Manchester United fans have issued an ultimatum to the club’s controlling investors over delays in a shareholder scheme, which was promised in the wake of last year’s failure in the European Super League (ESL).
Sky News has learned that the Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST) contacted around 100,000 members on Tuesday to express its concern over the lack of progress in plans to allow fans to own shares with the same voting rights as the Glazer family.
The announcement referred to “lengthy discussions with the club”, but said that United “had not yet made a proposal to us that is sufficiently acceptable to us to let it go to the next stage, which would be a membership vote”.
“Negotiations on these issues may take some time, but we can not allow them to drag out forever, especially as we meanwhile continue to see our club fall on the field,” it said.
Manchester United fans off the ground during a protest against the Glazer family, the owners of Manchester United, ahead of their Premier League match against Liverpool at Old Trafford.
“We have now made it clear to the club that we are looking for a solution to this issue within the coming weeks.
“One thing is for sure – it is inconceivable that we will not have a definitive answer when we reach the anniversary of the announcement of the European Super League. [in late April]. “
Manchester United, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange but remains under the control of the Glazer family through a separate share class, is believed to have proposed issuing around $ 10 million of shares to be earmarked for fans.
While the shares ranked next to Glazer’s shares on ordinary resolutions, however, they would not have done so on special resolutions to be voted on at company meetings, according to a person close to the proposals.
MUST’s intervention comes at a difficult time for the club, who saw their last hope of a trophy this season disappear last week when they were knocked out of the Champions League by Atletico Madrid.
Joel Glazer, United’s co-chairman, said in June last year that the fan share scheme would be launched, adding that he hoped it would be operational by the start of the current season.
A source close to the situation said: “These negotiations have dragged on for almost a year – enough is enough.
“This is about Joel Glazer living up to the big promises he made and whether fans can buy shares with equal voting rights without reservation or waiver clauses from the club.
“There’s mutiny among the wider fan base right now, and if the club does not get on with this quickly, the whole idea will be dead in the water.”
Manchester United fans on the pitch in protest against their owners.
MUST be believed to feel that the Glazers have dragged their feet on delivering their promise, with Sky News reporting as long ago as last November that the two sides made positive noises about an impending deal.
The renewed awareness of the lack of progress in delivering the scheme comes as several bidders at Chelsea promise to incorporate an element of flag ownership in their efforts to buy the Stamford Bridge club following the sanction of Roman Abramovich.
Ministers are expected to report back in the coming weeks on their response to the review of football management published last year by Tracey Crouch, the former sports minister.
This season has been a turbulent one at Old Trafford, with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s departure in November, and then CEO Ed Woodward a little more than a month later.
Solskjær was temporarily replaced by Ralf Rangnick, while the longtime commercial director Richard Arnold was appointed CEO.
The abrupt withdrawal of six English teams from the ESL was triggered by a wave of fan protests against some of their owners – the loudest of which came at Old Trafford, forcing a Premier League match against Liverpool last May to be postponed.
Glazer issued a regrettable apology for United’s decision to join the ESL, which has cost it – and the other founding clubs – millions of pounds in fines from the Premier League and UEFA, European football’s governing body.
Many United supporters have been distrustful of the Glazers since their £ 790m debt-financed takeover of the club. in 2005.
The family launched the company on the New York Stock Exchange in 2012, but retained control.
The ESL crisis prompted two influential supporters of United from the financial world – former Goldman Sachs economist Lord O’Neill and hedge fund manager Sir Paul Marshall – to urge the Glazers to drop the double-class stock structure.
Manchester United have been contacted for comment.