Rangers could fly 'home-made league flag' as cinch sponsorship row with SPFL rumbles on

Rangers could end up flying a home-made league flag at next month’s Ibrox title party as the club’s sponsorship row with the SPFL rumbles on.

A general view of Ibrox

Chairman Douglas Park went to the Court of Session and sucessfully blocked the Scottish FA’s attempt to step in as arbitrators, after the SPFL had referred the dispute.

Rangers’ main issue with the SPFL’s £8 million deal with online used car retailer cinch is that the firm is in direct competition with Park’s of Hamilton, owned by the Ibrox chairman, and as per the league’s own rule 17, the Gers can opt not to comply with the rule if doing so would “result in [the] club being in breach of a contractural obligation entered into prior to the commercial contract concerned”.

According to the Daily Record, Rangers will be sent the flag ahead of their home game against Motherwell on September 18 – when a capacity crowd will return to Ibrox for the first time since March 2020 – but it will carry cinch branding, and the club could refuse to fly it as the spat continues.

Rangers have steadfastly refused to promote cinch since the deal was struck, omitting the official sleeve patch from player jerseys and not carrying the logo on any media boards or advertising hoardings.

If the club chooses to maintain their approach, which seems likely, then they could hoist their own, cinch-less flag for the ceremony.

The SPFL hasn’t had a great time with flags in recent weeks, delivering Hearts’ Championship-winning flag to League One winners Partick Thistle, and omitting an apostrophe from Queen’s Park on the Spiders’ third-tier banner.

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