Man Utd fans plan further action after historic Glazers protest | OneFootball

A Manchester United fan group combined with FC United of Manchester supporters to rail against the Glazer family's 20-year ownership of the Premier League giants this weekend, with further demonstrations planned.

FC were founded in 2005 by disillusioned Manchester United fans shortly after Malcolm Glazer completed a controversial, leveraged buyout of the traditional English powerhouse. This firm split divided the fanbase at the time, but their shared hatred of the club's owners brought some factions together on Saturday afternoon.

As the semi-professional outfit operating in the seventh tier of England's footballing pyramid prepared for a clash with Stockton, around 200 supporters for FC and United joined together to protest against the Glazers. This is believed to be the first formal union between fan groups of FC and United in the past 20 years.

The prominent United supporters' organisation The 1958 instigated the historic collaboration. "The reason for us is that one thing [United's] ownership thrive on is division - in the fan base and throughout all the support," Chris Haymes of The 1958 told The Guardian.

"So we believe that unity is the best way to be able to look for what we believe is the right treatment and so why not reach out to the ones that have been there and done it before and walked away 20 years ago, irrespective of how angry you were or how passionate you were or what you believed in [then]."

The Glazers are loathed so fiercely for a number of reasons. By borrowing money to complete their takeover of United, the American investors lumbered a club which had been in the black with crippling debt. United have paid more than £1bn on interest fees alone in the past two decades.

In terms of more immediate complaints, the club's rising ticket prices and declining performances continue to incite ire.

As the 20th anniversary of the takeover approaches, the frequency and force of fan protests are beginning to rise. Thousands took to the streets ahead of United's draw with Arsenal earlier this month and another stand is set to be taken during next weekend's derby against Manchester City.

Steve Crompton of The 1958 revealed that the influential fan group plans to organise a 'sit-in', where fans stay behind at Old Trafford long after the final whistle. This approach was used after a 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest in August 2023 and Crompton is hopeful of the statement they can make. "Probably one of the most impactful [protests] was when we did the sit-in, and we will be running another against City," he said. "I don't think everybody knows yet, but you do now."

This mounting fervour against the club's owners jars sharply with the opinion of Sir Jim Ratcliffe. United's minority shareholder recently came to the defence of the Glazer family, hailing them as "the nicest people on the planet".