Robert Sarver pulled the plug on his bid to buy Rangers yesterday after the Ibrox board rejected his £20 million takeover offer.

The US financier wanted to buy a controlling stake in the Glasgow outfit but saw his hopes spurned when the Rangers directors decided they could not get 75 per cent of shareholders to back him.

Now the 53-year-old has opted against making a further bid, paving the way for the Three Bears — wealthy fans Douglas Park, George Letham and George Taylor — to offer up a £6.5m emergency loan.

Sarver, who owns US basketball team the Phoenix Suns, said that the board’s “continued failure to provide a counter-offer or engage in any meaningful negotiations” was behind his decision to walk away.