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Manchester United
Manchester United's emblem
Full nameManchester United Football Club
Nickname(s)The Red Devils
Founded1878, as Newton Heath LYR FC
GroundOld Trafford
Stretford
Greater Manchester
Capacity76,212
ChairmanEngland David Gill (Chief Executive)
ManagerScotland Sir Alex Ferguson
LeagueFA Premier League
2005-06FA Premier League, 2nd

Manchester United Football Club are a world-famous English football club, based at Old Trafford stadium in Trafford, Greater Manchester, and are one of the most popular sports clubs in the world with over 50 million supporters worldwide.[1] Manchester United are one of the most successful clubs in the world, having won the FA Premier League/Football League 15 times, FA Cup 11 times ( an English record), the League Cup twice, the European Cup twice, the UEFA Cup Winners Cup once, the Intercontinental Cup once, and the European Super Cup once. The club has had the highest average attendance in English football for the past 34 seasons, with the exception of 1987-89 during redevelopment at Old Trafford.[2] The club was also voted second in a "FIFA Clubs of the 20th Century" poll, behind Real Madrid (the ranking was based on votes by the readers of a bi-monthly FIFA Magazine on December 2000).

The club had been run as a public limited company since 1991, with an attempted takeover by Rupert Murdoch in 1998 blocked by the British Government. However, in May 2005 Malcolm Glazer completed a hostile takeover of the club and delisted it from the stock exchange.

The current captain of Manchester United is Gary Neville, who took over from Roy Keane on 16 November 2005.

History

Early years (1878-1945)

Main article: Manchester United pre-1945

The club was formed as Newton Heath F.C. in 1878 as the works team of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway depot at Newton Heath. After nearing bankruptcy in 1902, the club was taken over by J H Davies who changed its name to Manchester United. The Old Trafford Football Ground was bombed during the Second World War, leading the club to seek charity from their then-illustrious neighbours Manchester City, who allowed them to play their games at Maine Road for a period. United appointed Sir Matt Busby as manager after the Second World War, and his then-unheard-of policy of producing most of the players through the club's youth team brought great success, with the club winning the Football League in 1956 and 1957. This success was halted by the Munich air disaster of 1958, in which eight of the club's players died. It was thought that the club might fold, but instead went on to win the football league in 1965 and 1967, and the European Cup in 1968.


1969-1986

Main article: Manchester United 1969-1986
File:Manutd.gif
Manchester United FC badge in the 1970s

United struggled to replace Busby, and the team struggled under Wilf McGuinness and Frank O'Farrell before Tommy Docherty became manager at the end of 1972. Docherty, or 'the Doc', saved United from relegation that season but United were relegated in 1974. The team won promotion at the first attempt and reached the FA Cup final in 1976, but were beaten by Southampton. They reached the final again in 1977, beating Liverpool. In spite of this success, and his popularity with the supporters, Docherty was sacked soon after the final when he was found to have had an affair with the physiotherapist's wife.

Dave Sexton replaced Docherty as manager in the summer of 1977, and made the team play in a more defensive formation. This style was unpopular with supporters, who were used to the attacking football preferred by Docherty and Busby, and after failing to win a trophy Sexton was sacked in 1981, despite winning his last seven games in charge.

He was replaced by the flamboyant Ron Atkinson who immediately broke the British record transfer fee to sign Bryan Robson from West Brom. Atkinson's team featured new signings such as Jesper Olsen and Gordon Strachan playing alongside the former youth-team players Norman Whiteside and Mark Hughes. United won the FA Cup in 1983 and 1985 and were overwhelming favourites to win the league in the 1985-86 season after winning their first ten league games, opening a ten-point gap over their rivals as early as October. The team's form collapsed, however, and United finished the season in fourth place. The poor form continued into the following season, and with United on the edge of the First Division's relegation zone, Atkinson was sacked.

Alex Ferguson era, pre-Treble (1986-1998)

Main article: Manchester United 1986-1998

Alex Ferguson arrived from Aberdeen to replace Atkinson and guided the club to an 11th place finish. The following season (1987-88), United finished second, with Brian McClair becoming the first United player since George Best to score twenty league goals in a season.

However, United struggled throughout the next two seasons, with many of Ferguson's signings not reaching the expectations of the fans. Alex Ferguson was reportedly on the verge of being sacked at the beginning of 1990 but a Mark Robins goal gave United a narrow 1-0 win in the third round of the FA Cup over Nottingham Forest kept the season alive and the team went on to win the competition, beating Crystal Palace in a replay in the final.

United won the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1990-91, beating that season's Spanish champions Barcelona in the final, but the following season was a disappointment for United as a late season slump saw them miss out on the league to rivals Leeds United. Meanwhile in 1991, the club floated on the London Stock Exchange with a valuation of £47 million[3], bringing its finances into the public eye.

The arrival of Éric Cantona in November 1992 provided the crucial spark for United, and blending with the best of trusted talent in Gary Pallister, Denis Irwin and Paul Ince, as well as budding stars like Ryan Giggs, they finished the 1992-93 season as Champions for the first time since 1967. They won the double (the league and the FA Cup) for the first time the following season, aided by the capture of Roy Keane, a determined midfielder from Nottingham Forest, who would go on to become the team captain. In the same year however, the club was plunged into mourning following the death of legendary manager and club president Matt Busby, who died on 20 January 1994.

In 1994-95, Cantona received an eight month suspension for jumping into the crowd and assaulting Crystal Palace supporter Matthew Simmons for racial abuse, in United's game at Selhurst Park. Drawing their last league match and losing to Everton in the FA Cup final left United as runners-up in both the league and FA Cup. Ferguson then outraged the supporters by selling key players and replacing them with players from the club's youth team, including David Beckham, Gary Neville, Phil Neville and Paul Scholes. The new players, several of whom quickly became regular internationals for England, did surprisingly well and United won the double again in 1995-96. This was the first time any English club had won the double twice.[4]

United's European unbeaten home record was broken by Fenerbahçe, who won 1-0 at Old Trafford on 30 October 1996 with a deflected Elvir Bolić goal.

They won the league in 1997, and Éric Cantona announced his retirement from football at the age of 30. They started the following season (1997-98) well, but they finished the season in second place, behind the double-winning champions Arsenal.

The Treble (1998-99)

Main article: Manchester United 1998-1999

1998-99 was when Manchester United had the most successful season in English club football history as they became the first and only English team to win The Treble - winning the Premiership, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League in the same season. After a very tense Premier League season, Manchester United won the title on the final day beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-1, whilst Arsenal won 1-0 against Aston Villa. Winning the Premiership was the first part of the Treble in place, the one part that manager Alex Ferguson described as the hardest. In the FA Cup Final United faced Newcastle United and won 2-0 with goals from Teddy Sheringham and Paul Scholes. In the final match of that season, the 1999 UEFA Champions League Final they defeated Bayern Munich in what was then considered the greatest comeback ever witnessed. After going down to an early goal from a Mario Basler free kick, United chased the game for 85 minutes. After 90 minutes they forced a corner, from which late substitute Teddy Sheringham scored. Not giving up, Man Utd went for a second and it came again from a David Beckham corner, Ole Gunnar Solskjær, another late substitute, poking it into the roof of the net. Ferguson was subsequently knighted for his services to football. Rounding out that record breaking year, Manchester United also won the Intercontinental Cup after beating Palmeiras 1-0 at the National Olympic Stadium, Tokyo.

After the Treble (1999-present)

Main article: Manchester United 1999-present

United won the league in 2000 and 2001 but the press saw these seasons as failures as they failed to regain the European Cup. Ferguson adopted more defensive tactics to make United harder to beat in Europe but it was not a success and United finished the season in third place in 2002. They regained the league the following season (2002-03) and started the following season well, but their form dropped significantly when Rio Ferdinand received a controversial eight month suspension for missing a drugs test. They did win the 2004 FA Cup, however, knocking out Arsenal (that season's eventual champions) on their way to the final in which they beat Millwall.

The 2004-05 season was characterised by a failure to score goals, mainly due to the injury of striker Ruud van Nistelrooy and United finished the season trophyless and in third place in the league. This time, even the "consolation prize" of the FA Cup eluded them as Arsenal beat United on penalties after a goalless draw after 120 minutes. Off the pitch, the main story was the possibility of the club being taken over and at the end of the season, Tampa businessman Malcolm Glazer, (who also owns the American Football team Tampa Bay Buccaneers), acquired a controlling interest in the club. United made a poor start to the 2005-06 season, with midfielder Roy Keane leaving the club to join Celtic after publicly criticising several of his teammates, and the club failed to qualify for the knock-out phase of the UEFA Champions League for the first time in over a decade after losing to Portuguese team SL Benfica. Their season was also dealt cruel blows with injuries to key players such as Gabriel Heinze, Alan Smith, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes. However, they were prevented from being left empty handed in successive seasons - a disappointment not endured in the last 17 years - by winning the 2006 League Cup beating newly promoted neighbours Wigan Athletic in the final 4-0. United also ensured a second-place finish and automatic Champions League qualification on the final day of the season by defeating Charlton Athletic 4-0. At the end of the 2005-2006 season, one of United's key strikers, Ruud van Nistelrooy, left the club to join Real Madrid, due to a row with Alex Ferguson.[5]

The Malcolm Glazer takeover

Main article: Malcolm Glazer takeover of Manchester United

On 13 May 2005, businessman Malcolm Glazer acquired a controlling interest in the club through his investment vehicle Red Football Ltd. in a takeover valuing the club at approximately £800 million (approx. $1.5 billion). On 16 May, he increased his share to the 75% necessary to delist the club from the Stock Exchange, making it private again, and announced his intention to do so within 20 days. On 8 June he appointed his sons Joel, Avram, and Bryan to the board of Manchester United as non-executive directors. It was for a while expected that Joel would be installed as the new Chairman, however that never happened. At the same time Sir Roy Gardner resigned his position as Chairman of the board, along with non-executive directors Jim O'Neill and Ian Much. Malcolm Glazer also re-appointed Andy Anson as Commercial Director after voting him off the board at the previous AGM. He also retained Chief Executive David Gill and Finance Director Nick Humby in their current positions in spite of their pre-takeover descriptions of the Glazer's business plan as being "aggressive and unworkable".

In July 2006 the club announced a refinancing package. Previously the debt taken on by the Glazers to financing the club was split between the club and the family, but now it will all be in the club. The total amount will be £660 million, on which interest payments will be £62 million a year. This is a 30% reduction in interest charges. The club stated, "The value of Manchester United has increased in the last year, which is why lenders want to invest in the club.... this move represents good housekeeping and it ensures that Sir Alex Ferguson will be provided with sufficient funds to compete in the transfer market." The Manchester United Supporters' Trust responded: "The amount of money needed to be repaid overall is huge.... the interest payment is one thing but what about the actual £660million? It is difficult to see how these sums can be reached without significant increases in ticket prices, which, as we always suspected, means the fans will effectively be paying for someone to borrow money to own their club."[6]

Club crest and colours

During its Newton Heath days, the club's home jerseys were yellow and green; this strip was revived as an away kit in the early 1990s to commemorate the club's 100 year anniversary. Manchester United's most recognised home strip is red jerseys, white shorts and black socks. Away strips are usually white jerseys with black shorts and white socks.

Third kits are usually all blue but the club has also used all black and on one occasion in the mid '90s used all grey. Their jerseys now sport their main sponsor AIG. Currently, Manchester United's jerseys are red with gold stripes going down the side. The sleeves are capped with white and the AIG, Nike, and MUFC symbols are also white. The club crest sits on a white shield. The away jerseys are white with black stripes going down the side where the crest sits on a black shield. The sleeves are capped in black and the AIG, Nike, and MUFC symbols are black.

The Manchester United crest has been altered on a few occasions, but the basic form remains similar. The badge is derived from the crest of the city of Manchester. The devil on the club badge stems from the club's nickname "The Red Devils", which was adopted in the early 60s after Sir Matt Busby heard it in reference to the red-shirted Salford rugby league side. By the end of the 1960s, the devil had started to be included on club programmes and scarves, before it was finally incorporated into the club badge in 1970, holding its unmistakable pitchfork. In 1998, the badge was once again redesigned, this time removing the words "Football Club".

Recent sponsorship

On 23 November 2005 Vodafone ended their £36 million, four year shirt sponsorship deal with Manchester United. On 6 April 2006, chief executive David Gill announced AIG as the new shirt[7] sponsors of Manchester United in a British record shirt sponsorship deal of £56.5 million to be paid over four years (£14.1 million a year). Manchester United now have the largest sponsorship in the world ahead of Italian side Juventus, who have a £12.8 million a year sponsorship with Tamoil.[8] The four-year agreement has been heralded as largest sponsorship deal in British history, eclipsing Chelsea's deal with Samsung.

Support

Before the Second World War, few English football supporters travelled to away games because of the time and cost, added to the fact that few people had their own cars at this time. As City and United played home matches on alternate Saturdays, many Mancunians would watch United one week and City the next. After the war, a stronger rivalry developed and it became more common for a supporter to choose one team to follow exclusively.

When United won the league in 1956, they had the highest average home attendance in the league, a record that had been held by Newcastle United for the previous few years. Following the Munich air disaster in 1958, more people began to support United and many started to go to matches. This swelled United’s support and is one reason why United have had the highest league attendances in English football for almost every season since then, even as a second division side in 1974-75.

A 2002 report, Do You Come From Manchester? showed that a higher proportion of Manchester City season ticket holders live in the Manchester postal districts, whilst United had the higher absolute number of season ticket holders living in the same area.[9]

In the late 1990s and early part of the 2000s, an increasing source of concern for many United supporters was the possibility of the club being taken over. The supporters’ group IMUSA (Independent Manchester United Supporters' Association) were extremely active in opposing a proposed takeover by Rupert Murdoch in 1998. Another pressure group, Shareholders United Against Murdoch (which became Shareholders United and is now the Manchester United Supporters' Trust) was formed at around this time to encourage supporters to buy shares in the club, partly to enable supporters to have a greater say in the issues that concern them, such as ticket prices and allocation, and partly to reduce the risk of an unwanted party buying enough shares to take over the club. However, this scheme failed to prevent Malcolm Glazer from becoming the majority share holder. Many supporters were outraged, and some formed a new club called F.C. United of Manchester.

Players

First-team squad

As of 28 December 2006, according to official website: [1], includes players on loan to other clubs. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Netherlands NED Edwin van der Sar
2 DF England ENG Gary Neville (captain)
3 DF France FRA Patrice Evra
4 DF Argentina ARG Gabriel Heinze
5 DF England ENG Rio Ferdinand
6 DF England ENG Wes Brown
7 MF Portugal POR Cristiano Ronaldo
8 FW England ENG Wayne Rooney
9 FW France FRA Louis Saha
11 MF Wales WAL Ryan Giggs (vice-captain)
13 MF South Korea KOR Ji-Sung Park
14 FW England ENG Alan Smith
15 DF Serbia SRB Nemanja Vidić
16 MF England ENG Michael Carrick
17 FW Sweden SWE Henrik Larsson (on loan from Helsingborgs from 1 January to 12 March 2007)
No. Pos. Nation Player
18 MF England ENG Paul Scholes
20 FW Norway NOR Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
22 DF Ireland EIR John O'Shea
23 MF England ENG Kieran Richardson
24 MF Scotland SCO Darren Fletcher
27 DF France FRA Mikael Silvestre
29 GK Poland POL Tomasz Kuszczak (on loan from West Bromwich Albion)
34 DF England ENG Ryan Shawcross
36 DF Scotland SCO David Gray
38 GK England ENG Thomas Heaton
41 FW England ENG Phil Marsh
42 MF England ENG Michael Barnes
43 MF England ENG Daniel Rose
49 MF England ENG Ritchie Jones

On Loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
19 FW Italy ITA Giuseppe Rossi (on loan to Newcastle United)
25 MF England ENG David Jones (on loan to Derby County)
26 DF England ENG Phillip Bardsley (on loan to Sunderland)
28 DF Spain ESP Gerard Piqué (on loan to Real Zaragoza)
-- GK England ENG Ben Foster (on loan to Watford)
-- GK United States USA Tim Howard (on loan to Everton)

Reserve squad

Manchester United F.C. Reserves currently play their home games at Ewen Fields, the home of Hyde United of the Conference North. Brian McClair is currently in temporary charge of the reserve team following the departure of René Meulensteen to Brøndby IF. Players according to official website: [2], includes players on loan to other clubs. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
32 DF Northern Ireland NIR Craig Cathcart
33 MF England ENG Chris Eagles (on loan to NEC Nijmegen)
34 DF England ENG Ryan Shawcross
35 MF England ENG Kieran Lee
36 DF Scotland SCO David Gray
39 GK Germany GER Ron-Robert Zieler
41 FW England ENG Phil Marsh
42 MF England ENG Michael Barnes
43 MF England ENG Daniel Rose
44 DF England ENG Adam Eckersley (on loan to Brøndby IF)
46 MF England ENG Lee Martin (on loan to Rangers)
47 DF Northern Ireland NIR Jonny Evans (on loan to Sunderland)
No. Pos. Nation Player
49 MF England ENG Ritchie Jones
50 MF Ireland EIR Darron Gibson (on loan to R. Antwerp F.C.)
51 FW England ENG Fraizer Campbell (on loan to R. Antwerp F.C.)
-- MF Togo TOG Souleymane Mamam (on loan to R. Antwerp F.C.)
-- DF England ENG Danny Simpson (on loan to R. Antwerp F.C.)
-- FW England ENG Febian Brandy
-- GK England ENG Lee Crockett
-- MF England ENG Sean Evans
-- FW China CHN Dong Fangzhuo (on loan to R. Antwerp F.C.)
-- MF England ENG Jamie Mullan
-- MF Belgium BEL Floribert N'Galula

Ladies team

Manchester United Ladies were founded in 1977, and officially became a part of Manchester United FC at the start of the 2001/2 season. They played in the Northern Combination league (the third tier of women's football in England) until they were disbanded before the start of the 2004/5 season.


Player records

European Footballer of the Year winners (Ballon d'Or)

Most appearances for Manchester United

As of Match 26 December 2006 and according to official site. Players in bold are still currently playing for Manchester United.

# Name Career Appearances Goals
1 England Sir Bobby Charlton 1954 - 1973 759 249
2 Wales Ryan Giggs 1991 - present 690 137
3 England Bill Foulkes 1952 - 1970 688 9
4 England Alex Stepney 1966 - 1978 539 2
5 Republic of Ireland Tony Dunne 1960 - 1973 536 2
6 Republic of Ireland Denis Irwin 1990 - 2002 529 33
7 England Gary Neville 1992 - present 526 7
8 England Paul Scholes 1994 - present 513 133
9 England Joe Spence 1919 - 1933 510 168
10 Scotland Arthur Albiston 1974 - 1988 485 7

Most goals scored for Manchester United

# Name Career Appearances Goals
1 England Sir Bobby Charlton 1954 - 1973 759 249
2 Scotland Denis Law 1962 - 1973 404 237
3 England Jack Rowley 1937 - 1955 424 212
4 Northern Ireland George Best 1963 - 1974 470 179
5 England Dennis Viollet 1949 - 1962 293 179
6 England Joe Spence 1919 - 1933 510 168
7 Wales Mark Hughes 1980 - 1986, 1988 - 1995 466 164
8 Netherlands Ruud van Nistelrooy 2001 - 2006 220 150
9 England Stan Pearson 1935 - 1954 347 148
10 Scotland David Herd 1961 - 1968 265 145

Club officials

Board of Directors

Senior club staff

  • Company Secretary: David Beswitherick
  • Assistant Company Secretary: Ken Ramsden
  • Director of Communications: Phil Townsend
  • Director of Commercial Enterprises: Ben Hatton
  • Director of Marketing: vacant
  • Director of Financial Services: Steve Falk
  • Director of Finance & IT: Steve Deaville
  • Director of Facilities: Clive Snell

Management

Academy coaching staff

  • Director of Youth Academy: Brian McClair
  • Director of Youth Football: Jimmy Ryan
  • Assistant Director for 17-21 Year olds: Paul McGuinness
  • Assistant Director for 9-16 Year olds: Tony Whelan
  • Under 18's Coach: Paul McGuinness
  • Under 13-16's Coach: Mark Dempsey
  • Under 11-12's Coach: Tony Whelan
  • Under 9-10's Coach: Eamon Mulvey
  • Skills Development Coach: vacant
  • Director of Goalkeeping Training: Richard Hartis
  • Academy Coaches: Eddie Leach, Tommy Martin, Mike Glennie & Andy Welsh

Medical staff

  • Club Doctor: Dr. Steve McNally
  • Assistant Club Doctor: Dr. Tony Gill
  • First Team Physiotherapist: Rob Swire
  • Reserve Team Physiotherapist: Neil Hough
  • Academy Physiotherapists: John Davin, Mandy Johnson & Richard Merron
  • Masseurs: Gary Armer & Rod Thornley
  • Club Dietician: Trevor Lea

Managerial history

Name Period
England A. H. Albut 1892-1900
England James West 1900-1903
England J. Ernest Mangnall 1903-1912
England John Bentley 1912-1914
England Jack Robson 1914-1922
England John Chapman 1921-1927
England Lal Hilditch 1926-1927
England Herbert Bamlett 1927-1931
England Walter Crickmer 1931-1932
Scotland Scott Duncan 1932-1937
England Walter Crickmer 1937-1945
Scotland Sir Matt Busby 1945-1969
England Wilf McGuinness 1969-1970
Scotland Sir Matt Busby 1970-1971
Republic of Ireland Frank O'Farrell 1971-1972
Scotland Tommy Docherty 1972-1977
England Dave Sexton 1977-1981
England Ron Atkinson 1981-1986
Scotland Sir Alex Ferguson 1986—

Honours

League

Other Cups

Club records

Stadium information

See also

Supporters' organisations

Fanzines

Chart

Official
Independent media sites

Notes

  1. ^ http://www.4thegame.com/features/feature/82571/.html
  2. ^ "European Football Statistics". Retrieved 2006-06-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  3. ^ A Game of Two Halves? The business of football Chap. 4 - Football Governance Research Centre, University of London
  4. ^ Cantona crown's United's season of Double delight - story from The Telegraph, accessed December 11 2006
  5. ^ Ruud accuses Ferguson of betrayal - story from the BBC website, accessed December 11 2006
  6. ^ Man Utd play down fears after £660m refinancing, soccernet.com, 18 July 2006.
  7. ^ "Manchester United AIG shirt". Retrieved May 27. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Scotsman.com £56m shirt sponsorship deal a boost for United". Retrieved April 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ Do You Come From Manchester, Dr. Adam Brown (2002), Manchester Metropolitan University (PDF file)
  10. ^ Up until 1992, the top division of English football was the Football League First Division; since then, it has been the FA Premier League.
  11. ^ The second division became the first division upon the formation of the Premier League and then the Championship.
  12. ^ Following the Hillsborough disaster all English League clubs had to change their stadia to all-seater stadia. Prior to this, Old Trafford had allowed standing supporters, which expains how the Record Attendance is higher than the current stadium capacity.
  13. ^ This is also the Premiership attendance record.

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