THE long-running stand-off between Rangers and Sports Direct over their controversial merchandising agreement is costing the Ibrox club more than just millions of pounds in lost revenue.

That was the warning from a leading football finance expert yesterday in the wake of a further round of hostilities between the two factions in their ongoing dispute.

The bitter spat between the Ladbrokes Premiership club and the controversial high street retail giants has flared up again in the past week.

Rangers were ordered to pay legal costs incurred by Mike Ashley, the billionaire businessman who founded Sports Direct, in the Court of Session in Edinburgh last week.

A judge ruled that a hearing into the deal, which handed Sports Direct the naming rights to Ibrox stadium back in 2012, had been unnecessary.

Then at the weekend it was claimed that Ashley, whose associates Derek Llambias and Barry Leach were ousted from the Rangers board two years ago, was preparing a fresh £30 million takeover bid.

The report failed to take into account that the SFA have previously prohibited the Newcastle United owner from owning more than 10 per cent of Rangers.

But there is no love lost between the two factions and it was the latest story to unsettle a club which is trying to rebuild after years of corporate vandalism.

Former chief executive Llambias gave an interview to Sky Sports last month in which he questioned where the £30 million investment from chairman and major shareholder Dave King was.

He said: “When we were voted off I asked: ‘Where is the money? Where is the cash?’

“There was no money, there was no nomad, there’s no listing and we’re two years on and it’s exactly the same. Where is the money?

“To be honest with you, the club has got great history, wonderful traditions and they just need somebody with a lot of money behind them who is going to produce the goods.”

Supporters of the Ladbrokes Championship winners are refusing to buy replica strips and official club merchandise in protest at the punitive terms of the deal with Sports Direct.

The Glasgow club announced in May last year that it was ripping up a deal which is estimated to earn them just 4p in every pound that is spent in its official stores or online.

Rangers are still operating at a significant annual loss - which is being offset by wealthy benefactors including King, directors Douglas Park and George Taylor and supporter George Letham – as a result of the impasse.

However, Tim Bridge, a senior partner at the Sports Business Group at Deloitte and the co-author of their renowned Football Money League, believes the acrimonious and protracted dispute will be having far wider ramifications for the Ibrox club in the long-term.

“Merchandising is important for two reasons, not only the revenue that it brings in,” said Bridge. “Depending on how your merchandising contract works, clubs may make a significant amount from merchandising.

“The reality is it won’t be the most significant part of a club’s overall revenue. But it will be millions certainly for a club like Rangers. I am sure merchandising must be more important to Rangers due to the size of the broadcasting deal in Scotland.

“I can’t talk about the ins and outs of the Rangers deal, but what I can say is the benefits that merchandising can provide - the profile, the brand affiliation, keeping the fans associated with the club - is the vital role of merchandise. Unfortunately, it sounds like they’re missing out on that.”