Rangers to unveil statue of Walter Smith ahead of Scottish Cup final

Rangers are to unveil the statue of club legend Walter Smith ahead of the Scottish Cup final, the club has announced.

Smith, who died in 2021, is one of the most successful managers in the club’s history, having won 21 major trophies and taken the club to the UEFA Cup final in 2008.

He also managed Everton and the Scotland national team during a long career, as well as spell in a coaching role under Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.

The bronze statue, which will be located at Ibrox Stadium on the corner between Edmiston House and the Copland Road stand, was commissioned in 2022.

It has been designed and sculpted by London-based artist Douglas Jennings, whose portfolio includes a statue of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in London and, in the football sphere, Jack Charlton and George Cohen.

It will be unveiled at Ibrox on Saturday, May 25 before Rangers face Celtic in the Scottish Cup final at Hampden.

Rangers chairman John Bennett said the work will commemorate “a great man” and mark his significance at Ibrox.

Bennett said: “It is a poignant moment in the history of this great football club to unveil a statue of our legendary former manager, Walter Smith.

“The outpouring of tributes which arrived from near and far following his passing two-and-a-half-years ago speaks to Walter’s stature as both a human being and custodian of our historic football club, and there is no Ranger more deserving in the modern era of being honoured in bronze.

“I would like to place on record our thanks as a club to the artist and sculptor, Douglas Jennings, as well as internal and external stakeholders who have helped facilitate the process since the commissioning of the statue in October 2022.

“I’m sure the day of the unveiling will be one full of emotion for Walter’s wife, Ethel, his two sons, Neil and Steven, and the rest of the family.

“The work consolidates the significance of the great man and the place he occupies in the storied history of Rangers Football Club.”