This is not a great time to be a Manchester United fan and, understandably, many of them have had enough.
Supporters are planning a protest ahead of Sunday’s Premier League game with Arsenal due to persistent opposition towards the club’s owners, the Glazer family, and growing anger at the ruthless cost-cutting measures implemented by the INEOS group in charge of running the club’s sporting elements.
United fans have railed against the Glazers’ ownership ever since they bought the club 20 years ago, but things are reaching breaking point. With the team enduring one of its worst seasons in half a century, and with the club facing a bleak financial picture while supporters and staff members pick up much of the cost, the demonstration before and during the Arsenal game could be among the most ardent Old Trafford has seen.
The Sporting News explains what’s going on.
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Man United protest vs. Arsenal, explained
The protest has been organised by supporter group The 1958 and will mirror similar demonstrations against the Glazer family’s ownership, although the group believes this week’s “could be one of the largest ever”.
It was organised so fans could demonstrate their anger towards the club’s owners, its current sporting and financial malaise, and the fact that matchgoing fans and club employees are bearing the brunt of cost-saving measures.
There will be a march beginning at the Tollgate, a pub close to Old Trafford, with protestors set to make their way towards the stadium prior to kickoff. Once inside, further demonstrations from the stands are expected.
A similar protest took place prior to the FA Cup exit at the hands of Fulham, while others have been staged at different points of recent seasons.
🗣️This is our final rallying call
We’ve done all we can. We couldn’t have done anymore. Now it’s down to all United fans, supporter groups, fan reps, supporter clubs to unite and send a message.
📍Tollgate
⏱️3pm
🚶♂️We march at 3:15pm (form behind the large banner)Bring the… pic.twitter.com/LDWtc2sg9k
— The 1958 (@The__1958) March 8, 2025
Steve Crompton, a spokesperson for The 1958, said: “The club is slowly dying before our eyes, on and off the pitch, and the blame lies squarely at the current ownership model. The club is facing financial Armageddon. Debt is the road to ruin.
“[Former manager] Sir Matt Busby would be turning in his grave at the current plight of one of the world’s greatest football institutions which is being brought to its knees and in many ways becoming a laughing stock.”
Why are Man United fans wearing black vs. Arsenal?
As part of Sunday’s protest, United fans attending the game have been urged to wear black clothing to symbolise “how the club is ‘slowly dying’ due to huge debts, mismanagement and fan exploitation”.
The 1958 group has asked supporters not planning on joining the protest march to wear black as a show of solidarity.
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Why are United fans angry at the club’s owners?
Fan fury towards the Glazers has persisted ever since the American family bought a majority stake in the club back in 2005.
The takeover was completed through what is known as a leveraged buyout. In other words, the Glazer family financed a significant part of the £790 million cost through loans that were secured against the club’s own assets. That immediately placed debt of over £500m onto the club itself, and that figure has since grown beyond £1 billion. Meanwhile, the Glazers have continued to take dividend payments of approximately £20m per year, while the debt level has been allowed to increase and investment in the wider club infrastructure has been minimal.
🗣️ Ruben Amorim on protests: “For everybody in our club it’s a really tough moment. It’s everything at the same time. The only thing I can do is and our players can do is perform well and win. People have the right to protest. I think it’s a good thing to do that.
“It’s part of… pic.twitter.com/htdgH8VpEx
— The United Stand (@UnitedStandMUFC) March 7, 2025
This, combined with an expensively slapdash approach towards buying players and hiring and firing managers, has allowed United’s rivals to surpass them over the past decade. At the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal and even Tottenham, training and stadium facilities, management of the sporting structure, and the quality of the football teams themselves are all recognisably superior to those at United, who have spent money unwisely on big-name players while failing to sort out routine matters like fixing the leaking Old Trafford roof.
The arrival of Sir Jim Ratcliffe as a minority stakeholder in February last year was supposed to herald a change in United’s fortunes, with the Glazers handing over matters relating to the sports side of the club to the INEOS group. However, major missteps from those in charge, combined with ruthless cost-cutting measures that have seen hundreds of employees laid off, concession ticket prices scrapped and staff left feeling deeply unhappy, have seen United go backwards on the pitch while the club’s economic picture has, in the short term at least, got worse.
And it is highly unlikely that this will be the last protest of its kind.
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