THERE WAS NO VIOLENCE FROM FANS, INTERUPTTING THE GAME IN PROTEST WITH FLARES ETC,
MANCHESTER, England — The storming of Old Trafford crystalized 16 years of disconnect between Manchester United fans and its distant ownership.
Provided by The Canadian Press
While choosing not to engage with the supporters who are the lifeblood of any club, the Glazer family can't have avoided seeing the levels of rage against them on Sunday. Not when it led to the unprecedented postponement of a Premier League game due to fan unrest, especially one of the biggest matches of the season between United and Liverpool.
Three months after celebrating success in the Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it was the Glazers' ill-fated bid to lead United into a European Super League that made their relationship with fans in England more toxic than ever before.
That led to co-owner Joel Glazer insisting he was “committed to rebuilding trust with our fans,” but there was no sign of that happening in the 10 days between the open letter and Sunday's protests.
THE PROTESTS
A rabble of more than 100 fans were able to stand on the field setting off flares after breaching the coronavirus-necessitated biosecure perimeter of the stadium. Outside, thousands more supporters spent two hours crammed onto the concourse demanding the Glazers sell the club.
While choosing not to engage with the supporters who are the lifeblood of any club, the Glazer family can't have avoided seeing the levels of rage against them on Sunday. Not when it led to the unprecedented postponement of a Premier League game due to fan unrest, especially one of the biggest matches of the season between United and Liverpool.
Three months after celebrating success in the Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it was the Glazers' ill-fated bid to lead United into a European Super League that made their relationship with fans in England more toxic than ever before.
That led to co-owner Joel Glazer insisting he was “committed to rebuilding trust with our fans,” but there was no sign of that happening in the 10 days between the open letter and Sunday's protests.
THE PROTESTS
A rabble of more than 100 fans were able to stand on the field setting off flares after breaching the coronavirus-necessitated biosecure perimeter of the stadium. Outside, thousands more supporters spent two hours crammed onto the concourse demanding the Glazers sell the club.
AND WHO CAUSED THE VIOLENCE
Even though officers eventually managed to disperse the crowd just before the scheduled kickoff — with a combination of force using batons and a charge of police horses — the Premier League abandoned any hope of playing the game.
ORIGINS OF ANGER
The takeover of United in 2005 began with protests outside Old Trafford that featured burning effigies of the incoming ownership.
Fans were angered that a club without debt was loaded with liabilities that reached a high of 717 million pounds (then $1.1 billion) during the 2008-09 season. It's a debt that has had to be serviced and cost United, along with dividends to the Glazer family, more than 1 billion pounds in 16 years. It stood at 456 million pounds in December.
But protests against the Glazers that previously peaked with a visible display of dissent during a 2010 Champions League game faded amid the team's success. The club won the Premier League five times between 2007 and 2013 to become the record 20-time champions of England, usurping Liverpool. But since the retirement of Alex Ferguson in 2013 after more than 26 years in charge, the Premier League trophy has proved elusive.
“Your family’s ownership of the club has driven us into debt and decline,” the Manchester United Supporters' Trust wrote on Monday to Joel Glazer, “and we have felt ever more sidelined and ignored.”
It is only two weeks since Glazer tried to lead United into the breakaway European competition as vice chairman of the Super League. Fans were not consulted before the group of European clubs launched the closed European competition to replace UEFA's open access Champions League. The rebellion imploded inside 48 hours amid an outcry from government and fans.
Despite the lack of silverware, even as Manchester City emerged as England's dominant force fueled by Abu Dhabi investment, the protests at United have largely been dormant, simmering only in the background. While the Glazers wouldn't speak to MUST, the group toned down its public comments against them and seemed to focus instead on engagement with the administration in Manchester about the matchday experience to secure improvements.
FAN DEMANDS
The tone has shifted again with the letter to Joel Glazer requesting by Friday a response to a four-point list of demands to:
— Back a government review and “rebalance the current ownership structure in the favour of supporters";
— Appoint independent directors;
— Adopt a share scheme giving fans the same voting rights as the Glazer family with the New York Stock Exchange-listed business;
— Fully consult fans on any significant changes to the club.
COMMERCIAL SUCCESS
To end the current four-year trophy drought, United says there has been more than $200 million invested in players over the past two years — more than any other major European club. That has been funded by the growth of the commercial side of the business, with revenue almost quadrupling since the takeover to 627 million pounds before the pandemic. United has a self-sustaining business model with profit for the owners the priority, which enables them to draw dividends.
OTHER FOREIGN OWNERS
Across Manchester at City, it's been about an owner pumping money in since 2008. Funded by the wealth of Abu Dhabi, City is a means of a soft power being exerted by the United Arab Emirates, which has been criticized for its human rights and limited political freedoms, as much as it is about transforming men's and women's teams and the surrounding areas. While City fans did oppose the Super League there have been no protests demanding the sale of the club or the exit of club officials.
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has also invested more than a billion pounds in the west London club since 2003 to turn it into a European power. The aborted Super League plan produced protests in the streets around Stamford Bridge centred on trying to unseat chairman Bruce Buck.
Protests more akin to the vociferous ones at Old Trafford came at Arsenal in the week of the Super League announcement, with fans of the north London club also demanding the exit of their NFL franchise-owning chairman Stan Kroenke. Unlike the Glazers, Arsenal's ownership has engaged with fans through Stan Kroenke's son Josh, who subjected himself to a video call to take a battering of questions over the Super League debacle.
The Super League reignited concerns in Liverpool about John Henry's Fenway Sports Group ownership and its lack of investment demanded by fans since the club ended its 30-year English title drought. Protests in the streets in 2010 helped to oust the previous American owners — Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr. — as the club become burdened with debt it could not repay.
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More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Rob Harris, The Associated Press
Even though officers eventually managed to disperse the crowd just before the scheduled kickoff — with a combination of force using batons and a charge of police horses — the Premier League abandoned any hope of playing the game.
ORIGINS OF ANGER
The takeover of United in 2005 began with protests outside Old Trafford that featured burning effigies of the incoming ownership.
Fans were angered that a club without debt was loaded with liabilities that reached a high of 717 million pounds (then $1.1 billion) during the 2008-09 season. It's a debt that has had to be serviced and cost United, along with dividends to the Glazer family, more than 1 billion pounds in 16 years. It stood at 456 million pounds in December.
But protests against the Glazers that previously peaked with a visible display of dissent during a 2010 Champions League game faded amid the team's success. The club won the Premier League five times between 2007 and 2013 to become the record 20-time champions of England, usurping Liverpool. But since the retirement of Alex Ferguson in 2013 after more than 26 years in charge, the Premier League trophy has proved elusive.
“Your family’s ownership of the club has driven us into debt and decline,” the Manchester United Supporters' Trust wrote on Monday to Joel Glazer, “and we have felt ever more sidelined and ignored.”
It is only two weeks since Glazer tried to lead United into the breakaway European competition as vice chairman of the Super League. Fans were not consulted before the group of European clubs launched the closed European competition to replace UEFA's open access Champions League. The rebellion imploded inside 48 hours amid an outcry from government and fans.
Despite the lack of silverware, even as Manchester City emerged as England's dominant force fueled by Abu Dhabi investment, the protests at United have largely been dormant, simmering only in the background. While the Glazers wouldn't speak to MUST, the group toned down its public comments against them and seemed to focus instead on engagement with the administration in Manchester about the matchday experience to secure improvements.
FAN DEMANDS
The tone has shifted again with the letter to Joel Glazer requesting by Friday a response to a four-point list of demands to:
— Back a government review and “rebalance the current ownership structure in the favour of supporters";
— Appoint independent directors;
— Adopt a share scheme giving fans the same voting rights as the Glazer family with the New York Stock Exchange-listed business;
— Fully consult fans on any significant changes to the club.
COMMERCIAL SUCCESS
To end the current four-year trophy drought, United says there has been more than $200 million invested in players over the past two years — more than any other major European club. That has been funded by the growth of the commercial side of the business, with revenue almost quadrupling since the takeover to 627 million pounds before the pandemic. United has a self-sustaining business model with profit for the owners the priority, which enables them to draw dividends.
OTHER FOREIGN OWNERS
Across Manchester at City, it's been about an owner pumping money in since 2008. Funded by the wealth of Abu Dhabi, City is a means of a soft power being exerted by the United Arab Emirates, which has been criticized for its human rights and limited political freedoms, as much as it is about transforming men's and women's teams and the surrounding areas. While City fans did oppose the Super League there have been no protests demanding the sale of the club or the exit of club officials.
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has also invested more than a billion pounds in the west London club since 2003 to turn it into a European power. The aborted Super League plan produced protests in the streets around Stamford Bridge centred on trying to unseat chairman Bruce Buck.
Protests more akin to the vociferous ones at Old Trafford came at Arsenal in the week of the Super League announcement, with fans of the north London club also demanding the exit of their NFL franchise-owning chairman Stan Kroenke. Unlike the Glazers, Arsenal's ownership has engaged with fans through Stan Kroenke's son Josh, who subjected himself to a video call to take a battering of questions over the Super League debacle.
The Super League reignited concerns in Liverpool about John Henry's Fenway Sports Group ownership and its lack of investment demanded by fans since the club ended its 30-year English title drought. Protests in the streets in 2010 helped to oust the previous American owners — Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr. — as the club become burdened with debt it could not repay.
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More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Rob Harris, The Associated Press
Glazers still 'not interested' in selling Man Utd with further protests planned
The Glazer family are not interested in selling Manchester United, despite supporters continuing to call for their heads to roll in the wake of the Super League scandal.
The Times do add, however, that the Glazers would be forced to think about any offers of around the £4bn mark.
With current shares in the club worth around £2.1bn, any potential buyer would need to offer up more than that to give the Glazers a profit, and the American owners could also encounter fees from banks and lenders which they would ask a buyer to cover, which would take the price to closer to that £4bn.
If nobody can come up with that kind of money, the Glazers will continue their mission to grow United's brand
The Glazer family are not interested in selling Manchester United, despite supporters continuing to call for their heads to roll in the wake of the Super League scandal.
© Provided by 90min The Glazer family remain committed to Man Utd | Michael Regan/Getty Images
Supporters stormed Old Trafford recently to voice their frustrations towards the Glazers, which date back all the way to 2005, forcing the postponement of the Premier League match against Liverpool as a result of their actions.
Supporters stormed Old Trafford recently to voice their frustrations towards the Glazers, which date back all the way to 2005, forcing the postponement of the Premier League match against Liverpool as a result of their actions.
OLI SCARFF/Getty Images United fans broke into Old Trafford in protest | OLI SCARFF/Getty Images
According to The Times, those fans involved are already planning further protests, with the rescheduled Liverpool game expected to be a target alongside the upcoming home match against Leicester City, but The Guardian do not expect the protests to work.
Per the report, the Glazers intend to stay on at Old Trafford as they plan to grow the club's value from £3bn to £7bn in the coming years.
The American owners are not thought to have been scared off by the protests and remain committed to the club, insisting they are the right people to help the business side of the club grow over years to come.
Can you believe it? They're only thinking about money? Shock.
According to The Times, those fans involved are already planning further protests, with the rescheduled Liverpool game expected to be a target alongside the upcoming home match against Leicester City, but The Guardian do not expect the protests to work.
Per the report, the Glazers intend to stay on at Old Trafford as they plan to grow the club's value from £3bn to £7bn in the coming years.
The American owners are not thought to have been scared off by the protests and remain committed to the club, insisting they are the right people to help the business side of the club grow over years to come.
Can you believe it? They're only thinking about money? Shock.
© The Glazers have plans to increase Man Utd's value
| Michael Regan/Getty Images
The Times do add, however, that the Glazers would be forced to think about any offers of around the £4bn mark.
With current shares in the club worth around £2.1bn, any potential buyer would need to offer up more than that to give the Glazers a profit, and the American owners could also encounter fees from banks and lenders which they would ask a buyer to cover, which would take the price to closer to that £4bn.
If nobody can come up with that kind of money, the Glazers will continue their mission to grow United's brand
.
United must brace themselves for further protests | Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images
With the owners not going anywhere, United's immediate focus will be on preparing themselves for these upcoming protests. They are already facing an FA investigation over their failure to adequately prepare first time around and club officials will be adamant that will not happen again.
United were angered by suggestions that they had allowed protesters on to the pitch, instead condemning the supporters who chose to force their way through locked doors to escalate the situation.
For more from Tom Gott, follow him on Twitter!
With the owners not going anywhere, United's immediate focus will be on preparing themselves for these upcoming protests. They are already facing an FA investigation over their failure to adequately prepare first time around and club officials will be adamant that will not happen again.
United were angered by suggestions that they had allowed protesters on to the pitch, instead condemning the supporters who chose to force their way through locked doors to escalate the situation.
For more from Tom Gott, follow him on Twitter!
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