Rangers Consider Expanding Ibrox Capacity with Two Potential Methods
CEO James Bisgrove is reportedly turning his attention to stadium expansion, focusing particularly on increasing Ibrox’s seating capacity, in addition to exploring potential sponsorship opportunities.
The idea of expanding the capacity of Rangers’ iconic Govan stadium has been on the table for nearly two decades.
With the Main Stand being a listed and protected structure, Rangers are bound to remain at Ibrox, which is a positive, but it does limit expansion options.
While a 60,000-seat stadium is feasible in theory, current circumstances make it challenging. However, there are plans in place to increase Ibrox’s current capacity of 50,817, with two potential methods under consideration.
The first and most feasible option is to fully fill in the Ibrox corners and extend the stands upwards, covering the current bottom third which only accommodates a few hundred fans. This method is practical and could increase capacity, but it won’t come cheap.
The second, more challenging option, involves lowering the pitch. This would create space for one or two additional rows of seating, but there are practical limits to how far forward the stands can be extended without interfering with the playing surface.
In short, these are the most viable solutions available. Filling in the corners is the most significant and costly option, and combining both methods could potentially add around 5,000 to the capacity.
While this would be a step forward for Ibrox, expanding the stadium won’t come without its challenges.
Source: https://www.ibroxnoise.co.uk/2023/06/55000-rangers-look-into-ibrox-capacity-expansion-with-two-methods/
