Many Manchester United fans hate the Glazers, who own and control the club, and there are many reasons why. There have been protests, demonstrations and outcries against the Glazer management online and for more than a decade after, these bouts of anger are yet to be permanently solved.
There was so much bad blood from the fans of Manchester United at the way they acquired ownership of the club that when the Glazer family arrived at Old Trafford for the first time as owners, the rumour spread that they were inside the stadium with senior staff members and inspecting the asset they had just purchased.
It had been easy for them to enter undetected, but trying to leave was another matter. Things fell apart as hundreds of United fans attempted to enter the stadium while yelling “Die, Die, Glazer!”
The situation required the deployment of riot police and dog handlers. The Glazers were unable to leave Old Trafford because of obstacles that fans had created, so the police had to pack the family into a van in order to get them away from harm.
With this instance in mind, one wonders what the Glazers family did to warrant such potent hate.
In this article, we would be checking out the various reasons why Manchester United fans hate the Glazers and more.
For cross-reference’s sake, you should check out why Man City is hated.
8 Reasons Why Manchester United Fans Hate The Glazers
There are a few reasons why Manchester United fans hate the Glazers and we will highlight them one by one.
1. Lackadaisical Attitude Towards The Core Essence Of The Club
Firstly, some supporters feel that the Glazers need to make more financial investments in the team, while others are dissatisfied with the Glazers’ financial management of the organisation.
Additionally, some supporters think the Glazers have little interest in or understanding of Manchester United’s past or culture. Some fan organisations, including the Manchester United Supporters Trust, have been pushing the Glazer family to sell the team.
2. Dry Trophy spell
Since Jose Mourinho won the Europa League in 2017, the Glazer trophy collecting has stalled, and United has only won three trophies since Ferguson left his position as manager in 2013.
Without Ferguson as their manager, United has not gone close to winning the Premier League and has only made two failed quarterfinal appearances in the Champions League since their previous trip to the final in 2011.
People believe that the jinx has been broken again with Manchester United winning this season’s 2022/23 Carabao Cup.
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3. Debt And Low Investment In The Club
Firstly, many blame the start of their hatred on the Glazer family’s debt-ridden ownership of the club. United has not had any debt up until that date.
The acquisition at that time was the greatest leveraged buyout in sports history but it left the team with considerable debt. The club has been heavily burdened by this debt, which has kept them from spending as much on the team as they would want.
Given his warning that “debt is the road to ruin and Manchester United will never go down that road,” many supporters feel that David Gill, the club’s former chief executive officer, saw the writing on the wall. The fact that they disregarded his advice led to their massive debt.
Profits were reinvested in the club, allowing Sir Alex Ferguson to buy Wayne Rooney for £27 million in 2004 despite the club being listed on the London Stock Exchange and paying shareholders yearly dividends.
Although the Glazers have now paid off the majority of the debt and Manchester United is currently one of the most valuable sports franchises in the world, many fans are still not happy with them.
The money moving from United to the Glazers is what truly concentrates the ire of fans, even if it has maintained pace with expenditures made by City, Chelsea, and Paris Saint-Germain.
Many fans believe that the family is just milking the club dry and not ploughing back enough of the profits into maintaining facilities and more
4. Shady takeover
Additionally, it has been established that the Glazers’ ownership was a hostile takeover that was concealed by their gradually purchasing shares, despite public reservations from the United board. The Glazers took over the club in May 2005 after acquiring the 28.7% interest of Irish racing magnates JP McManus and John Magnier.
One internet user posted online saying that he hates the Glazer family “…because they bought a once solvent football club, with borrowed money, plunging it into debt, seeing it as a cash cow, with no real interest in its, history or supporters, or even football…. And I’m an Aston Villa supporter! Supporters must unite against this aggressive taking over of our football clubs I don’t approve of the pitch invasions today, but I certainly have sympathy with every Manchester United supporter.
5. Leaky Roof, Inadequate Stadium Capacity
The Glazers have been criticised for not making enough investments in Manchester United especially as the club’s facilities have not been properly maintained, and the players’ salaries have not kept pace with those of other elite clubs.
At first glance, Old Trafford seems like a wonderful stadium, with a maximum Premier League capacity of 76,000 when it was roughly doubled in size from 40,000 spectators to the new capacity between 1992 and 2005.
Every United supporter who occupies a seat in the stadium’s south stand, which was renamed the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand in 2016, agrees that it looks and feels dated. It has long been a grouse of spectators to games because the roof leaks when it rains.
In the hours leading up to the Manchester derby at Old Trafford in April 2019, a storm struck north-western England. A portion of the roof fell away, and water began to stream into vacant seats below.
Similar circumstances occurred in 2012 when Old Trafford hosted Olympic football; during Spain vs. Morocco, a strong downpour caused leaks to form in several roof areas. The stadium was not entirely full on that particular day, allowing stewards to move spectators about.
The football site Swiss Ramble claims that in the last decade before 2021, United have invested £118 million on their stadium, compared to Liverpool’s £278 million, City’s £374 million, and Tottenham’s £1.4 billion.
6. Mice Problem
Mice have always been an issue at Old Trafford, and it is probable that this proximity to a canal has something to do with it.
When United played West Ham in 2010, a mouse was observed racing across the field. Four years previously, in 2006, Burton Albion complained to the referee during their 5-0 FA Cup loss that mice were all over the field.
7. Increase In Tickets Prices
Fans are also angry that the Glazers also went on to increase the cost of tickets for the first time in eleven years. Fans want the pricing to be rolled back since they are not happy with the unexpected price hike.
Fans criticized the team in outrage over the adult season ticket price hike of 5%. For the 2023–24 season, even though Arsenal also increased their ticket prices by the same amount. The club’s management said that doing so was required to “enable the club to operate on a sustainable basis” and was motivated by the “escalating cost of match day delivery.”
Despite the fact that share prices rose £334 million in a single day last week, these justifications were offered.
In addition, the club stated, “We understand that our fans are also under pressure from rising living expenses, which is why we have kept price increases well below the current rate of inflation.”
The stunning price hike coincides with claims that the Glazer family is asking for an absurd £6 billion to sell the franchise.
8. No fan input
The Glazers have not given fans a vote in how the team is operated, which results in a lack of fan representation. This is one of the main reasons why Manchester United fans hate the Glazers.
Fan organisations have been neglected, and they have declined to meet with them.
After the owners and five other English teams attempted to form a breakaway European Super League last year, protests erupted once more. The league’s plans disintegrated in a matter of days due to strong resistance. The Glazers, according to many supporters, simply wanted to play in the Super League because it would have paid them more money.
Final thoughts
As outlined, one of the biggest reasons why Manchester United fans hate Glazers is because of the rising debt and little or no adequate investment in the club.
One thing is for sure, there will always be a clash of interests between the differences between fans and the management of football clubs. Another thing we can pull out of this is that financial resources have played a frontline role in this battle of wills.
If there was enough money to go around and no debt, the fans and the management will be on good terms; but as things are the only way forward is for the management and fans to come together and reach a compromise as they cannot do without each other in all aspects.
