Rangers Boycott: Ibrox Noise finds out how many Rangers fans will take part | OneFootball

With today’s fan protest very much the prime topic at Rangers, Ibrox Noise wanted to know just how many supporters were in favour of the Rangers boycott.

Called by Union Bears, a protest is planned for Ibrox this afternoon as the hosts welcome Hibs to Govan, and Ibrox Noise wanted to gauge feeling.

Poll

Was this something all fans want, or will there actually be a strong attendance after all? That was the key question Ibrox Noise posed.

While our poll is early in its growth, a sizeable 26% of votes do not favour this boycott and will nevertheless attend the match while the rest say they will not.

Admittedly it in’t a huge poll at the time of writing and may not be completely reflective of all fan thinking. But that many fans, at least a quarter, are against the boycott is interesting.

That said, they might not be so against the protest itself – few to no fans endorse this manager or this regime and attendance at this match is not necessarily a protest at a boycott either.

Follow follow

But nevertheless, there are a lot of Rangers fans who just want to follow follow their team and be done with it beyond that.

We can’t begrudge the quiet life.

And we’d imagine aside the protest Ibrox won’t exactly be overly noisy today.

Well, aside the obligatory booing.

Of course, the real story is not just about who turns up but how visible the dissent becomes.

The banners that have already been removed show the club is rattled, and that speaks volumes. Reports in the Morning Star highlight that demand for change is focused directly at Russell Martin and the hierarchy.

Optics

The optics matter as much as the numbers because the television cameras will pick up even small clusters of protest, and the Scotsman has already confirmed the timing and target of the demonstrations.

Supporters inside the ground may still make their point even if they did not join the boycott.

Chants, boos, silence, or even staged walkouts have all been used before. Each choice makes a statement about how they view the current direction under Russell Martin and the American owners, and Sky Sports recently analysed the manager’s response to the unrest.

And we know this issue will not end here. One protest at Ibrox is only the beginning of fan unrest if results continue to slide. The board have already shown they fear the optics, but what they cannot silence is the growing discontent of the Rangers boycott.

Today’s action will be judged not just by attendance but by how strongly it echoes beyond the stands.