Manchester braced for invasion of Rangers fans
Manchester city centre is braced for the arrival today of thousands of ticketless Glasgow Rangers fans as their club faces Manchester United at Old Trafford tonight.
Their arrival has rekindled memories of 2008 when more than 100,000 Rangers fans travelled to the city as it hosted the Uefa Cup final against Zenit St Petersburg.
There were riots in Piccadilly Gardens afterwards, and the city was left to clear up the damage after a day of drinking in the city centre. The riots led to the arrest of 42 people, with 11 jailed.
Transport for Greater Manchester has encouraged commuters to plan ahead if they are travelling between 5pm and 7.30pm on Thursday evening.
The Europa League fixture means the city centre and area around the ground are expected to be exceptionally busy ahead of the match.
Several ticketed events are also taking place for Rangers fans both in the city centre and further afield.
Gers fans have been given an allocation of just over 3,500 for the match, but with so many more are expected to make the trip down from Scotland an event dubbed ‘Rangers Takeover’ has been set up to house two thousand ticketless fans at Bowlers in Trafford Park. Ex-Rangers player Marvin Andrews is attending as a special guest in a gathering dubbed as family friendly.
It is clear to see steps are being taken to ensure the scenes of 2008 are never repeated.
TFGM have issued the usual guidance for matchdays, and traffic on the roads will be busier than usual, and the Altrincham, Eccles and Trafford Park lines will also be very busy as fans make their way to the Old Trafford, Exchange Quay and Wharfside stops.
Danny Vaughan, Chief Network Officer at TfGM, said: “This is a huge game with a sell-out capacity crowd and thousands of fans expected to travel down from Glasgow for the occasion.
“If you’re making a journey on Thursday evening, please consider when and how you travel and, where possible, avoid the busiest times (5pm-7.30pm) and areas around Old Trafford.
“For those who do have to travel between these times, our state-of-the-art control room will be monitoring services and traffic flows and responding to any developing situation. We will also have dedicated staff out on the network helping people to get around the city.”
Rangers have thanked Manchester United, Greater Manchester Police, and Manchester City Council for their supportive and welcoming approach to the fixture and reminded fans to behave.
“Supporters should note that Greater Manchester Police will be equipped with body cameras. These are deployed for general use and not specifically for this match. Additionally, pyrotechnic detection dogs will be in operation.
“The use of pyrotechnics is illegal within football stadia, and any supporter found to be in possession of a pyrotechnic device at any match will be arrested. The club will be heavily sanctioned for any use of pyrotechnics within a stadium.
“Rangers is rightly proud of our multicultural men’s first-team squad and diverse support. Our Everyone Anyone campaign sends a clear message of inclusion and togetherness and a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of discrimination on and off the pitch.
“Rangers are a modern football club, with our support recognised across Europe for the positive way in which they back their team. Songs and chants of a discriminatory nature have absolutely no place in 2025.”
