This is
Kevin Genner`s Manchester United Page
As a Manchester United fan (along with my brother; Levison, my sons; Matthew, Liam & Ryan & my wife; Joanne), I attend as many matches as possible. I have been a Manchester United fan for most of my life. I first attended matches in 1973 and witnessed first hand, Manchester United being relegated to what was then the second division.
At that time, my friend Dave Robey (from Broseley) & I travelled by coach with the Telford Reds. We were dropped of in Piccadilly Manchester & we then caught the train to the Manchester United Football stadium; Old Trafford. In those days, we used to stand during matches & part of the overall excitement was the way that we were carried (as if with a wave) as the crown surged forward during moments of excitement, & crowds of 60,000 were common.
This was a different age, and despite the prevalent problem of football (soccer) hooliganism, tickets were available on the gate to both home & away fans.
Today, Old Trafford is completely different. The club is arguably the richest & most famous in the world, the facilities are amongst the best available at any club ground (although the seats could be wider) and the team is quite simply awesome. As for the manager; Sir Alex Ferguson, he is arguably the best manager in the world & is probably the greatest manager of all time.
Match day tickets are usually not available on match days (from official sources) and demand for match tickets usually exceeds availability. This problem has prompted Manchester United to increase the capacity of Old Trafford up around 76,000.
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The above picture shows how Old Trafford will look after the expansion
Even after this development is complete, demand for match day tickets will probably exceed demand. however; there are ways to obtain tickets legitimately. The first must be to become a match member of Manchester United. This is effectively a club (named One United) & all members are issued with a card which entitles them to discounts in the Manchester United megastore, free entry to reserve team home games etc, plus a yearbook and a match ticket application book.
The One United Membership card
Becoming a match member allows you to apply for tickets, but match tickets are allocated via a ballot (lottery) system, and personal experience has shown that you are extremely unlikely to obtain tickets for more than one or two matches per season, & that these will be against the "lesser" teams. This is simply due to problems of supply & demand in that there are not enough seats to satisfy demand. Additionally; Manchester United supporters clubs are allocated tickets & priority is always given to Season Ticket holders (after all they have already bought tickets to every home game).
The answer to this problem is (in my experience) surprisingly simple.
You could try & buy a season ticket from an existing season ticket holder (Manchester United do not have spare season tickets), but you would have to first find a Season Ticket holder who is prepared to sell, & will then need to apply for tickets in that persons name.
Tickets are often available from touts who mingle with the crowd outside Old Trafford on match days. However, I would advise against buying from touts as you obviously can not be sure that the tickets are legitimate. Rather than "going down this route", I would suggest that you contact your local Manchester United Supporters club and ask if they have any spare tickets available.
However; by far the best way to obtain match tickets is to join your local Man Utd Supporters club, and also join the official Manchester United supporters club; "One United", but tell Manchester United when applying for your One United membership that you are also a member of your local supporters club. This will allow your local supporters club to apply for tickets on your behalf & your chances of obtaining match tickets will be vastly improved.
Other options do exist (my brother & I bought tickets for Man Utd v Liverpool in the Liverpool end at the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff, & then approached what seemed like hundreds of pairs of Liverpool fans asking whether they had tickets in the United end. We eventually fell lucky & swapped for two brilliant seats in the United end, directly behind / above the TV camera crews, so we could even watch the action replays). We have also bought tickets legitimately to pre-season friendly matches (eg for the match at Shrewsbury when we beat them 1-8 and against Boca Juniors at Old Trafford), and for testimonial matches (we were also at Old Trafford for Alex Ferguson`s testimonial against a "Rest of the World XI" & for Ryan Giggs`s Testimonial against Glasgow Celtic).
The reason that tickets are easier to obtain for these matches is quite simple; Season Ticket holders are not automatically awarded tickets for friendlies & often do not apply for tickets, therefore the pool of available tickets is naturally greater.
Additionally; when Man Utd play in lesser matches (such as the Community Shield at Cardiff), Manchester United do not usually sell all of their ticket allocation. Therefore these are often available to the general public from the ticket office in the weeks immediately before the match.
Parking near Old Trafford
If travelling with a Manchester United supporters club, this is obviously not a problem as you will travel by coach & this will usually park on the Trafford Park Industrial Estate.
If travelling by car, try to arrive early & do not be fooled by the many people who stand by the side of the road holding a sign advertising parking space. These people will often simply direct you to a kerbside, take your money (usually £3) and do nothing to look after your car. When we travel by car, we always arrive early & park within the grounds of one of the local schools. This not only ensures that your car is safe (they usually lock the gates during the match), but also helps the school by supplying additional revenue.
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