The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Rangers fans face big treks ahead of final
Rangers supporters from Tayside and Fife are among tens of thousands making elaborate trips to Seville for the Europa League final.
A mass migration to Spain is expected over the coming days for what is one of the biggest matches in the side’s history. But direct flights to Andalusia booked up rapidly, leaving many mapping out complex routes involving multiple flights.
One fan from Dundee will reach Seville after almost three days of travelling – including a bus journey, two flights and a 370-mile drive.
Derren Gordon, who is a member of the Monifieth Loyal Rangers Supporters’ Club, was set to leave Dundee at 8pm yesterday for Newcastle Airport before flying to Amsterdam this morning.
He will then fly to Alicante to meet friends and pick up a hire car before a five-and-a-half hour drive from there to Seville. The 19-year-old says the gruelling journey does not faze him.
He said: “I didn’t manage to book it until a few days after the semi-final win against RB Leipzig, so by that time everything had gone up (in price).
“It’ll take a while to get there, but I don’t mind – I’ll do anything for Rangers.”
He added: “We don’t have tickets for the game, but we do for the fan zone in Estadio La Cartuja (a 60,000-seater stadium where Celtic lost to Porto in the Uefa Cup final in 2003).
“It’ll be a great experience.”
The game tomorrow is Rangers’ first European final since losing 2-0 to Zenit Saint Petersburg in Manchester in 2008.
It comes just 10 years on from the club’s financial crisis and demotion to Scotland’s third tier.
Derren added: “I wasn’t old enough for the Uefa Cup final in Manchester in 2008, so it’s great we’ve done it again already. I’m really happy for the kids who support Rangers who have watched the team play in the lower divisions. We’ve got a great chance to win it.”
Barrhead Travel has revealed that in the week leading up to the final, Seville is the number-one booked location.
But fans are not just travelling from Scotland, with many from all over the world making the journey.
Those from as far afield as Australia have travelled to Europe for the match, with some reportedly on the move for two days straight. Some even tried to book a hot air balloon for the trip, while another said he has been forced to fly back via Morocco due to the lack of options.
Only around 10,000 Rangers fans have been allocated tickets to the match at the 43,000-seater Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán Stadium, but some are predicting 80,000 or more Light Blues fans could descend on the city.
The game kicks off tomorrow at 8pm BST and is being broadcast for free from 6.30pm by rights holders BT Sport.