What do you want, a picture of me losing interest in the club as we're bought by a human rights abusing state?
What kind of ownership would impact your fandom or make you lose interest in the club?
- Thread starter SinNombre
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Would I find many of the possibilities distasteful? Certainly, would I prefer a "morally decent" for want of a better phrase? Absolutely, would a distasteful owner make me walk away? Not a chance, Utd have been my club for over 30 years, through some of the hardest times in my life, its been the one constant and I couldnt walk away from that. I thought I could, but I cant.
I'm fine with just being permitted to try.
Are you asking for proof that countries like Saudi Arabia and Qatar violate human rights?
Do you really think MBS and Kim are the same?
Yes it's time people are at least held accountable to what they post. Echoing human rights without the proof or context has been going on for a long time. You have people thinking you can own slaves there
The ones that make me stop supporting the club: 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5.
Would not like but accept: 6, 7, 8 & 9.
Don't think any owners would be great, so it's really just about what you can accept. Can't stand Musk so wouldn't wanna deal with the circus. The same would be the case for anyone like him whether they are Asian, Chinese, Norwegian, English etc. Would be a case by case basis for those.
Were many of our fanbase aware or even care about Uniteds partership woth Mynamar bank. They funded the Rohingya genocides... disgusting. However no uproar.
We've always dealt with non ethical companies and we always will.
We've always dealt with non ethical companies and we always will.
Unfortunately, due to the size of our club/brand and the cost of purchasing it, there probably isn't going to be an ideal 'type' of owner. The purchase price alone is almost certainly going to reach £5billion given the interest from multiple suitors, so, the Glazer's have their bidding war and only the people with wealth in the 10's of billions (probably more) have a chance and they're all realistically people that the vast majority of us would ideally not want running a football club.
What's more, we as fans probably want an investment of close to £2billion to build a new/modernize the current stadium, training facilities and surrounding areas, and of course to wipe clean the current debt. Expecting someone to fork out £7billion in probably a 2-year plan at most is a huge investment regardless of their wealth... Hard to predict the future (Glazer's have obviously massively cashed in) but when we are talking these kinds of numbers, the expected profit in 10, 15, 20 years time is hard to see. It probably will be profitable if things keep going as they are, but that level seems so ridiculous.
Point is, the people that can do this are all going to be far from ideal. However, if they leave the football people to run the football side and fix all of the above (and don't do anything illegal that could jeopardize the club) then I think it doesn't really matter... Fix the problems that the Glazer's have ignored for 10+ years and the fans will be OK with you.
What's more, we as fans probably want an investment of close to £2billion to build a new/modernize the current stadium, training facilities and surrounding areas, and of course to wipe clean the current debt. Expecting someone to fork out £7billion in probably a 2-year plan at most is a huge investment regardless of their wealth... Hard to predict the future (Glazer's have obviously massively cashed in) but when we are talking these kinds of numbers, the expected profit in 10, 15, 20 years time is hard to see. It probably will be profitable if things keep going as they are, but that level seems so ridiculous.
Point is, the people that can do this are all going to be far from ideal. However, if they leave the football people to run the football side and fix all of the above (and don't do anything illegal that could jeopardize the club) then I think it doesn't really matter... Fix the problems that the Glazer's have ignored for 10+ years and the fans will be OK with you.
I absolutely don't give a flying feck about owners (while they are doing best for the club of course).
Nothing about the owners would affect my support for United.
I have been a supporter since I was 11 years old and my uncle took me to my first game at Old Trafford, in the pre-Christmas part of the fateful 1957/58 season.I don't remember much about the game it was against Wolves (I think) but do remember my uncle pointing out Duncan Edwards.
Every owner in my time has at some stage let the fans down, but then most made up for it some other way. Take Martin Edwards, Chairman and major shareholder, he turned it from a family 'hobby' to a family business. Edwards sold Mark Hughes at the peak of his career, and worse of all told everybody Hughes would play all season for United then go off to Barcelona, think what that did for 'sparky's form... but then again it was Martin Edwards that brought Alex Ferguson to the club... Que sera, sera!
The manager's are much more important than the owners.
I have been a supporter since I was 11 years old and my uncle took me to my first game at Old Trafford, in the pre-Christmas part of the fateful 1957/58 season.I don't remember much about the game it was against Wolves (I think) but do remember my uncle pointing out Duncan Edwards.
Every owner in my time has at some stage let the fans down, but then most made up for it some other way. Take Martin Edwards, Chairman and major shareholder, he turned it from a family 'hobby' to a family business. Edwards sold Mark Hughes at the peak of his career, and worse of all told everybody Hughes would play all season for United then go off to Barcelona, think what that did for 'sparky's form... but then again it was Martin Edwards that brought Alex Ferguson to the club... Que sera, sera!
The manager's are much more important than the owners.
So everyone needs to attach some kind of proof of human violation to validate their opinion about not being owned by a state? We have just had a World Cup held in Qatar and the amount of reports released in the lead up, regarding human right violations, was staggering. Figured that just goes without saying when it comes to Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
I think plenty of fans do understand that and don’t like it. However, there is a difference between a sponsorship with a private company and being run by the actual government that is committing these crimes.
I don't want morally compromised owners, but I wouldn't walk away completely unless they tried to influence the culture of the club in a negative way.
Our club is based in a relatively tolerant cosmopolitan city, which broadly accepts all faiths, races, sexualities etc. If any owners tried to get in the way of United being a part of that then there will be big trouble.
Our club is based in a relatively tolerant cosmopolitan city, which broadly accepts all faiths, races, sexualities etc. If any owners tried to get in the way of United being a part of that then there will be big trouble.
Iran is one of the most "liberal" muslim countries in the middle east. Qatar is not one of them.
I think they're smart enough to know they can't change british culture; more importantly I dont think they care about changing it. Its not like they're on a mission to change the occidental world.
It’s a pretty simple psychology trick to give people much worse options than they really have to make their actual options seem not so bad. Is that what you’re trying to do here? Because I can’t figure out why else you would put some of those names in there… North Korea ffs?!?
"Our owner is better than your owner."
Because clearly: owner > club
Because clearly: owner > club
I agree, although I'm talking about changing the club's culture. That's my personal red line though.
I'm not going to suddenly not be a fan if we get a bad takeover. You don't change over 30 years of following with that BUT all interaction with the club would end for me. No merchandise, no watching games.
For the clowns who say things like "will you stop using petrol then?" I have to survive myself, I'm not a pariah, I'll do what I do to continue living but do as best I can to avoid anything with the club.
I value humans over football, plain and simple and I'm happy to be quoted on that.
For the clowns who say things like "will you stop using petrol then?" I have to survive myself, I'm not a pariah, I'll do what I do to continue living but do as best I can to avoid anything with the club.
I value humans over football, plain and simple and I'm happy to be quoted on that.
I think we've got enough evidence in PSG and ManCity to know arabs dont change culture in clubs, if anything they hugely improve their competitiveness. I'm all in with them, bring them on and lets claim back our place at the very top.
Nothing will stop me supporting United, I won’t allow politics or religion or others beliefs to effect it either. There’s plenty of things that I don’t agree with throughout the world yet I’ll never force my feelings or beliefs on to anyone else.
Klopp buying it would be difficult to deal with. Yellow toothed cnut in the stands looking over ETH
But do you value humans over cars and transportation?
Its a false dilema a cheap way to bang your chest and scream Im on a higher moral ground than you. You can separate yourself from the team if you want to I'll be enjoying the hooneys of titles and dominance again.
You do that whilst if a tyrannical regime (which I'm not saying it will be) is killing and suppressing women and LGBT people. Maybe it doesn't affect you so you don't care but whilst you enjoy £200M spend each summer people could be being killed whilst you celebrate.But do you value humans over cars and transportation?
Its a false dilema a cheap way to bang your chest and scream Im on a higher moral ground than you. You can separate yourself from the team if you want to I'll be enjoying the hooneys of titles and dominance again.
That's my point.
You think I should make myself a hermit and starve to death because I can't get to work because I can't get transport there in protest whilst you actively are promoting this in case of potential football trophies. Hard pass
No difference. Even if some new owners take over, it's not like it's forever? Once United were listed on the stock exchange, we kind of lost control anyway.
What's the alternatives?
Musk, Gates, Bezos are just as bad.
Musk, Gates, Bezos are just as bad.
At the moment, it's Sir Jim Ratcliffe (Ineos) as the only confirmed bidder. Qatari state are strongly rumoured and seem likely to submit a bid of some kind. We don't know anything about the identities of any other bidder, but this will surely change in the next week or so, after which there should be at least four or five genuine contenders to discuss (Chelsea had over 15 bidding groups, but the club was on the market for about 50% of the Glazers' asking price for United).
And there was a raging debate over the accuracy of those reports and discerning reality from truth. I don’t think it hurts if people give their actual source. For instance how many of the worker abuses were a cause of independent contractors and not Qataris
Also differentiating between capitalist exploitation of migrant workers vs straight up Iran or North Korea is a big difference
Qatari elite are twats but not much more than European elites but there is a shift in tone when talking about them.
Im not promoting anything, thats the thing it will happen either way sad stuff etc. But like I said before I dont watch football so I can clean my conscience. I didnt choose ManUtd because they're the epitome of football morals. I choose them because we used to be winners, thats what I want to see again in my team. As long as its not cheating Im all in, bring the arab money and trophies. You go on and claim your moral ground I couldnt care less honestly.
My perfect owner is skint because they’ve donated all their money to help children and puppies, goes to church, synagogue and mosque because they believe in equality. By no later than year 5 under their ownership I would like the club to be converted into a giant chapter of the salvation army. Instead of match programs we’ll hand out a brief history of UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia in honor of the brave English and American politicians that made the founding of those wonderful states possible.
It will take some time and lots of hard work, but I believe this club with its support and resources can have the moral high ground some day.
It will take some time and lots of hard work, but I believe this club with its support and resources can have the moral high ground some day.
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I wonder what makes people think that. Has there ever been a case of owners trying to change the culture of a city?
They’d be in it for the money to use the United brand to promote tourism and business to the country so they don’t only rely on gas.
There usually isn’t some grand scheme behind things others than money
That was the act of saudi prince (allegedly). United isn't being bought by them.
But the stereotype that is "all Arab countries are the same " is racism, you know
Ah, you chose United because we were winners. So a glory supporter. It's no wonder you couldn't give a shite about who the owners are. All you care about is success, regardless of the cost.
I'd say most of the options in post 1 would alienate some fans.
Someone lock this disaster of a thread please. Is this is a contest of how racist one can be?
I don’t get that worked up about who the owners are as long as they are respectful of the club and the fans. I keep fandom pretty simple - I love United and I love watching football on the weekends with my family and friends. Some of you all really over-complicate your lives worrying about things you can’t control.
Nobody will ever be happy, because billionaires always have skeletons. Either morally or politically. At the level it takes to get to purchase something as big as United, you're going to be a cnut, sadly.
Thats exactly correct, as I said as long as its not cheating I dont really care.
I haven’t really seen any debates about the accuracies of reports, happy to educate myself on them. I have a tendency to believe Amnesty are telling the truth though.
I would assume that big penalties were handed out to these private companies in that case, people put in prison, workers fully compensated? It’s an easy way for the state to deny involvement, but it just doesn’t wash.
I’m not even going to get into discussions about attitudes on gay rights, women’s right, freedom of expression. It’s been done so many times.