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Ed Woodward insists ‘Manchester United will not seek Super League revival’ as chief speaks to angry supporters in emergency fan forum ahead of protests before Liverpool game
Ed Woodward has promised Manchester United supporters the club 'does not seek any revival of the Super League'.
The outgoing Red Devils chief spoke to supporters during an emergency fan forum held on Friday, with fans expressing their disgust, embarrassment and anger at the planned breakaway.
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Man United supporters are preparing to descend on Old Trafford on Sunday, with around 10,000 expected in attendance ahead of their Premier League grudge match against rivals Liverpool, with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hoping for a ‘peaceful’ protest.
United were one of 12 clubs - including the Premier League’s ‘bix six’ - that announced late on April 18 they were joining the new elite competition, only for it to collapse amid intense pressure within 48 hours.
It was announced that Woodward would be leaving his executive vice-chairman role shortly before the club officially withdrew from the Super League.
The Old Trafford club’s co-chairman Joel Glazer was named as vice-chairman of the new competition, and soon admitted 'we got it wrong’.
But the United chief was conspicuous by his absence from an emergency meeting held on Friday morning, when Woodward apologised for the botched plan during his opening remarks.
Manchester United fans gather at Carrington training ground as they protest against Glazers
“You will all have read Joel's open letter to fans last week apologising for the Super League decision and I would like to add my personal apology to this forum,” Woodward said.
“I know that you will feel angry and let down by the lack of consultation and by the way the proposal failed to recognise the vital principle of open competition. Proper discussion would have helped us avoid the mistake we made.
“While there would have been a substantial increase in solidarity payments from the leading clubs to the rest of the pyramid across Europe, we fully accept that there were fundamental elements which were badly misjudged.
“As Joel said last week, we failed to give enough weight to the essential principles and traditions of sporting merit which are so vital to football not just in domestic competition but in European competition since the mid-1950s.
“We want to restate our commitment to those traditions. I can assure you that we have learned our lesson from the events of the past week and we do not seek any revival of the Super League plans.”
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The fan forum members said the proposal ‘betrayed’ United's history, which has ‘been undermined by an abhorrent plan designed purely to make more money for the self-perceived big clubs’.
Labelling the closed-shop approach ‘arrogant and unfair’, they reminded United of the great Sir Matt Busby saying: ‘We must prevent a football club ever being run like a supermarket with profit the only real motive’.
The fans said ‘change is needed and the club must act now’, setting out a five-point plan that they requested a written response to within seven days.
"We have zero trust in the owners of the club, or faith in them to uphold these statements and do not believe they understand or indeed care about the great traditions and values of our club," read the letter.
"If we are wrong and they are serious about recognising their responsibilities and wanting to learn from supporters' messages, we look forward to you all proving it by taking immediate and decisive action to protect the future interest of the club.”
Man United fans' letter to Glazers
"We, the fan representatives on the Manchester United fans' forum and on behalf of Manchester United fans everywhere, request you agree to:
"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 and not approach this review defensively to fight for the status quo.
"2. Appoint independent directors to the board whose sole purpose is to protect the interest of the club as a football club, not its shareholders and their focus on profits over results.
"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.
"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.
"5. Provide a commitment by Joel Glazer that any costs incurred in relation to the creation of, or withdrawal from, the European Super League will be funded solely by the Glazer family and not by the club itself. We note that the Kroenke family have already made this commitment to Arsenal fans."
Team manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer stressed the importance of fans being heard as he spoke ahead of Sunday’s clash against Liverpool and planned fan protests outside Old Trafford.
United boss Solskjaer said: "It's important that the fans' views are listened to and that we communicate better.
"My job is to focus on the football side and that we have the best possible team.
"As I've said before, I've been backed, I've had great support from the club and the owners and I'm sure I will get the backing again to go one step further.
"But I'm so happy that all the clubs agreed that this shouldn't be the way of moving forward.
"Then again, when the protests are on, it's important that they go in a good fashion and that we keep it peaceful."
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