Rangers chairman Dave King says the club has given notice to cut ties with Mike Ashley's Sports Direct.

King released a statement on Thursday saying that for the first time a board of Rangers "stood up to the threats of Sports Direct" after Ashley's firm abandoned legal action against the club over an alleged breach of a gagging order.

A High Court judge on Wednesday described the action brought against Rangers by Sports Direct as "ridiculous". The retail firm halted the litigation after claiming a breach of confidentiality in relation to a commercial deal.

Mr Justice Peter Smith approved the discontinuation of the claim at a High Court hearing in London and told lawyers the case had been a "ridiculous piece of litigation". It had been running for nine months and a trial was scheduled for next week.

King said in his statement on Thursday that now the club has repaid a £5m loan to Sports Direct, it has formally given notice to end its relationship with the Newcastle FC owner. The notice period is understood to be seven years.

He said: "A further unanticipated investment was made to pay off the Sports Direct loan and to recover all security held by Sports Direct.

"That has now been completed and the Club has formally given notice to end the relationship with Sports Direct while still reserving our right to proceed with challenges to the existing suite of contracts and side agreements in a court of law.

"For the first time a board of this Club has stood up to the threats of Sports Direct and has achieved resounding success in court proceedings including the substantial recovery of legal costs.

"Sports Direct’s motives were severely exposed when a High Court judge ruled that Sports Direct abused court processes in its attempt to bully the Club and me.

"We will continue to put Rangers first and ensure that we get redress and compensation for the poor commercial and business practices that the Club has been forced to endure."