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The Foundation has donated £25,000 to Bowel Cancer UK celebrating our season-long partnership which has helped to spread the word about the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer and the importance of taking part in bowel cancer screening to the Rangers family and beyond.

At half time at the weekend’s game against St Mirren, which Rangers won 5-2, the Foundation’s Chief Executive Connal Cochrane, Ridvan Yilmaz and Kieran Wright presented Bowel Cancer UK’s Chief Executive Genevieve Edwards with a cheque in front of a packed Ibrox.

Also present on the pitch was Rangers season ticket holder Iain Kerr, who has been affected by bowel cancer and has played a major role in supporting the season-long campaign to encourage people to be more aware of the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer.

The donation will fund a Senior Services Officer to help deliver information and support to people with bowel cancer living in Scotland. It will also help to run campaigns to raise awareness of symptoms, facilitate in-person support groups, support GPs and other health professionals to diagnose and treat people with bowel cancer earlier, and finally, to research the reasons people in Scotland find it hard to overcome barriers and access health services.

Bowel Cancer UK’s research shows that nearly 4 in 10 people (38%) in Scotland can’t name a single symptom of the disease – Scotland’s second biggest cancer killer – but thanks to partnerships like this one, awareness of the disease and its symptoms is improving. 

Connal Cochrane commented: “It has been great to be able to communicate important messages far and wide about the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer that will really save lives.”

“For example, with the help of the club we arranged for bowel cancer symptoms posters to be displayed in washrooms around the Stadium and were delighted when this initiative spread across Scottish football, with support from the SPFL Trust. Six other clubs joined the campaign and are also displaying posters in their washrooms, reaching even more football fans.”

“Thanks to the generosity of our incredible supporters this donation will enable Bowel Cancer UK to significantly boost its important work in Scotland.”

Genevieve Edwards, Chief Executive at Bowel Cancer UK, added: “I thoroughly enjoyed being at Ibrox to for the Rangers game against St Mirren – what a cracking result too! As expected it was an electric atmosphere, and collecting the cheque from the Rangers Charity Foundation was the cherry on the top.

“We are incredibly grateful to them for their generous donation and support for this season-long partnership.”

“Awareness of bowel cancer symptoms in Scotland has increased by nearly 10 per cent compared to this time last year, and we know some of this is due to the Foundation and the Club’s amazing family of players, fans and staff who have championed this lifesaving campaign.”

“Thank you so much to everyone who shared the symptoms and their experience of the disease – it really does save lives.”

Rangers fans have also come forward to share their experience of bowel cancer on a special Rangers Wall on Bowel Cancer UK’s website, urging others to be aware of the symptoms and take up their screening test when invited.

The match against St Mirren marked a celebration of the partnership, with a range of activities taking place to mark Bowel Cancer Awareness Month.

One of the matchday mascots was 10-year-old Katie Queen, who is the niece of Rangers fan Campbell Forsyth who has been involved in the Foundation’s awareness campaign with Bowel Cancer UK. The Foundation also facilitated a can collection for Bowel Cancer UK on the day and played video content on the Stadium screens, as well as a piece in the matchday programme.