,
Rangers’ only scheduled home match in September as things stand is against Hibernian on 28 September.
“When I think about timelines, it’s an aspiration at this stage,” Bennett told club media.
“I’m caveating it, there is still uncertainty. We can aspire for that to be at the end of September but it’s an aspiration. I am sorry that I have to caveat this, it frustrates me so much that I have to caveat this.
“Yes, I can have an aspiration – get our people back into our home final game of September but yes, it could slip beyond that.”
Bennett, who thanked the Scottish FA for the use of the national stadium, said he understands that “nature abhors a vacuum”. The last official update regarding the Ibrox issues came with confirmation of the temporary move to Hampden a fortnight ago.
And he said he is “hopeful” season ticket holders would get an update about where they would be sitting at Hampden later this week.
Bennett also spoke about the club’s finances.
“Upon becoming chairman, my number one mission off the pitch was to rid the club of pre-player trading losses,” he explained.
“That number to June 2023 was £10.5m. That’s unsustainable. That has to go away. It takes action. If I look at that number, that is well on the way to being eradicated.
“This club should not be losing £10m pre-player trading in a year. This required cultural change.
“Football clubs are brilliant at wasting resources. Football clubs are really good at spending other people’s money. We were good at that as well and that’s changing, big style and fast because it had to change fast.
“We’re not done in terms of that cultural change, there’s more to come.”
On the pitch, six players recruited so far in the summer window as five left under freedom of contract, Fabio Silva returned to parent club Wolves and Sam Lammers was sold to Twente.
“If I take 2024, the January window and this window, excluding the loans, we’re double digit millions in commitments, in transfer payables. Excluding loans, we’re about £11.5m in thus far on transfer payables. Loans, they’re not free – they come with loan fees, they come with agent fees.”
John Bennett,Ibrox Stadium,Scottish Premiership,League Cup,Hampden Park,Rangers,Sam Lammers
