I’ve just seen a video of people breaking into Old Trafford, smashing a glass door in. They are easily identifiable, so I presume there will be prosecutions followed by lifetime bans for the offenders. I won’t hold my breath.
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As I predicted pre match…
Firmino couldn’t score, control the ball, or create any chances.
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Fan ownership of privately held football clubs? Won’t happen.
All owners need to sell half their shares? What if they don’t want to? Is this now some sort of mandated thing by government? I don’t think so. Not in the capitalist system we live in. It wouldn’t get anywhere and would be shot down legally right away.
Now let’s imagine a world where somehow it did happen. All we need now is the fan base to come up with 51% of the dough. Let’s round it to £1Billion needed, for LFC fans to have 51% stake, from a willing FSG.
That’s a lot of pound coins to collect in the buckets at Anfield!
Let’s get real.
Best to hope for is fan representation on the board. Two issues there to overcome - significant issues. Will it be a ceremonial role, or will they have proper voting power? And if they are a proper voter on the board, how are they selected? And why would the shareholders give the non shareholder a voice?
I think fan representation on the board has a chance. The issues could be overcome.
51% fan ownership? Not a chance.
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I dont get your thinking on this. Yes the government may say yes to fan ownership but ONLY if the owners want to sell. I own my own business, the government cant suddenly say to me i HAVE to sell because someone else may run it better. It will be the same with this. They can’t say to FSG you have to sell. I mean, who would set the price for one thing? FSG could say it’s worth £10bn to them, the government can’t set a price for something that is privately owned.
PS about the protest today. I have no problem at all with the guys stood outside chanting. The others throwing things etc, well, thats different. I don’t relate to them at all in much the same way i dont relate to the fans that bricked the bus coming to our stadium. Even when we had hicks here i wouldnt have agreed with fans throwing a brick at their car and they’re probably the people i’ve despised most with anything to do with football or our club.
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They are formed by the community. But then when they are sold to private companies they are no longer community assets but people hope the private owners continue to operate it in that spirit.
At the top of the game, that community aspect has been eroded as the money has increased. We’re all complicit in going along with that until it doesn’t suit us.
I get the desire for a fan movement but I think we need to start with something attainable so we have a voice within the boardroom rather than thinking we can force them to sell us a controlling share in their business.
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The only things that were missing from the ‘protest’ today, were pitchforks, ducking chairs and bonfires.
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50+1 is attainable, mate. It’s what fans across the country are calling for. If the concession is less than that, okay, that’s a start, but you don’t push for change with weak demands. That just ain’t how it works. We’ll be trampled on or granted fuck all and then told “this is what you asked for”.
I’m signing off now, to get my G&T ready before Line of Duty comes on. No interruptions.
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United fans have been protesting the Glaziers consistently for as long as I can remember. Not sure where the idea is coming from that this is a new sentiment because they’re not winning.
It got out of hand because everyone has just been released from lockdown and it’s a bank holiday here. The people involved should be fined or whatever but I’ll leave the handwringing to others, I don’t really care.
On a personal level I got to watch The Wire all this afternoon instead of sitting through another game I really couldn’t be arsed watching. Winning.
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He drinks down my local.
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It really really isn’t. You can’t force someone to sell something they don’t want to sell.
Let’s be clear about something here. Those protests today aren’t United fans being pissed off with billionaire ownership. Its them being pissed off with THEIR billionaire owners because of the way they’re running that club.
Arsenal fans weren’t protesting billionaire owners, they were protesting THEIR billionaire owners because he isn’t pumping cash into their club and they aren’t as good as they once were.
Chelsea fans were protesting the ESL idea. Telling that since the idea was dropped and they look like making a CL final they’re protestations have vanished. They know they’d be fuck all without Roman.
Same goes for City. They’ve defended their owners human rights record because they’re winning at football so a short lived ESL idea isn’t likely to turn the fans against them.
Its no coincidence that the biggest protests have come from those fans who are most disgruntled with on field performance. Almost as if the true reason for this is not actually because they want a return to the good old days.
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I’m going to leave it there, mate. You have a much more cynical view of things than me. Fan trusts and unions have been working together - and I include fans of all these groups - solidly for the past few weeks. This isn’t just a one-eyed thing about football. It’s much bigger than that. Let’s leave divide and rule to the other side as far as I’m concerned.
These fucking scruffs protesting about billionaire owners are the same ones who will happily mock fellow working class people about looking in bins for food and eating dead rats.
I will never feel solidarity with these cunts over anything. I hope the Glazers fucking destroy their cunt football club and the massive hypocrite Gary Neville ends up shitting on hard-shoulders like his pisshead ex-manager.
The rescheduled game should be played on our terms, hopefully between the scheduled last game and their Europa league final.
We have nothing in common with these people anymore.
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You don’t mean Moobystan do you?
I’m all for fan ownership, but in the concrete case of PL clubs, and more specifically LFC, how do you achieve it under current circumstances? I for one can’t see a way that wouldn’t be judged illegal by any tribunal.
The only way would probably be the billionaires disinvesting themselves from football in this country, but with all that money at stake, why would they do that?
If anything the fact they’ve been against the Glazers and people are acting like they’ve been happy with this whole time only highlights the point of protests like this one. No one gave a fuck previously and now people are talking.
Once people’s partizan takes are out of the way we’ll probably see a bit more support for their fans rather than the elitist, class based nonsense being spewed about moronic, scruffy drunken idiots who don’t even understand finances kicking off because they’re too dumb to know any better. That’s Tory style Thatcher bullshit that’s been used to divide the working class for way too long.
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The only point I’d dispute is that we are usually the architects of our own destruction when it comes to stuff like this. Utd would be pushing for a default win if this were reversed. We’ll agree to play the fixture at a time of Utds convenience.
I know Jurgen is a nice guy, and I love him for it, but sometimes in sport you have to be a bastard.
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I’ve been part of the Environmental Movement for decades, and taken part in many a protest, but smashing shit up and throwing missiles at people isn’t part of any ‘direct action’ I recognise. I call it rioting.
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Spirit of Shankly can fuck off. I want them nowhere near the running of the club.
The 50+1 arrangement is never going to happen. It would require a conservative government to legislate against the interest of billionaire, and that legislation would be deemed unlawful anyway.
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And furthermore, nobody who wants to remember Hillsborough should be standing in solidarity with people who turn up to football matches with intention to injure and cause criminal damage.
It was that impression of football fans that led to our lads being kettled in metal cages and crushed to death.
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