At Old Trafford, where football memory is often displayed as visibly as silverware, Manchester United supporters are preparing to revive a banner aimed across the city. The Stretford End will unveil a revised “51 years” sign for Saturday’s meeting with Tottenham Hotspur, treating Manchester City’s recent honours as void in the wake of confirmed financial-rule breaches.
Key takeaways
- The banner returns for the first time since 2011, when it had reached “35 years”.
- Its new number removes City’s 20 trophies won across the past 18 years from the supporters’ count.
- The display was produced by The Red Army group at a cost of £114, roughly €120.
- City were found guilty over financial irregularities linked to accounts inflated by €1 billion between 2009 and 2018.
- Liverpool fans plan a banner, flag and flare display as City’s team bus arrives at Anfield on Sunday.
A count restarted in the Stretford End
The original sign first appeared in 2000 and read “24 years”, marking the period since City’s previous trophy. It was amended each season until 2011, when City lifted the FA Cup to end a 35-year wait for major silverware.
That cup was the first trophy of the Abu Dhabi era, following the 2008 takeover, and preceded the sustained run of success that transformed City’s place in the English and European game. United supporters now intend to disregard that entire haul, with the new banner presenting City as having gone 51 years without a legitimate title.
The display is expected to be among the flags traditionally raised before kick-off in the Stretford End. It is the first organised visual response from United’s support since the financial case reached its conclusion.
Financial case sharpens the rivalry
The case centred on 115 alleged financial breaches, first made public in February 2023. The findings concerned a period from 2009 to 2018, during which City’s accounts were said to have been overstated by €1 billion.
United fans have already made the issue part of matchday culture, regularly directing a chant at their neighbours: “We know what you are — cheats.” The resurrected banner takes that message from the terraces to the stadium’s most recognisable end.
The response will not be confined to Manchester. When City travel to Liverpool on Sunday for their first match since the guilty verdict was confirmed, Liverpool supporters plan to greet the visiting coach outside Anfield with flags, banners and flares referring to the decade-long wrongdoing.
