Rangers were founded in 1872, and began competitive play in 1874. The team then participated in theScottish Cup during every season for the rest of the decade. Though they did not win the Scottish cup during the 1870s, Rangers reached the final round twice.
| 1874–75 season | ||
|---|---|---|
| President | William McBeath | |
| Ground | Flesher's Haugh | |
| Scottish Cup | Second Round | |
| Top goalscorer | League: All:Moses McNeil, David Gibb (1) | |
1875–76 → | ||
The1874–75 season was the first season of competitive football by Rangers.
Rangers entered the Scottish Cup for the first time and reached the second round where they lost toDumbarton after a replay.
Between 1873 and 1879, Rangers played in their now traditional royal blue shirts and white shorts.[1]
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 October 1874 | First round | Oxford | A | 2–0[2] | M. McNeil, Gibb | |
| 28 November 1874 | Second round | Dumbarton | H | 0–0[3] | ||
| 12 December 1874 | Second round | Dumbarton | A | 0–1[4] |
| 1875–76 season | ||
|---|---|---|
| Match Secretary | John Campbell | |
| Ground | Burnbank Park | |
| Scottish Cup | Second Round | |
| Top goalscorer | League: All:John Campbell (3) | |
The1875–76 season was the second season of competitive football by Rangers.
Rangers entered the Scottish Cup for the second time. They equalled their previous best in the competition by reaching the second round where they lost to3rd Lanark RV after a replay.
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 October 1875 | First round | 1st Lanark RV | H | 7–0[5] | J. Campbell (3),Watson (2),P. Campbell, Phillips | |
| 30 October 1875 | Second round | 3rd Lanark RV | A | 1–0[A] | P. Campbell | |
| 13 November 1875 | Second round replay | 3rd Lanark RV | H | 1–2[6] | M. McNeil | 2,000 |
| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 September 1875 | Vale of Leven | H | 1–1[8] | ||
| 18 March 1876 | Clydesdale | H | 0–0[8] |
| 1876–77 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| President | James McBlane Watt | ||
| Match Secretary | Peter McNeil | ||
| Ground | Kinning Park | ||
| Scottish Cup | Runners-up | ||
The1876–77 season was the third season of competitive football by Rangers.
Rangers entered the Scottish Cup for the third time. Wins overQueen's Park Juniors andTowerhill saw Rangers go one stage further than the previous two seasons as they reached the third round where they were given a bye to the fourth round. They then defeatedMauchline andLennox to reach the semi-finals for the first time. With only three teams in the semi-finals, Rangers were the lucky ones to receive a bye straight to the final where they would playVale of Leven. After two 1–1 draws atHamilton Crescent,Vale finally overcame their opponents 3–2 at the originalHampden Park thanks to an 88th-minute winner fromRobert Paton.
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 September 1876 | First round | Queen's Park Juniors | H | 4–1[9] | J. Campbell | |
| 21 October 1876 | Second round | Towerhill | H | 8–0[10] | Dunlop (2),Watson (2), Marshall (2),P. Campbell (2) | |
| November 1876 | Third round | Bye | ||||
| 9 December 1876 | Fourth round | Mauchline | H | 3–0[11] | Watson, Marshall,P. Campbell | |
| 30 December 1876 | Quarter-final | Lennox | H | 3–0[12] | Dunlop, Marshall,P. Campbell | |
| January 1877 | Semi-final | Bye | ||||
| 17 March 1877 | Final | Vale of Leven | N | 1–1[13][14] | McDougall 65' (o.g.) | 8,000 |
| 7 April 1877 | Final replay | Vale of Leven | N | 1–1[15][14] | Dunlop 20' | 15,000 |
| 13 April 1877 | Final second replay | Vale of Leven | N | 2–3[16][17] | W. McNeil,P. Campbell | 12,000 |
| 1877–78 season | ||
|---|---|---|
| Match Secretary | Peter McNeil | |
| Ground | Kinning Park | |
| Scottish Cup | Fourth Round | |
The1877–78 season was the fourth season of competitive football by Rangers.
Rangers entered the Scottish Cup for the fourth time. In the first round, they set a new club record for the biggest win after defeatingPossilpark 13–0. Wins overAlexandra Athletic andUddingston saw Rangers through to the fourth round where they lost to defending champions Vale of Leven after a replay.
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 October 1877 | First round | Possilpark | H | 13–0[18] | *Ricketts,Hill (2), J. Campbell (2), Marshall (2),Watson (2),M. McNeil,P. Campbell (3) | |
| 27 October 1877 | Second round | Alexandra Athletic | H | 8–0[19] | Dunlop, J. Campbell,M. McNeil (3),P. Campbell (3) | |
| 10 November 1877 | Third round | Uddingston | H | 13–0[20] | Hill, J. Campbell, Marshall (4),Watson (4),McNeil (2),P. Campbell |
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 December 1877 | R4 | Vale of Leven | H | 0–0 | 4,000 | |
| 15 December 1877 | R4 R | Vale of Leven | A | 0–4 | 4,000 |
| 1878–79 season | ||
|---|---|---|
| Match Secretary | Peter McNeil | |
| Ground | Kinning Park | |
| Scottish Cup | Runners-up | |
The1878–79 season was the fifth season of competitive football by theRangers F.C.
Rangers played a total of 7 competitive matches during the 1878–79 season.
All results are written with Rangers' score first.
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 September 1878 | R1 | Shaftesbury | H | 3-0 | ||
| 19 October 1878 | R2 | Whitefield | A | 6–1 | ||
| 9 November 1878 | R3 | Parkgrove | H | 8–2 | 3,000 | |
| 30 November 1878 | R4 | Alexandria Athletic | H | 3-0 | ||
| 8 March 1879 | R5 | Partick | H | 4-0 | ||
| 22 March 1879 | QF | Queen's Park | A | 1-0 | ||
| 29 March 1879 | SF | Bye | ||||
| 19 April 1879 | F | Vale of Leven | N | 1–1[21] | 28,000 |
| 1879–80 season | ||
|---|---|---|
| Match Secretary | Peter McNeil | |
| Ground | Kinning Park | |
| Scottish Cup | First Round | |
The1879–80 season was the sixth season of competitive football by Rangers.
Rangers played a total of 2 competitive matches during the 1879–80 season.
All results are written with Rangers' score first.
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 September 1879 | R1 | Queen's Park | H | 0–0 | 7,000 | |
| 27 September 1879 | R1 R | Queen's Park | A | 1–5 | 5,000 |
