The owners spoke early doors about the women’s team and how Rangers have barely scratched the surface. I liked hearing that, because it’s true. But good intentions only get you so far when the wider Scottish set-up still feels like it’s stuck in first gear.
The SFA bottleneck is real
The women’s game in Scotland is growing, you can see that with the standard improving and more young players coming through. The problem is how slowly it’s being supported at the top end. The SFA’s level of investment and urgency just isn’t matching the talk, and it leaves clubs trying to build with one hand tied behind their back.
For me, the biggest frustration is the gap in the pathway. Full-time professional deals are still limited, which matters because it’s exactly at that age where talented girls either get the chance to stay in the game properly or end up drifting away. There’s a regional U18s league, but if you’re in the elite pathway it stopping at U17s is a massive hole. An U20s league feels like the obvious next rung, it’s been spoken about for years, and yet nothing moves.
Rangers can push on, but the league has to come with us
Here’s the awkward bit: Rangers could genuinely improve things quickly if the club put the right resource behind it. Our owners will know from the USA how well women’s football can be run when the structure is there and the product is taken seriously.
But if the rest of the league can’t match the pace, and the governing body doesn’t lift the floor, it becomes a tougher sell to bring top talent here. You can develop your own players, absolutely, and Rangers already do that, but what happens when your very best prospects get a clearer pathway and stronger league down south? You’re constantly rebuilding, constantly starting again.
The crowds are the change we can control
The part Rangers supporters can directly affect is support levels. If even a small fraction of the match-going fanbase at Ibrox made a habit of turning up for the women’s team, it changes the dial straight away. More tickets sold, more visibility, better atmosphere, a stronger argument for investment. It’s not complicated, but it does take a shift in behaviour.
We’re already well behind the WSL, and nobody’s pretending that gap disappears overnight. Still, if Rangers want to lead the way in Scotland, we can’t wait on others doing the right thing first. I’ll be at Petershill for the must-win tomorrow, and hopefully plenty more will be thinking the same.
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