Everybody hates us/ABU etc

[SalfordRed18]

Why is this nonsense still a thing? We've seen the FA statement today and like clockwork people are claiming it's ABU striking again.

Except, that's nonsense isn't it? There isn't a conspiracy against United. Incompetence is at the root of the decision, not some deep seeded institutionalised hatred of United like someone would have you believe.

And it's not just United. Look at any of the meltdown threads, Liverpool and city fans constantly complaining the entire world is against them and it's not fair. It's absolutely bollocks. There's no specific agenda against any one team from the FA or the media.

But for some reason fans will have you believe they're constantly getting shafted and the world's against them. Why do people have such a hard on to victimise themselves?

Personally think the only club that has a leg to stand on in this regard is Millwall. Everybody hates Millwall for good reason.

 

[kaku06]

@SalfordRed18 is an ABU.

 

[Gazza]

I don't think there's an ABU element in decisions like today's. In fact I find the idea that we are persecuted as a club to be ludicrous. And in terms of the media, it's embarrassing to use terms like 'ABU' when the phenomenon is much simpler: "Man Utd" sells and gets clicks and views, and churning out controversial takes on Man Utd will always get more attention than any other club, so it's no deeper than that.

I do think fans of other clubs tend to dislike Man Utd, probably due to the fact(s) that they were so successful in the 90s, Fergie upset people with his single-minded approach to winning, and the club became so popular at the onset of Sky/Premier League in 1992. So you get fans of random clubs like Middlesbrough or West Ham or Chelsea who utterly despise Man Utd. We're also probably a lightning rod for rivals in the North West, with Man City, Liverpool, Leeds, Bolton, and probably others, who absolutely detest Man Utd.

 

[Jev]

Yeah, it's totally ridiculous but very predictable. Classic fan bias, every team thinks the world is against them. Does seem to be particularly prevalent among United fans, though.

 

[Samid]

Ok ABUmer

 

[Chairman Steve]

Siege mentality breeds a determination to win and overcome like no other. It comes from the manager, down to the players and ultimately down the fanbase, who take it much more literally and personally. That Scottish guy we had for the longest time was the master at it.

Governing bodies and officials are just incompetent or inconsistent. They still feck up even with VAR, so there’s no chance they’re even close to smart enough to pull off this long charade of fecking over certain teams.

 

[Ibi Dreams]

It does feel like we've been particularly unfortunate this season so far, like far more debatable calls have gone against us rather than for us. People are understandably frustrated.

But yeah I don't believe it's an agenda. The FA and refs and VAR are just shit

 

[Amarsdd]

What's wrong with that sentiment?

 

[AFC NimbleThumb]

I don't think there's an ABU element in decisions like today's. In fact I find the idea that we are persecuted as a club to be ludicrous. And in terms of the media, it's embarrassing to use terms like 'ABU' when the phenomenon is much simpler: "Man Utd" sells and gets clicks and views, and churning out controversial takes on Man Utd will always get more attention than any other club, so it's no deeper than that.

I do think fans of other clubs tend to dislike Man Utd, probably due to the fact(s) that they were so successful in the 90s, Fergie upset people with his single-minded approach to winning, and the club became so popular at the onset of Sky/Premier League in 1992. So you get fans of random clubs like Middlesbrough or West Ham or Chelsea who utterly despise Man Utd. We're also probably a lightning rod for rivals in the North West, with Man City, Liverpool, Leeds, Bolton, and probably others, who absolutely detest Man Utd.

What’s happened?

 

[Gazza]

What’s happened?

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/fa-...alace-did-refrain.475535/page-2#post-30117360

nothing major just typical FA ineptitude

 

[AFC NimbleThumb]

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/fa-...alace-did-refrain.475535/page-2#post-30117360

nothing major just typical FA ineptitude

Thanks.

 

[KirkDuyt]

It's almost like all football fans are sort of the same regardless of the club they support

Well except Ajax, they're all cnuts.

 

[Acole9]

It's bollocks and it always has been.

 

[Bertie Wooster]

I would find it very hard to believe that we aren't the most disliked team amongst 'neutrals' in the country. The same applying to the likes of Rangers and / or Celtic in Scotland, Real Madrid in Spain, Bayern Munich in Germany, Juventus in Italy, PSG (currently) in France, etc.

Success breeds both the most support and the most hatred. Very few people will actually be 'neutral' towards the biggest and most successful clubs, and they'll often be the team others dislike most after their particular teams rivals.

That hatred / dislike also seems reflected in the coverage of United in the media, as many journalists, pundits, ex-players who have no allegiance to United will often dislike us and enjoy seeing us struggle rather than succeed. Especially those who were playing against United during the Fergie era of dominance.

I don't think there's any kind of ongoing active bias against United from any particular authority. If there was, we wouldn't have some spells of getting a good amount of (deserves) penalties, good cup draws, etc.

However I am sure there is an ongoing and active bias against United in terms of how the media and public react whenever decisions go against or in favour of us. Decisions that go for us get highlighted and discussed ad nauseum as 'controversial'. Decisions that go against us get silently brushed under the carpet. And that biased and hysterical reporting can seemingly lead to points where there is either a conscious or unconscious tendency for referees to award more against us rather than for us for spells.

 

[Zlatan 7]

Why is this nonsense still a thing? We've seen the FA statement today and like clockwork people are claiming it's ABU striking again.

Except, that's nonsense isn't it? There isn't a conspiracy against United. Incompetence is at the root of the decision, not some deep seeded institutionalised hatred of United like someone would have you believe.

And it's not just United. Look at any of the meltdown threads, Liverpool and city fans constantly complaining the entire world is against them and it's not fair. It's absolutely bollocks. There's no specific agenda against any one team from the FA or the media.

But for some reason fans will have you believe they're constantly getting shafted and the world's against them. Why do people have such a hard on to victimise themselves?

Personally think the only club that has a leg to stand on in this regard is Millwall. Everybody hates Millwall for good reason.

What’s your thinking on the statement by the fa that we didn’t control our players but palace did, you know, the Schlupp starting it all and ayew throwing arms? Did they not see that part?

 

[SalfordRed18]

What’s your thinking on the statement by the fa that we didn’t control our players but palace did, you know, the Schlupp starting it all and ayew throwing arms? Did they not see that part?

"Incompetence is at the root of the decision, not some deep seeded institutionalised hatred of United like someone would have you believe."

 

[Tapori]

Ok ABUmer

 

[Zlatan 7]

"Incompetence is at the root of the decision, not some deep seeded institutionalised hatred of United like someone would have you believe."

Maybe so and they sure are incompetent, I struggle to believe if this happened between say forest and Bournemouth it would be followed up as much with additional fa fines. United are the biggest club in England and are used to make example of

 

[SalfordRed18]

Maybe so and they sure are incompetent, I struggle to believe if this happened between say forest and Bournemouth it would be followed up as much with additional fa fines. United are the biggest club in England and are used to make example of

Literally the bullshit im talking about. In the last decade we haven't been made an example of more so than Chelsea, Liverpool or city.

 

[Rightnr]

I understand the sentiment but honestly, if you look around the other big club fanbases, it's hard to find one who is more universally loathed than ours. Or at least where rival fans usually rejoice in seeing us lose.

That is still after a decade in the (relative) wilderness. SAF just ruined two or even three generations of oppo fans' childhood and it'll be a while before the scar disappears. If we get a new serious owner, it's likely to stay there forever for some of these bitter clowns

 

[NLunited]

It’s clear as day the American Board of Urology (ABU) are pissing on us.

 

[Zlatan 7]

Literally the bullshit im talking about. In the last decade we haven't been made an example of more so than Chelsea, Liverpool or city.

We’ll see what happens next time there’s a melee between smaller teams

 

[Edwards6]

Why is this nonsense still a thing? We've seen the FA statement today and like clockwork people are claiming it's ABU striking again.

Except, that's nonsense isn't it? There isn't a conspiracy against United. Incompetence is at the root of the decision, not some deep seeded institutionalised hatred of United like someone would have you believe.

And it's not just United. Look at any of the meltdown threads, Liverpool and city fans constantly complaining the entire world is against them and it's not fair. It's absolutely bollocks. There's no specific agenda against any one team from the FA or the media.

But for some reason fans will have you believe they're constantly getting shafted and the world's against them. Why do people have such a hard on to victimise themselves?

Personally think the only club that has a leg to stand on in this regard is Millwall. Everybody hates Millwall for good reason.

The big thing that pisses me off about opposition fans and some media is they'll find one incident in a game where we got a decision from the ref and go mad about how the refs give everything in our favour, but completely ignore the decisions that go against us

 

[Bertie Wooster]

The big thing that pisses me off about opposition fans and some media is they'll find one incident in a game where we got a decision from the ref and go mad about how the refs give everything in our favour, but completely ignore the decisions that go against us

Yep. That's definitely a thing.

It's not just United with opposition fans - they'll have that narrow view about any team they dislike, which tends to be a rival team or one of the 'big teams' in each country.

But as United are one of the biggest teams in the world, and had such an era of dominance in the first 20 years of the PL, we definitely get it from more quarters of the English fans / media than any other team. I can't believe that many on here could argue that there's another team that gets more attention, and annoyance, drawn to decisions that go their way than we do. That's definitely a 'thing' that happens.

 

[tjb]

Literally the bullshit im talking about. In the last decade we haven't been made an example of more so than Chelsea, Liverpool or city.

But he's right. Watch any game where we get a decision and you will have discussions on the decisions and commentators citing decisions for us for weeks. Yet when the decision goes against us, its often skipped and never discussed. That's been consistent.

Then you have things like the Rooney ban in 2011 and the length of the Rio ban in 2004.

Add that to the fact that despite having dominant title winning sides, play absolutely beautiful football, Arsenal are often cited as having the best premier league side. Conveniently, large periods of success are made to look far smaller to accommodate other teams in these discussions.

I'm not saying it's an agenda, but it does occur quite often.

 

[NotThatSoph]

It's bizarre. The same people who are outraged at Schlupp were celebrating Young vs Di Maria and Rooney vs whoever that Arsenal player was that was flying off the pitch.

 

[Bestie07]

However I am sure there is an ongoing and active bias against United in terms of how the media and public react whenever decisions go against or in favour of us. Decisions that go for us get highlighted and discussed ad nauseum as 'controversial'. Decisions that go against us get silently brushed under the carpet. And that biased and hysterical reporting can seemingly lead to points where there is either a conscious or unconscious tendency for referees to award more against us rather than for us for spells.

Agree with this.

 

[Jeppers7]

It's bizarre. The same people who are outraged at Schlupp were celebrating Young vs Di Maria and Rooney vs whoever that Arsenal player was that was flying off the pitch.

This post is bizarre…unless it’s in the wrong thread.

 

[NotThatSoph]

This post is bizarre…unless it’s in the wrong thread.

Alright.

 

[justsomebloke]

Why is this nonsense still a thing? We've seen the FA statement today and like clockwork people are claiming it's ABU striking again.

Except, that's nonsense isn't it? There isn't a conspiracy against United. Incompetence is at the root of the decision, not some deep seeded institutionalised hatred of United like someone would have you believe.

And it's not just United. Look at any of the meltdown threads, Liverpool and city fans constantly complaining the entire world is against them and it's not fair. It's absolutely bollocks. There's no specific agenda against any one team from the FA or the media.

But for some reason fans will have you believe they're constantly getting shafted and the world's against them. Why do people have such a hard on to victimise themselves?

Personally think the only club that has a leg to stand on in this regard is Millwall. Everybody hates Millwall for good reason.

Just perfectly normal paranoia. I think this pretty much applies to fans of every club, everyone feels victimised.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

@SalfordRed18 is an ABU.

No doubt abou it

 

[Real Name]

@SalfordRed18 is an ABU.

Close thread.

 

[Jeppers7]

I’ve absolutely no doubt that the FA have in the past and will continue in the future to make an example of Manchester United, as the biggest club in the country.

I also have no doubt that the media will continue to drive this sentiment with the amount of coverage that incidents involving our players receive.

The Wayne Rooney ban, Rio, Cantona set precedents and there is now way the media would have allowed these incidents to get proportionate punishments.

Theres a few incidents that stand out to me that I feel had they been United players, there’s no chance the media wouldn’t have driven the narrative way beyond how they did.

When Eric Dier jumped in to the crowd a few years back and attempted to climb 20 rows of seats in a full kit to get to someone he claimed was attacking his brother, the fa waited 6 weeks to even charge him and four months to hit him with a four game ban.

At the time had that been Paul Pogba or Wayne Rooney they would have been banned the next day and calls for a six month ban, phone ins about how children were in the crowd. Fans speaking of how distressed little Jonny was that night etc. They would have been hit with a ban for the rest of the season and MPs would have joined in the debate.

At the same time as Rio missed a drug test, Lee Hughes a premier league player killed somebody whilst driving under the influence of alcohol and fled the scene. The media agenda was not driven by the seriousness of the offence, and the attention and subsequent public regard in each case was totally disproportionate to each situation.

None of this however is ABU…ABU is fans regards towards United and the fact that most fans would rather see anyone but United be successful. Which is also a thing.

 

[11101]

Of course there is truth to it. Naive to think otherwise. We were by far the most successful team over a 20 year period and a lot of people came to resent us for it. Just speak to any fans of others clubs, they've all loved the last few years for us.

No great leap to think some of those people have found their way into positions of power in the FA, refereeing etc.

 

[justsomebloke]

Of course there is truth to it. Naive to think otherwise. We were by far the most successful team over a 20 year period and a lot of people came to resent us for it. Just speak to any fans of others clubs, they've all loved the last few years for us.

No great leap to think some of those people have found their way into positions of power in the FA, refereeing etc.

Where of course they'd just continue to act like they were fans, paying no heed to professionalism whatsoever. Because obviously that matters more to them than their professional reputation etc.

 

[acnumber9]

I wouldn’t call it an agenda as such but whenever anything goes in our favour it’s headline news all week. You can’t tell me that doesn’t affect a referees mindset when it comes to decisions.

It doesn’t help when charges like those issued yesterday completely ignore video evidence of what actually happened.

 

[Mr Smith]

Is this a bad time to ask what ABU stands for? I've always wondered.

 

[justsomebloke]

Is this a bad time to ask what ABU stands for? I've always wondered.

"Anyone but United".

 

[Swordsman]

Terms like ABU and Manure are still very common in football forums where I am from.

 

[11101]

Where of course they'd just continue to act like they were fans, paying no heed to professionalism whatsoever. Because obviously that matters more to them than their professional reputation etc.

Biases are just part of human nature, no matter how powerful or professional you are.

Why do you think referees aren't allowed to do certain games?