MUST publishes an open letter to Joel Glazer

MUST – the Manchester United Supporters Trust has today published the following open letter to Joel Glazer

An Open Letter to Joel Glazer: the morning after the night before, and a way forward for all of us – Monday 3rd May

Dear Joel,

The Fans Forum wrote to you and your senior management team on Friday. We don’t know if you saw it, but after the events of yesterday we trust your attention is now fully focussed on the question of what happens next at Manchester United.

First things first, let’s be very clear that no-one wants what happened at Old Trafford yesterday to be a regular event. We are football fans and we want to support our team. We don’t want to spend our days off work protesting outside our football ground. But what happened was the culmination of sixteen years in which your family’s ownership of the club has driven us into debt and decline, and we have felt ever more sidelined and ignored. After sixteen years not one member of the Glazer family has ever had so much as a conversation with us, the club’s Supporters Trust. Yesterday, that frustration reached boiling point. For the vast majority of the thousands of attendees at the protest they made their voice heard peacefully and respectfully. We support the right of fans to protest lawfully and, although we did not personally witness any such acts, of course we do not condone any acts of violence.

None of us want this to continue. We all have better things to do. So we need to find a way forward, and we have a four point plan for you to do that:

1. Willingly and openly engage and promote the government initiated fan-led review of football and use this as an opportunity to rebalance the current ownership structure in the favour of supporters

2. Immediately appoint independent directors to the board whose sole purpose is to protect the interest of the club as a football club, not its shareholders

3. Work with the Manchester United Supporters Trust and supporters more broadly to put in place a share scheme that is accessible to all and that has shares with the same voting rights as those held by the Glazer family. Should the appetite be there amongst fans then you should welcome, and offer no opposition to, the Glazer Family shareholding being reduced to a minority or indeed being bought out altogether.

4. Commit to full consultation with season ticket holders on any significant changes to the future of our club, including the competitions we play in

We request a response to this 4 point plan, in public and in writing, by Friday.

This is the only way to move this issue on. We strongly suggest you take it.

MUST – the Manchester United Supporters Trust
www.imust.org.uk

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MUST Statement on Fan Protests at Old Trafford – Sunday 2nd May

What we witnessed at Old Trafford today is the culmination of sixteen years since the Glazer family’s acquisition of the club. Over that period, the owners have taken £1bn out of the club and we have witnessed decay and decline both on the field and off it.

Whilst the invasion of the stadium isn’t something we expected, and it is rumoured a gate was opened for fans, but even if that is not the case we believe the vast majority of Manchester United staff are sympathetic with the views of the fans.

Supporters turned up on the day of a game they could not even attend, to peacefully protest and speak with one clear voice about the change that needs to happen at our club.

On the back of the indefensible ESL proposals, and an “apology” from the Glazers which we do not accept, we need to give fans a meaningful share in the ownership of United and a meaningful voice in how it is run.

The Government now need to act. That has to mean a process which results in fans having the opportunity to buy shares in their club and more to the point no single private shareholder holding a majority ownership of our football clubs which allows them to abuse that ownership.

The Government need to reflect the views of ordinary people who see that now is the time to reclaim the people’s game.

M.U.S.T – the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust
www.imust.org.uk
0161 872 3300

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