Rangers F.C. is a football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, that competes in the Scottish Professional Football League. Since its founding in 1872, the club has had more than ten different presidents (prior to incorporation) and twenty-seven chairmen.
History The club has been privately owned by stakeholders, in the form of a limited liability company before becoming a publicly owned company trading on the PLUS and AIM stock exchanges respectively. The board of directors are appointed to oversee the corporate operations of the company that owns the club with the chairman being considered as the most senior and high-profile corporate figures. In Rangers history the chairman has generally been the prominent executive on the board, although this has begun to change with the appointment of CEOs which led to some chairmen being appointed in a non-executive capacity.
From December 2012 to March 2015, the directors of the company that owns Rangers F.C., The Rangers Football Club Limited (TRFCL), were appointed to what was then known as the "football board". This football board was separate and distinct from the Plc board of Rangers International Football Club Plc (RIFC), which is the holding company of TRFCL. During this period, references were made to both the football board and Plc board and the situation effectively saw the club with two chairmen, however, since the departure of Sandy Easdale in 2015, the "football board" terminology has ceased leaving the Plc chair as the definitive Chairman.
Between June and December 2012, before flotation on the AIM stock exchange and the subsequent formation of RIFC, the chairman of TRFCL was de jure the chairman of Rangers Football Club.
List of presidents Below is the presidential history of Rangers F.C., from 1874 until incorporation sixteen years later.
NameFromTo William McBeath1874 1875 Unknown18751876 James McBlane Watt18761877 Unknown18771881 Archibald Harkness1881 November 1882 George GoudieNovember 1882May 1883 Tom VallanceMay 18831889 Unknown18991890 James Watson18901891 Dugald Mackenzie18911896 John Robertson Gow18961898 James Henderson18981 June 1899
List of chairmen Below is the official chairmen history of Rangers F.C., from the incorporation of the club in 1899, until the present day.
t/a Rangers F.C. Ltd (1899) and Rangers F.C. Plc (2000) NameFromToTenure James Henderson1 June 189910 May 1912 Sir John Ure Primrose1912July 192311 years William CraigJuly 192320 November 1923 Joseph BuchananNovember 1923October 19329 years Duncan Graham1932January 19342 years James BowieJanuary 193412 June 194713 years W. Rodgers Simpson27 June 1947April 1949 John WilsonApril 194912 February 1963 John Lawrence12 February 196319 June 1973 Matt Taylor19 June 1973September, 19752 years Rae SimpsonSeptember, 197510 January 1984 John Paton 10 January 198411 November 1986 David Holmes11 November 19862 June 1989 David Murray2 June 19895 July 2002 John McClelland5 July 20021 September 2004 David Murray1 September 200424 August 2009 Alastair Johnston24 August 200924 May 2011 Craig Whyte24 May 201114 February 2012c/o Duff & Phelps14 February 201214 June 2012
t/a Rangers F.C. Ltd (2012) NameFromToTenure Malcolm Murray14 June 201218 December 2012n/a18 December 201213 December 2013 Sandy Easdale13 December 201311 March 2015
t/a Rangers International F.C. Plc (2012) NameFromToTenure Malcolm Murray7 December 201230 May 2013 Walter Smith30 May 20135 August 2013n/a5 August 20137 November 2013 David Somers7 November 20132 March 2015 Paul Murray6 March 201522 May 2015 Dave King22 May 2015 27 March 2020 Douglas Park27 March 20204 April 2023 John Bennett4 April 202314 September 2024 John Gilligan14 September 202416 December 2024 Fraser Thornton16 December 202430 May 2025 Andrew Cavenagh30 May 2025
List of honorary positions
NamePositionFromToTenure John Ure PrimroseHonorary President1888191224 years John Lawrence Honorary President19 June 197326 January 1977 David MurrayHonorary Chairman4 July 20021 September 2004 John GreigHonorary President23 May 2015
References