King steps down as Park moves in

Douglas Park has been placed in interim charge of the Rangers board after Dave King confirmed he has stepped down as chairman.

The Johannesburgbased King announced at the club’s AGM in November he would be giving up the role to focus on his business interests back in South Africa.

And he has now left it to motor group tycoon Park to steer Rangers through the coronavirus crisis after announcing a task team had been set up at Ibrox to deal with the fallout of the pandemic.

In a statement, King said: “I thank all supporters, club management and the board for the magnificent support I received while guiding the club post regime change to put that specific crisis behind the club.

“It is a great pity that we now find ourselves part of this global crisis. The task team will continue to navigate the club through this difficult time while reporting to the board.

“The deputy chairman Douglas Park will chair the board during the interim period and a new permanent chairman will be elected by the board at the next board meeting and will be announced immediately thereafter.”

King admits he had almost had a change of heart after the scale of virus threat became clear, but decided he could not continue leading the club after being forced into selfisolation on his return to South Africa.

“I considered the possibility of extending my time as chairman until the coronavirus crisis is over but that is not practically possible,” he added.

“After I returned to South Africa last week from the board meeting, I was mandated by the South African authorities to go into self-isolation for 14 days – which I am presently undergoing.”