RANGERS supporters group, Club 1872, have issued a statement regarding "major ticketing issues" after fans were left standing outside the stadium during last night's match against Malmo.
Fans were left fuming and venting on social media after a ticketing issue meant that fans were left queuing around the stadium well after the match's kick-off time.
Club 1872 say that they have been made aware of a "major ticketing issue" that affected a "significant number of supporters trying to gain entry to the Champions League qualifier against Malmo last night."
The group say that the incident, which saw some fans left outside the stadium well into the second half of the game, is not an isolated one and that the issue has been raised with Rangers over the past two years.
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First pic is when the game kicked off second is at half time pic.twitter.com/DY73kZejPy
— fred (@freddiereeves20) August 11, 2021
Their statement reads: "We have raised major issues with the functionality and complexity of the ticketing system, the club’s failure to communicate important ticketing information directly to season ticket holders and the confusing way in which the various club digital platforms interact.
Went to my first Rangers game in 18 years last night. Card wouldn’t scan at the turnstile so was told I had to go to the ticket office to sort it out. Stood in a queue for 1 hour 45 mins and got in for the last 20 minutes. #AllTheBest pic.twitter.com/MGihnc0Otf
— Adam Simpson (@bobocrfc) August 11, 2021
"This is causing a clear barrier to older supporters attending games and affects supporters of all ages in their interactions with the club.
After attempting to go through gates at 7:10pm and being told by go round to the Ticket office by the Steward. Stood in the queue for TWO HOURS with ZERO COMMUNICATION from Rangers on the issue. Tensions in the queue were unsurprisingly high given the anticipation for this game.
— Lenzie True Blues (@lenzietrueblues) August 11, 2021
"We have repeatedly asked the club not to assume that posts on social media are the same as direct email communication but the club continues to use social media as the only means of communicating many pieces of essential information to supporters."
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Ticket Office - Shambles.
— Andy McKellar (@AMcKellar89) August 11, 2021
Stood in a queue for 1 hr 50 mins only to be told that my card hadn’t been activated.
This despite receiving an email with my Rangers No, seat No & unequivocal confirmation that
“Your Smartcard will be activated for your own seat for this game”
Despite Club 1872 claiming that they have raised the issue with Rangers, they say that the club "has not engaged properly" regarding the ticketing system concerns.
They continued: "Fan engagement does not only cover marketing and the sale of a myriad of new products to supporters, it also means meaningful engagement with representative bodies on matters of concern to the support.
"This has been lacking for some time.
"We would ask Managing Director, Stewart Robertson to communicate with supporters clearly, and as a matter of urgency, and explain why so many of them were locked out of Ibrox last night. We would also like to hear, in detail, what the club is doing to improve its customer service, which has been extremely poor for some time and appears to be getting worse rather than better.
"He has personally made various statements over the past couple of years on improvements to customer service and communication, neither of which have been improved to any suitable standard."
Alongside the issues affecting fans outside the stadium at last night's match, Club 1872 also say that Rangers were contacted prior to the match to help Erskine veterans with season tickets gifted by the group gain entry to the stadium.
They said: "As well as the issues faced by hundreds, if not thousands, of season ticket holders, Club 1872 spent two days trying to contact the ticket office and Rangers SLO prior to last night’s game to assist the Erskine veterans we supply season tickets to in gaining entry to the game. We heard nothing back and they were unable to attend.
"Rangers supporters have shown incredible loyalty and backed the club to the hilt both financially and vocally. It is time that loyalty was repaid with proper engagement, accountability and communication by Rangers’ executive team."
Rangers have been contacted for comment on the situation.
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