A 14-year-old Rangers fan has raised thousands of pounds for charity by hosting a raffle for tickets to the Europa League final.
Mitchell Carling was one of the 9500 Rangers fans to secure two tickets at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán Stadium for the showdown against Frankfurt in Seville on Wednesday.
Instead of going to game, the teenager has decided to raffle the tickets for charity at £20 each and will reveal the winner on Sunday afternoon.
So far, the youngster has raised £35,560 and has adjusted his initial target of £20,000 to £55,555 – in honour of the Ibrox club securing their 55th league title last season.
He told STV News: “When I got the tickets, I was obviously over the moon, but seeing the demand for the tickets online made me think how valuable they were, and that I could do some good by raffling them for charity.
“I’ve seen some tickets for say for thousands, so this way everyone has a chance, and someone will win two tickets for just £20.
“In under 24 hours I hit my initial £20,000 target, and the number just keeps getting higher, so I decided to raise my target to £55,555, for reasons I am sure any Rangers fan will understand.”
Mitchell will split the funds raised between Type-1 Diabetes research charity, JDRF, and Caudwell Children, a charity founded to support the lives of disabled and autistic children in the UK.
He added: “I wanted to raise money for both JDRF and Caudwell Children because they are two charities that mean something to me and my family.
“We have supported Caudwell Children for a few years, and JDRF helped my sister when she was diagnosed with Type-1 diabetes a few years ago.
“The support has been great, and I am proud of what I have achieved so far and encourage people to keep entering the draw.”
Mitchell’s mum, Leanne, told of her surprise when he decided to raffle the rare tickets, but admitted the act has made her “so proud” of her son.
Leanne said: “I must admit I was surprised when Mitchell suggested raffling his tickets for charity, as games like this don’t come around very often, but I am so proud of him for wanting to raise money for charity, and what he has managed to raise so far is incredible.
“The draw is open until Sunday so hopefully he will hit his new target.”
It comes as Rangers fans face “ludicrous” ticket prices ahead of the final as third party websites advertise match seats for nearly £10,000.
You can enter Mitchell’s raffle here.
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