Maybe not so for the club, whose only interest is finishing in the top four and a place in the European Cup, thus making yet more money. For the team and fans winning the FA Cup is a success, a great achievement. United’s women completed a similar achievement winning the women’s FA Cup by defeating Tottenham Hotspur 4-0. Man Utd’s Under 18s won their Premier League taking all comers, the highlight perhaps being the 9-1 victory over Liverpool at Anfield. So, all in all a good season for United teams as a whole. On the broader front for the United family there was even more success.
Between the 10th and 12th May the Fenix Trophy European competition was played in Italy. This is the equivalent of the European Cup for non-league, semi-Professional clubs like FC United of Manchester who were the inaugural winners three seasons ago. Fenix is an acronym for Friendly European Non-Professional Innovation and Xenial (a word used to describe the relationship between hosts and guests) and the winners are considered European Champions at this level.
Between the 10th and 12th May the Fenix Trophy European competition was played in Italy. This is the equivalent of the European Cup for non-league, semi-Professional clubs like FC United of Manchester who were the inaugural winners three seasons ago. Fenix is an acronym for Friendly European Non-Professional Innovation and Xenial (a word used to describe the relationship between hosts and guests) and the winners are considered European Champions at this level.
This season FC United won the trophy for the second time, defeating Prague Rafters 4-0 in the final on 12th May 2024 in Desenzano del Garda on the picturesque banks of Lake Garda. We beat Lewes FC in the semi-final going on to win the trophy for the second time in three years. A great achievement by anybody’s standards. The scorers were Curtis Jones and Aaron Bennet in the first half giving the Red Rebels a 2-0 half time cushion. In the second period United came out again on the attack with Dontai Gabidon grabbing a third and substitute, Lewis Gilboy making it four. Occasions like this bring back memories of the ‘good old days’ at Old Trafford. United Manager, Neil Reynolds, half laughing but with a serious note asked; “does this make me equal with Brian Clough and Alex Ferguson”, both of whom lifted the European Cup twice? A fair question, Neil, even said in jest because the answer relatively speaking is a definite Yes!
Between an estimated 5-700 United fans made the journey - and remember this is non-league football - which is more than some lower league teams would take and is around our average away support at domestic level. Having been abroad with FC when my own health was in better condition, I can guarantee a good piss up would have been had by all as the celebrations would have gone on all night in Italy. FC United fans songs are famous, some incorporating the old Man Utd chants, others being new to the scene. FC United of Manchester pride ourselves on being the cultural and moral soul of Manchester United while, at the same time, bringing in our own distinct culture.
Football Club United of Manchester – FCUM – is basically MUFC spelt backwards almost. The club was formed in 2005 by disillusioned Man Utd fans who were totally pissed off with the theft of MUFC by the Glazer family. We were a protest club and, in some ways still are, perhaps the last genuine protest group against the Glazers still standing, but also forging our own identity. For many, including myself the Glazers were the icing on the cake, so to speak, as the corruption of the so-called Premier League began to surface. All seater stadia to accumulate even greater profits by the few already billionaire owners. All seaters being done on the backs of 97 dead Liverpool fans, murdered in my opinion in the interests of big business, was another issue many of us had back in 2005. The rising costs of entry to a game at Old Trafford, so the Glazers could pay off the debts they had accumulated to steal the club in the first place, was another reason as were ridiculous kick off times. They were forcing the supporters to indirectly fund their debts, yet many of the new age attendees at Old Trafford are too stupid to see this.
Between an estimated 5-700 United fans made the journey - and remember this is non-league football - which is more than some lower league teams would take and is around our average away support at domestic level. Having been abroad with FC when my own health was in better condition, I can guarantee a good piss up would have been had by all as the celebrations would have gone on all night in Italy. FC United fans songs are famous, some incorporating the old Man Utd chants, others being new to the scene. FC United of Manchester pride ourselves on being the cultural and moral soul of Manchester United while, at the same time, bringing in our own distinct culture.
Football Club United of Manchester – FCUM – is basically MUFC spelt backwards almost. The club was formed in 2005 by disillusioned Man Utd fans who were totally pissed off with the theft of MUFC by the Glazer family. We were a protest club and, in some ways still are, perhaps the last genuine protest group against the Glazers still standing, but also forging our own identity. For many, including myself the Glazers were the icing on the cake, so to speak, as the corruption of the so-called Premier League began to surface. All seater stadia to accumulate even greater profits by the few already billionaire owners. All seaters being done on the backs of 97 dead Liverpool fans, murdered in my opinion in the interests of big business, was another issue many of us had back in 2005. The rising costs of entry to a game at Old Trafford, so the Glazers could pay off the debts they had accumulated to steal the club in the first place, was another reason as were ridiculous kick off times. They were forcing the supporters to indirectly fund their debts, yet many of the new age attendees at Old Trafford are too stupid to see this.
At Man Utd the Glazers insist fans are no longer fans, they are “customers”. What an insult for the best supported club in the world. All through the seventies and eighties we stood by Man Utd. Through those turbulent days of relegation and second division football Man Utd remained the highest supported club through the turnstiles than any other team including champions on many occasions, Liverpool. To be reduced by some unknown billionaire to this was for many of us just too much.
This was the backdrop which gave rise to the formation of FC United of Manchester, now European Champions twice. In the early days we attracted crowds of up to 6,000+ playing our home games at Gigg Lane, home of Bury FC, and when our ground - built not with billionaires money but our own - Broadhurst Park, was built we attracted a crowd of just over 4,000 for the game with our guests Benfica in May 2015. We were just ten years old and had our own ground! The game was played on the anniversary of Man United’s famous 4-1 victory over the Lisbon side in 1968 the 29th May. This was exactly forty-seven years after this victory and Benfica were happy to send a team to firstly open our ground but also remember that night at Wembley when Jonny Aston outplayed Alberto whistling past him almost every time. A great night that grand opening.
The next time some know fuck-all pundit sits vacantly on TV telling us it has been a disappointing season for English football in Europe just remind yourselves of FC United European Champions for the second time in three years. From a group of fans (I was not there) who held a meeting and dared to challenge not only the hierarchy at M16 but also the entire football establishment, or should that now be renamed international bankers? We are democratic with each member receiving one vote on all major decisions, we elect the Board and propose motions for the AGM (Annual General Meeting). We are the true Champions of Europe and don’t you forget it Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and the rest of the know nowts on MOTD and other programmes such as Sky.
The next time some know fuck-all pundit sits vacantly on TV telling us it has been a disappointing season for English football in Europe just remind yourselves of FC United European Champions for the second time in three years. From a group of fans (I was not there) who held a meeting and dared to challenge not only the hierarchy at M16 but also the entire football establishment, or should that now be renamed international bankers? We are democratic with each member receiving one vote on all major decisions, we elect the Board and propose motions for the AGM (Annual General Meeting). We are the true Champions of Europe and don’t you forget it Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and the rest of the know nowts on MOTD and other programmes such as Sky.
FC United of Manchester, the cultural, principled, moral, heart and historical sole of Manchester United are where United belong, champions of Europe.
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| Caoimhin O’Muraile is Independent Socialist Republican and Marxist. |
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