CLUB 1872 have been given the chance to invest up to £2.5million into Rangers and boost their Ibrox stake as part of a share issue later this year.

The supporter organisation have agreed a deal with former chairman Dave King that will see them purchase his major shareholding in RIFC plc over the next three years.

But discussions with the Ibrox board around current financial requirements means funds from fans will now go straight into Rangers in the coming months.

Club 1872 currently have a 4.75 per cent stake in RIFC plc and the agreement with King is designed to take them above the 25 per cent plus one share threshold that will effectively give fans a veto over major boardroom decisions and safeguard Rangers for generations to come.

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King has agreed to delay part of the £13million deal to allow money to be invested into Rangers as the Light Blues board continue to deal with the economic impact of the Coronavirus pandemic and look to move towards a period of self sustainability in the coming years.

A Club 1872 statement read: "Club 1872 is now in a position to update members and the wider support on our plan to provide funding to RIFC in the first half of 2021. Following discussions with the RIFC Board we can now confirm that a share issue will take place and that Club 1872 has been formally invited to participate at a pro rata level significantly higher than our current shareholding.

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"Our aim, which has been agreed by the RIFC Board, is to provide up to £2.5m pounds to RIFC in return for shares at a price of 20p per share. If we are able to raise these funds, this will significantly raise our percentage shareholding in Rangers. It will also provide a much needed cash injection to Rangers following the impact of Covid on club revenues over the past season.

"We have until June 2021 to raise these funds and RIFC have asked us to provide a first tranche to the club in March. It will only be possible for us to provide this level of funding to Rangers if thousands of additional supporters now join Club 1872 over the coming days, weeks and months.

"We know that our loyal supporters have already dug deep financially this season through season ticket payments, merchandise and other initiatives. We also appreciate the difficult economic circumstances for many people during this pandemic.

"However, this is a huge opportunity not just to provide important funds to the club but also to ensure that supporters can protect Rangers forever from a repeat of the events of 2012. The only way to do that is to ensure that the supporters hold a significant shareholding in the club.

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"Dave King has agreed to postpone his share purchase agreement with us until after these funds have been provided to RIFC. This agreement will resume after June 2021 but we thank him again for his flexibility and for putting Rangers Football Club first, as always.

"Club 1872 is presenting this opportunity to the support in the hope that tens of thousands of supporters will now answer the call. Club 1872 is the only way for supporters to participate in this share issue.

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"We are asking supporters to join Club 1872, through our legacy initiative or through one of our standard donation options, with the clarity that all of the share funds we raise between now and June 2021 will go direct to Rangers.

"This is the single best way for supporters to contribute to the future success of Rangers and the funds are required by the club."