Ibrox Stadium is located in the district bearing the same name of Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the largest and oldest stadiums to be still in use in the game of football in the United Kingdom.
Ibrox Stadium Capacity
It has an all seated capacity of 50,817 people and serves as the home ground of the Scottish side - Rangers F.C.
History
The Rangers first moved to the Ibrox area in 1877, playing on a site immediately east of the current stadium. The stadium formally opened in 1899 with the name - Ibrox Park.
It was built along the design patterns of most Scottish stadiums at that point of time. The Rangers played their first match in Ibrox Park on December 30, 1899. The home side won 3-1 comfortably against the Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Major Matches
Floodlights were used for the first time in this stadium in 1953, when the Rangers played none other than the Gunners (Arsenal) in a friendly match.
The stadium has constantly served as the home ground for the Scotland national football team, as they have used this as their home venue for 18 times.
In 1992, Scotland lost an important world cup qualifier against Portugal, failing to qualify for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. This was the first time that Scotland had failed to qualify since 1970.
However, Scotland won an important qualifier against Sweden for the 1998 World Cup. It is approved by UEFA to host major European finals. It has hosted three domestic cup finals between 1994-97.
Controversies
Historically, Ibrox has been one of the most unsafe stadiums in the world of football - with two major accidents happening in 1902 and 1971 respectively.
In a 1902 match against England, a section of the newly constructed wooden ceiling collapsed. There was major panic and as a result of both - the collapse and the stampede - 25 people were killed and 517 injured. The worst disaster yet happened on the infamous and dangerous Stairway 13 when 66 people died of asphyxiation due to a crush and stampede. This stairway was a place where accidents took place very often.
Recent Matches
The Rangers are presently placed 3rd on the Scottish Premier League standings after Celtic and Aberdeen, with half of the season over. They recently secured a major 3-0 win at home against Aberdeen itself, bridging the gap between the two teams.
All in all, the team has had an impressive home record by playing at the Ibrox stadium this season. It was also extensively used in the 2014 Commonwealth Games at Glasgow.
