Rangers have signed Lawrence Shankland from Hearts, bringing the 30-year-old striker to Ibrox on an initial two-year deal that runs until the summer of 2028 and includes an option for a further 12 months.
The move is for an undisclosed fee and will be confirmed on June 15, when the transfer window opens and Shankland’s exit from Tynecastle Park is officially completed. Rangers are thought to have taken advantage of a clause in the deal he signed last year, after months of links between the clubs.
Shankland will travel to the USA for the World Cup before joining Rangers later in the summer. He leaves Hearts after another productive season, scoring 20 goals in all competitions, including 16 in the Scottish Premiership. He had stayed at Tynecastle Park last summer despite offers from abroad, while Rangers did not make an approach at that point.
The move closes a long-running chase for a player who has made a habit of scoring wherever he goes. Shankland grew up a Rangers fan and said the transfer fulfilled a childhood dream. He started his career at Queen’s Park alongside Andy Robertson, moved to Aberdeen in 2013 and had loan spells at Dunfermline, St Mirren and Morton before joining Ayr United as a free agent in 2017. He scored 29 goals across all competitions in his first season there and 34 in the next campaign, then moved to Dundee United and fired them back into the top flight with 28 goals in his first season. After a spell with Belgian club Beerschot, he returned to Scotland on a three-year deal with Hearts and scored 24 league goals across his first two seasons.
In a statement, Shankland said Rangers had always been his boyhood club and that he had been eager to get the move done. He said the club wanted to win silverware more regularly and that he wanted to play a major part in that push. Danny Röhl said Rangers valued Shankland’s proven quality, leadership and work ethic, adding that his goalscoring record in Scotland spoke for itself. Röhl also said the forward understood the demands that come with playing for Rangers and that his character and experience would be a huge asset for the group.
For Hearts, the sale removes their captain and one of the most reliable finishers in Scottish football just weeks after they missed out on a historic league title on the final day of the season. For Rangers, it is a clear statement of intent from a club looking to sharpen its attack and turn promise into trophies. Shankland arrives with a track record that suggests he will be expected to deliver from the start.
