"We are committed to building a world-class stadium with our supporters, not just for them, with atmosphere, affordability and accessibility at the heart of our thinking."
Collette Roche
When Collette says "with our supporters", I'd genuinely like to know which supporters she's referring to. Everything I've fed back through fan surveys, and everyone I know who regularly attends matches, whether they've been going for a few years or a few decades, wants to stay where we are. Spend five minutes on social media, and you'll find plenty of others expressing the same view.
If the club insists that the majority of supporters favour a new stadium, it should publish the data supporting that claim and break that data down appropriately.
The club can separate responses from match-going supporters, season-ticket holders, executive members and regular members from those who may never have attended a game at Old Trafford. If the evidence genuinely shows overwhelming support for a new stadium, then I don't see any issue with being transparent and sharing the results.
At the moment, we're simply being asked to accept the narrative. If the majority of supporters really are behind the project, then show us the proof. Transparency would only strengthen the club's position.
It often feels as though the strongest voices pushing for a new stadium are those who rarely, if ever, attend games. Without data to prove otherwise, it appears the drive for a new stadium isn't coming from match-going supporters; it's coming from owners who still haven't properly explained how they'll fund it. Prove us wrong.
No doubt a lucrative naming rights deal will contribute, but what about the rest? Personal Seat Licences? That's hardly a solution that improves affordability. Then there's the proposal for at least 25% of the stadium to be made up of hospitality seating. As per this post, match-day pricing of tickets is spiralling out of reach for many supporters (https://t.co/zMxUgcypIs)
Let's be honest: we're not even going to sell out a 100,000-capacity stadium week in, week out, especially at current pricing levels. The club has already priced out many of the supporters it will need to fill those seats. I'm sure the business model has accounted for these scenarios, but I'd question the credibility of those projections when so many loyal supporters are already being pushed away from regular attendance simply due to affordability.
There's little value in Supporter Groups approaching this from different angles. The decision on relocation and the new build is, in all likelihood, beyond the point of being reversed. What's important now is ensuring that, as Collette said, the club genuinely listens to all supporters, but also recognises the difference between those who attend regularly, those who attend occasionally, and those who never attend but still have strong opinions on what match-going fans should want.
What we need now is a united approach from supporter groups: a coalition with a clear, consistent message. Rather than working against one another, they need to be organised and aligned, ensuring that before any key decisions are finalised, supporters have meaningful input and the club is compelled to listen, learn and implement in a way that keeps as many regular match-going supporters on board as possible. Risking that, loses so much of what Manchester United Football Club is about.
This.
The reason I love watching Man Utd vs Man City is because it happens a few times a year max.
The more the big boys play each other the less meaning each game has behind it.
Years ago they put Phil Taylor vs Andy Fordham on PPV and people bought it because the hype was incredible.
I’m not asking for that again, but let’s keep it interesting at least.
.@ZackPolanski said this morning these candidates aren’t welcome in his party.
So why is Sabine Mairey - arrested for antisemitism on Thursday - still out campaigning with them in Lambeth?
https://t.co/IEgQOVlHsx
🚨 NEW: Two Green Party candidates have been arrested on suspicion of stirring up racial hatred for allegedly posting antisemitic comments online
One of them posted a placard that read "ramming a synagogue isn’t anti-Semitism, it’s revenge"
Following the antisemitic stabbing of two Jewish people on the streets of Golders Green this morning, words of condemnation are no longer sufficient. This must be a moment that demands meaningful action from every institution, every community, every leader, and every decent person in our country. This is a hatred that we must face down together.
It is incredibly worrying that in response to the clear evidence of racism and antisemitism from two Lambeth Green Party candidates, Zack Polanski uses it as a membership drive opportunity…
Lambeth deserves better.
.@ZackPolanski
You and @Lambethgp have selected this candidate to represent the Green Party in Lambeth.
These racist views do not represent Lambeth. This is not who we are.
Are you going to withdraw Saiqa Ali as a candidate and condemn her views?