Rangers rebrand Hampden as team make temporary move from Ibrox to national stadium

Hampden Park has been rebranded with Rangers signage as the Ibrox club begin their enforced residency at the national stadium.

The team face Motherwell at Hampden on Saturday afternoon in their first ‘home’ match of the season, and they will be playing in Mount Florida until the end of September at least.

A delay to material shipments from Asia has affected the completion of work on the Copland Road stand at Ibrox, meaning Rangers had to find alternative accommodation. Agreement was reached with the Scottish FA to rent Hampden, with the SPFL giving their approval to the temporary move.

Following the Motherwell match, Rangers will host Dinamo Kyiv at the national stadium on Tuesday, with the Champions League third qualifying round tie delicately balanced after a 1-1 draw in Poland earlier this week.

Should Philippe Clement’s side reach the next stage, the team will play against Red Bull Salzburg or FC Twente at Hampden in the play-off round on August 20/21.

The team will also be at Hampden for the visit of Ross County in the Premiership on August 24, with Rangers chairman John Bennett hopeful that the side could return to Ibrox at the end of September, with the only home league match that month against Hibs on September 28. However, he has warned that the stay at Hampden may need to be extended.

“We can aspire – aspire, for that (Ibrox return) to be at the end of September but it’s an aspiration,” Bennett said recently. “I am sorry I have to caveat this and I think I’ve given the reasons I have to caveat it; the shipping situation. So yes I can have an aspiration – get our people back into our home for the final game of September. But yes, it could slip beyond that.”

In the meantime, the club will be housed at Hampden, with season ticket holders having been allocated seats for the temporary stay.