The Ibrox Disaster of 1971

The Ibrox Disaster of 1971

Ibrox is one of the most iconic stadiums in Europe. It is home to, now maligned, Scottish biggies Rangers F.C. Ibrox has had many moments of joy and quite a few moments of sorrow. It faced a calamity in 1902, when a stand collapsed and claimed lives of 25 supporters who came in to watch England vs Scotland game and also injured 517 others. This tragedy is a step below to the disaster of ’71.

On 2nd January 1971, the stage was set for the Old Firm rivalry. For those who might be wondering what Old Firm is, it is the term used for the great Glaswegian derby between Celtic and Rangers. The stadium was buzzing as usual, as the fans were ready for this New Year clash between the arch rivals.

The stadium was jam-packed with 80,000 supporters coming into watch the game. Celtic took a lead and was looking like the side who’ll walk away with all the three points. Thus, many Rangers’ fans were leaving the stadium. But Colin Stein scored a dramatic equalizer for the Rangers and the place went bananas. As thousands of spectators were leaving the ground by stairway 13, it appears that someone, possibly a child being carried on his father's shoulders, fell, causing a massive chain-reaction pile-up of people.

Such was the fear among the people in the neighborhood that Sir Alex Ferguson mentioned in his autobiography regarding this incident. In his autobiography, Alex Ferguson wrote that his brother, Martin, had attended the game against his parents' wishes and – since he returned home late – he was initially feared, by his family, to have been caught up in the disaster.

The official report says that 66 people were killed in a crush. This was the biggest stadium disaster in Britain until the Hillsborough tragedy. Post this disaster numerous stadium redevelopment plans were implemented by the club. Ibrox was awarded a five star rating by UEFA as it was converted into a fully seated stadium with a capacity of 50,000.