Agony for Rangers as they are beaten in a penalty shootout in Europa League final

Midfielder Joe Aribo who has been converted to an attacker due to injuries provided the thousands of ecstatic fans in the stadium with huge hope with a goal in the 57th minute that caused bedlam in the stands.

But an equaliser 21 minutes later from Colombian international forward Rafael Borré jolted the Ibrox side's lofty ambitions in winning Scottish football's fifth ever UEFA competition.

But after a penalty shootout miss from key Rangers signing Aaron Ramsey, it was Borré that returned to haunt Rangers, as he delivered the final conversion, which saw the German side victorious.

It was one of the biggest matches in the club's history, and what was their fifth European final. They lost the 1961 European Cup Winners' Cup final to Fiorentina and the '67 final to Bayern Munich before their triumph over Dinamo Moscow in 1972 in the same tournament.

Rangers midfielder John Lundstram said: "It is a hard one to take to lose on penalties. I am severely disappointed. We've let everyone down.

"We can all be super-proud to get this far."

Rangers legend Ally McCoist added: "The boys will be heartbroken. I feel for them. I am gutted for them. It wasn't to be. They did not let anyone down at all. They can be extremely proud of the journey that they have taken us on."

The tension of the occasion hit former Rangers defender Richard Foster during the match who said: "I'm sat down in the gantry having a rest, so I don't know how the players are feeling! The heat, the nerves, the spectacle, what's at stake, it's a combination of everything..."

Spain's fourth-largest city was a sea of blue as Rangers fans outnumbered rival German supporters by two to one as they celebrated for many the "biggest game of our lives".

And it was a similar story in the 40,000 capacity Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán where some compared the noise to that of a home game, as a carpet of blue jerseys appeared to occupy 65% of the stadium. That is despite the fact that just 9000 tickets were allocated for Rangers fans.

In the city there was beach ball football, bagpipes and a lot of beer as some 100,000 nervously optimistic and excited Rangers fans swamped the bars and streets of the fourth-largest city in Spain to be joined by 50,000 Frankfurt fans.

More than 400 flights arrived in the city on Tuesday, with a similar number - including 16 charter flights from Glasgow Airport - taking off on Wednesday for what is one of the biggest games in the club's history.

The Glasgow club are the first Scottish team to reach the final of a major European competition since Walter Smith's Rangers side lost 2-0 in the UEFA Cup showpiece in 2008.

The Europa League final is a massive high over a decade after Rangers entered administration, resulting in the club dropping down to the bottom division in Scottish football.

Another stadium was opened in the city to allow people without tickets to watch the game on big screens.

The 57,000-capacity Estadio La Cartuja in the north of the city is where bitter Old Firm rivals Celtic lost the 2003 Uefa Cup final to Porto.

Fans talked of a "carnival atmosphere" with the journey from the days of the club's financial meltdown under Craig Whyte making the Wednesday's events "that bit more special".

Ally McCoist said the atmosphere generated by the Rangers fans was "absolutely remarkable".

"It gives you the goosebumps, of that there is no doubt. I would hazard a guess that Rangers have edged the support, maybe 65%, maybe 70%," he said. Seville Police said they were prepared for large numbers of supporters in the city for the match, with about 5,000 officers on duty.

Spanish national police chief Juan Carlos Castro said the effect of alcohol on behaviour is concerning.

Temperatures are set to reach 35 degrees and police admitted being worried about controlling the crowds from both sets of fans.

Ahead of the trip a number of former Rangers players, including record goalscorer Ally McCoist and midfield legend Graeme Souness, warned fans to behave themselves.

And in the build up there were pockets of ugliness.

Five fans were arrested for disorder on Tuesday evening, with one Rangers fan treated for a head injury - but police say there were no serious injuries.

Video footage posted online showed Eintracht ultras throwing fireworks at Rangers fan following an earlier altercation outside a nearby cathedral.

There were further isolated ugly scenes just ahead of the match as footage emerged of football fans fighting and throwing chairs outside a bar on Seville's Avenue de Menéndez Pelayo.

Just hours before the 8pm kick off, there were fans fist-fighting at close quarters as the Frankfurt supporters marched along the main route to the stadium.

Tables and fencing is then hurled between the groups and local people begin to shout and the fighting stopped.

Former Rangers captain John Greig, who led the team to victory in the European Cup Winners' Cup Final in Barcelona in 1972, wrote an open letter to fans ahead of the final urging them to be "ambassadors" and show the "absolute best" of the club.

Among the thousands in Seville, were the grandsons of club legend Walter Smith.

Zac Smith, 11, his 10-year-old brother Tom and their twin 14-year-old cousins Jack and Adam are lucky enough to have tickets to the game.

Walter Smith died last year but the boys said their grandfather would have been "having a blast" among the Rangers fans.

Zac said: "Obviously my papa made it to the final and didn't win it - we're trying to make up for that today. If it goes to penalties I am going out the stadium.

"It has been amazing. I've never experienced this with Rangers - it's mind blowing."

Tom added: "It is incredible how we actually got here in the first place."

Injured star striker Alfredos Morelos was not going to miss out and was spotted mingling with fans as the hours ticked down to the game The Colombian hasn't featured for Rangers since late March after undergoing surgery on a thigh injury.

And he wasn't the only Ibrox hero in attendance as former stars Nikica Jelavic and Sasa Papac joined in the party.