Ben Clark

I hear plenty of noise online about what matchgoers “ought” to do to force change, most notably demands that we leave Old Trafford empty or throw missiles onto the pitch to stop games. If you don’t attend games regularly, it’s easy to look at things from a distance and assume it’s simply a matter of willpower. Here is the reality on the ground: 1. The “Boycott / Empty Seats” Myth - The money is already banked: Around 46,000 seats belong to Season Ticket holders who pay in advance in May and June—before the previous season has even finished. Whether an ST holder sits in that seat or stays home, the Glazers already have the cash. - Season ticket holders don’t control the stadium: If, on average, 20% of Season Ticket Holders forward or resell through official channels, you’re left with roughly half the stadium’s capacity. The remaining half of the capacity is filled by hospitality and general members paying premium prices, people who aren’t walking out or boycotting. - Strict attendance enforcement: Season Ticket holders must physically attend or officially transfer at least 16 out of 19 Premier League home matches. If you fail to hit that threshold, the club revokes your ticket for the following season. - You don’t create an empty stadium—you create a corporate one: With over 100,000 people on the waiting list and massive international tourism demand, any seat permanently vacated isn’t left empty. The club simply reclaims it and flips it into extortionate single-match membership prices or hospitality packages. - The European comparison doesn’t work: Pointing to Serie A or the Bundesliga ignores the fundamental economics. Many of those clubs have cheap tickets, standing sections, and 50+1 fan ownership models. Old Trafford operates in a hyper-commercialised, sold-out market. Asking a local supporter to sacrifice a seat their family has held for 20, 30, or 40 years, only for it to be sold to a tourist five minutes later, gives the owners zero financial leverage. 2. Throwing Objects onto the Pitch - It’s a specific criminal offence: Under the Football (Offences) Act 1991, throwing any missile onto the pitch or surrounding area is illegal. - It ruins lives, not ownership: Old Trafford is blanketed by modern high-definition CCTV and facial recognition. Anyone caught doesn’t just face a club ban; they face mandatory court-issued Football Banning Orders (FBOs), the surrender of their passport during European fixtures, a criminal record, and potential loss of employment. Furthermore, with modern automated flagging and blanket ticketing investigations, which have been very poor on United’s part, when disorder breaks out, bystanders and innocent people nearby often get swept up in the fallout, losing access to tickets while lengthy club appeals grind on. - Demanding that local matchgoers take on criminal records and jeopardise their livelihoods while you watch in a pub, on TV, or via an illegal stream isn’t a protest strategy; it’s completely detached from reality. What Non-Matchgoers Can ACTUALLY Do to Hit the Model: The club’s ownership model is built on one thing: commercial monetisation of the global audience. That is where you have direct leverage. - Hit the vanity metrics: Unfollow the club's official accounts on X, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. The club pitches these raw follower numbers to prospective commercial partners every day. - Direct consumer feedback to commercial partners: Brands invest heavily for positive sentiment. When supporters collectively make it clear across sponsor channels that partnering with negligent ownership carries a reputational cost, commercial teams take notice. - Starve the Megastore: Stop buying official kits, training apparel, and club subscriptions. If you want United gear, buy retro or support independent fan-made apparel. - Back fan-led advocacy: Support independent fan media, fanzines, and the Supporters Trust. Collective, legal, and political pressure moves the needle; reckless armchair advice does not. If we want change, it requires collective discipline across the entire fanbase—not asking matchgoers to commit financial or legal suicide just to make a 30-second point on television. There’s no divide here: it isn’t matchgoers versus non-matchgoers; it’s all of us. If we aren’t united, we achieve nothing, and that failure rests on every single Manchester United supporter. A better-formatted version of this post is here: cheesesofnazareth.substack.c…