Manchester United fans' group postpones protest against owners
The 1958 had organised a protest march to Old Trafford on August 17th, ahead of United's clash with Arsenal, with banners referring to minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Advertisement
The 1958 has overseen numerous demonstrations in recent years, principally aimed at unpopular majority shareholders the Glazers, but frustration has now spread to Ratcliffe.
🗣️Postponement of Protest – Arsenal (H), August 17th
After careful reflection, and in light of the survey results. We have made the decision to postpone the planned protest for the Arsenal home game on Saturday, August 17th.
For us, it has always been, and will always be, about…
pic.twitter.com/JXHeO0KfFy
— The 1958 (@The__1958)
August 11, 2025
The billionaire British businessman, who owns a 28.94 per cent stake in United, has instigated wide – often unpopular – changes since taking over day-to-day operational control from the Glazers in February 2024.
'Jim Ratcliffe chose to get into bed with the Glazers and, in our opinion, is helping keep them in charge,' said a group representative, who added Ratcliffe was 'no saviour' and 'like a (red) devil in disguise,' last week.
However, after conducting a survey, the group has acknowledged opinion is split and the time is not right for a protest.
Advertisement
A statement read: 'With a fanbase as diverse and passionate as ours, finding the right balance isn't always easy. We've had to consider momentum, timing, fan appetite, broader consequences of protest activity whilst assessing how current and future decisions may impact us as fans.
Manchester United's minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe (Lucy North/PA)
'Given the current sentiment within the fanbase and particularly in light of these recent survey results, it's clear there is no unified view on the direction of the club under Ratcliffe.
'That split is real, and we believe it would be irresponsible to risk creating a situation that could result in any 'red on red' conflict inside or outside the stadium.'
The group say almost 63 per cent of the near 26,000 respondents to their survey said Ratcliffe and his Ineos company should be held to account for their decisions so far by means of a protest. However, 68 per cent also believed they should be given more time.
Advertisement
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Rhyl Journal
14 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
Thomas Frank remains tight-lipped over Tottenham's pursuit of Eberechi Eze
Spurs have held a long-standing interest in Eze, dating back to his time at QPR, but he subsequently signed for Palace in 2020. Eze has since developed into one of the best attacking midfielders in the Premier League and Tottenham have set his sights on landing the 27-year-old before the summer transfer window closes. But asked directly about Eze ahead of Wednesday's Super Cup clash with Paris St Germain, Frank said: 'I think there are a lot of good players out there. 'There are also a few from the PSG team but I don't think we can buy them right now. 'So in general, players in or players out, I always speaking about something that is done or not done. In general, I will speak about my own players.' Frank is in need of creativity, though, after chief playmaker James Maddison recently ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and with fellow midfielder Dejan Kulusevski still sidelined for the foreseeable future after his own knee surgery. After a failed pursuit of Nottingham Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White last month, Spurs have this week ramped up their transfer activity, opening talks with Manchester City on Monday over the signing of versatile attacker Savinho and now in discussions with Palace over Eze. Eze has two years left on his contract at Selhurst Park and has helped the club to FA Cup and Community Shield success during recent months, the latter triumph achieved via a penalty shootout win over Liverpool at Wembley on Sunday. PA understands a release clause in the region of £68million remains active in Eze's current terms, but is set to expire on Friday. It remains to be seen whether Tottenham will activate the clause or attempt to negotiate a more favourable deal, but the Europa League champions are determined to sign Eze, who scored 14 times and produced 11 assists in 43 appearances during the 2024-25 season.
The Independent
14 minutes ago
- The Independent
Starmer accused of ‘abject failure' as people smuggling arrests fall under Labour
People smuggling arrests by the UK's organised crime agency have fallen under Labour, despite Sir Keir Starmer 's pledge to "smash the gangs", as the number of small boat migrants arriving since he took charge soars past 50,000. The latest National Crime Agency (NCA) data shows 192 people were arrested for organised immigration crime in the year to April – down 16 per cent from 229 under the Tory government the previous year. Labour has faced growing criticism over its failure to cut the number of people making the perilous crossing, with education minister Baroness Jacqui Smith admitting the figures were 'unacceptable'. Former Tory immigration minister Robert Jenrick said the latest arrest figures proved 'it's never been easier to be a people smuggler', while former home secretary Chris Philp said they proved Starmer's big talk about smashing the gangs has been an 'abject failure'. It comes as the government ramps up its efforts to tackle the issue amid growing public anger, which has sparked a series of violent protests outside migrant hotels across the country. The prime minister has adopted a hardline approach on immigration, with a string of new measures announced, as he tries to win back voters and fend off the surge in popularity from Nigel Farage's Reform UK. Earlier this year, Yvette Cooper announced an extra £100m to tackle people-smuggling gangs, including 300 more staff at the NCA ' focused on intelligence targeting crime gang members'. And last week, Sir Keir confirmed that the first migrants had been detained under the new 'one in, one out' swap deal between the UK and France – although none have yet been sent back to Europe. The Home Office has also expanded its 'deport now, appeal later' scheme, which sees foreign criminals deported before their appeals have been heard. Despite the fall in people smuggling arrests last year, the NCA said it has "dedicated more resources than ever before' to tackling the threat from organised immigration crime. NCA acting deputy director Dan Barcroft said: 'Arrests on their own are not the only way to judge impact. We have also achieved record numbers of disruptions against people smugglers – 347 last year, up almost a third - each of which will have removed, prevented or reduced a criminal threat.' 'Arrest figures may fluctuate, but over the last four years the NCA has been involved in more than 900 arrests relating to organised immigration crime in the UK and overseas.' The Home Office told The Independent that further people smuggling arrests have been made by Immigration Enforcement and police forces, but refused to share any details. A spokesman said: 'We are taking firm and targeted action to dismantle the organised criminal networks responsible for dangerous small boat crossings – networks that put vulnerable lives at risk and undermine border security.' Reacting to the figures, Mr Jenrick said: 'Starmer said he'd smash the gangs but arrests of people smugglers are down and record numbers of migrants have crossed this year. For all of Starmer's talk, it's never been easier to be a people smuggler.' A Labour MP on the right of the party told The Independent they were 'frustrated' by the government's pace of action. They said: 'The public think we're basically not doing anything and don't believe smashing the gangs will make any material difference. And so far, their suspicions are being borne out by the facts. We have to move heaven and earth to get and show we have control.' Over the past decade, the NCA has been involved in over 2,200 arrests linked to immigration crime in the UK and overseas, with a 93 per cent conviction rate. While the figures do not exclusively cover small boat migration, a large proportion of such crimes involve bringing people across the Channel. This includes arrests across the people smuggling operations chain, from those who supply small boats to lorry drivers illegally ferrying migrants. The NCA told The Independent it is currently leading 91 investigations into organised immigration crime. Despite lower arrest numbers, the NCA said its increased disruptions 'reflect a move towards taking the fight to gangs upstream, focusing on the highest harm networks, and hitting them where the impact on their business will be greater'. One such example last month saw the NCA and Bulgarian law enforcement seize 25 inflatable boats set for use by people smugglers crossing the Channel. Sunder Kutwala, director at the British Future thinktank, said the government's best shot at tackling the problem is to scale up the one-in-one-out deal with France to 500 or 1,000 people a week. 'If [people smuggling] is a lucrative business, and the barriers to entry are pretty low and the cost of getting your dinghy slashed is quite low – or getting low-level operatives arrested is low – you'll always get new entries to the market' he told The Independent. 'The government has now got a shot at establishing the returns deal and, with enforcement, it looks more viable than any of these offshoring models [like Rwanda]. If I was the government, I would [scale up] quickly not slowly.' The number of migrants crossing into the UK by small boats is up 47 per cent from the same time last year, at record levels. Fourteen people have already died this year trying to cross into the UK, with the highest on record (73) last year, and a woman, 30, died on Monday while trying to board a boat attempting to make the crossing to the UK from Dunkirk. The Mayor of Dunkirk, Patrice Vergriete, said that the situation "can't stand much longer". He called for the creation of a "legal immigration route to the UK" saying "our coastline is a daily witness to an absurd, ineffective and terribly cruel management of the migration crisis".
Auto Express
14 minutes ago
- Auto Express
Goodbye Kia Ceed! Popular hatch has been sensationally killed off in the UK
The Kia Ceed has been removed from sale in the UK, marking the end of almost 20 years on the market. A Kia spokesperson confirmed the news as the XCeed variant received an update for 2026 with new engines and equipment. While this crossover edition lives on, the Ceed in its hatchback guise, as well as the Sportswagon estate and ProCeed shooting brake, have ended production and sales. Kia said: 'The end of Ceed family production frees up our manufacturing plant in Zilina, Slovakia to produce the EV4 – Kia's first European-built EV – as we prepare to offer an electric C-segment hatchback for the first time. It also frees up space on the production line for EV2, which will be manufactured in Slovakia from early 2026.' Advertisement - Article continues below While Kia's all-electric range of EV-branded vehicles is growing, the Korean firm will maintain a spot in the internal combustion-engined hatch sector with the upcoming K4 - which we've already driven over in the US where it's already on sale. The Ceed first went on sale in 2006 – with the 'Cee'd' name – and quickly became a huge success for Kia, thanks to its industry-leading seven-year warranty, attractive pricing and solid build quality. Lotus was even involved in the original Cee'd's suspension tuning, although it was never a hot hatch by any means. While you can't buy a new Kia Ceed anymore you can check out the Auto Express Marketplace, where you'll find loads of great deals on used Ceeds, including the ProCeed and the Ceed Sportswagon. Having launched a year after the third and final generation of the Ceed, the XCeed will continue to be produced in Slovakia for the UK market. Did you know you can sell your car through Auto Express ? We'll help you get a great price and find a great deal on a new car, too . Find a car with the experts Fire risk prompts 72,000-car Stellantis UK recall Fire risk prompts 72,000-car Stellantis UK recall 28 models across Alfa Romeo, Citroen, DS, Fiat, Jeep, Lanica, Peugeot and Vauxhall are impacted by the recall Lucky 13 more cars confirmed for Electric Car Grant… but there's a catch Lucky 13 more cars confirmed for Electric Car Grant… but there's a catch The Renault 5 is one of a number of cars to qualify for the Government's new Electric Car Grant, however none of them get the higher £3,750 amount Car Deal of the Day: rapid Audi S3 for a tempting £391 per month Car Deal of the Day: rapid Audi S3 for a tempting £391 per month The Audi S3 is a powerful but understated hot hatch that is great value right now. It's our Deal of the Day for August 8
