Rangers to beam UEFA final to fans at Ibrox

May 4 2008 By Grace Macaskill

Exclusive The Road To Manchester Uefa Cup Final May 14, 2008 Final Beamed Live On Giant Screens

RANGERS will throw open the doors of Ibrox to fans locked out of the UEFA Cup final, the Sunday Mail can reveal.

As unofficial ticket prices soared to s3500 on the internet, Ibrox bosses said they plan to avert a Manchester invasion with a free live beamback on their giant screens.

They are desperate to persuade 100,000 ticketless fans to stay in Glasgow instead of heading south for next week's clash with Zenit St Petersburg. Manchester police have warned fans without tickets will not be welcomed.

Club chairman Sir David Murray and chief executive Martin Bain hope the chance to watch the game in a near-full stadium will appeal to Gers supporters.

Rangers have an allocation of 13,000 briefs from UEFA - but must cater for sponsors and corporate guests from that allowance.

Tickets with a face value of s75 are already selling on ebay for up to s3500.

Rangers have held talks with Glasgow City Council about holding events in George Square but there are fears the city centre cannot cope.

An Ibrox source said: "Everyone is terrified at the prospect of 100,000 fans heading to Manchester.

The police wouldn't want that, the council would not want it and the club would also be very concerned.

"It would certainly increase the prospect of trouble for fans and would put the city of Manchester under incredible strain."

Ibrox chiefs will begin talks about the beamback tomorrow. The club are looking at the possibility of jetting the trophy back to Ibrox by helicopter minutes after the final whistle if they win.

Rangers chief executive Martin Bain said: "We will never be able to meet the demand for tickets, however those who have paid good money all season to go on the trips will be rewarded.

"We will be looking to show the game on the Jumbotron screens and we will work with the council to make sure the city is a great environment to watch the game in."

Iain Sinclair, of the Arthur Numan Loyal Rangers Supporters Club of Milngavie, said: "I think it is a great idea to open Ibrox up for the game but I don't think many fans will be left in Glasgow for it.

"For the fans who can't make it, there isn't a better place to watch the final than in Ibrox."

Some fans are angry that less than a third of the tickets will go to Rangers. Each of the 53 member countries of UEFA got tickets weeks ago - including tiny nations such as The Faroes and Andorra.

WE'VE GOT 26,000 TICKETS

LUCKY Jill Thomson, Daniel Feeney and Chris Coram have got their hands on tickets for the big game - all 26,000 of them.

The trio work in the box office at the City of Manchester stadium and spent 16 hours printing the tickets, starting seconds after Rangers' win, so they could be raced to desperate fans at Ibrox.

SUNDAY EMAIL

g.macaskill@sundaymail.co.uk