United fans' derby protest over banning crackdown deserves City supporters' solidarity, not scorn

Manchester United supporter group The 1958 will protest outside Old Trafford before Sunday’s Manchester derby, targeting what they call a heavy-handed ‘season ticket banning crackdown’ that they argue caught innocent fans in the crossfire of the club’s anti-touting operation.

United launched the investigation in July, describing it as “successful” in tackling genuine touts. But the club also acknowledged that “some innocent supporters may have been affected” and apologised for the inconvenience. An appeals process followed, with some restrictions lifted and others upheld — leaving a group of fans who continue to protest their innocence facing ongoing sanctions.

The 1958 declared that “a line has been crossed”, pointing to the fact that the operation was rolled out without consultation with supporter groups. Several fans told the Manchester Evening News they suffered significant stress during the episode, and the club has faced accusations of treating its own season ticket holders as an inconvenience rather than an asset.

United insisted that any revoked season tickets would be reissued, but the optics have done little to reassure long-standing supporters who already feel marginalised under the current ownership.

For Manchester City fans inclined to mock their rivals, the situation carries an uncomfortable mirror. City’s own ownership attempted to raise season ticket prices both last season and again this season, backing down only after sustained protests from supporters. That campaign succeeded where United fans have so far struggled — but the underlying fight is the same.

Two years ago, when United raised Premier League ticket prices to £66 with no concessions for children or pensioners, some City supporters laughed. Others recognised the direction of travel: price rises and supporter squeeze are a Premier League-wide phenomenon, not a club-specific one. Events at the Etihad have since proved the point.

The broader picture is one of working-class fan culture being steadily priced and processed out of the top flight. Whether the issue is a £66 match ticket, a failed season ticket price freeze, or an anti-touting operation that ensnared loyal supporters, the pressure falls on the same people — those who have followed their clubs for decades and built the atmosphere that makes the Premier League a global product in the first place.

Rivalry between United and City supporters is as fierce as any in English football, and neither set of fans would claim otherwise. But when the fight is over who gets to sit in the ground at all, mockery across the divide serves nobody.