Professor discusses human rights addition to Stern

When Manchester City face Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday for the 166th Manchester derby, the game will represent not just an encounter between English football’s leading teams, but also between two contrasting models of football ownership.

Few doubt that United’s owners, the Glazer family, are in it for the money. United made a gross profit of £146 million last year, and much of this was used to pay off the debt the Glazers previously loaded onto the club.

City, meanwhile, are effectively bankrolled by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who bought the club in 2008. Over 2010-2012 the club lost almost £300 million. But this would barely have made a dent in Mansour’s wealth, and he has continued to spend huge amounts on new players and the club’s stadium complex without any realistic prospect of seeing a return on the investment.

As we might expect, the supporters of the two clubs have very different relationships with their owners. In reaction to the Glazers’ 2005 arrival at United, a group of fans decided to form a breakaway club, FC United of Manchester, while others who stayed pursued a vociferous ‘green and gold’ campaign seeking to drive the owners out.

At City, supporters have welcomed Sheikh Mansour with open arms, with academic Dr Chris Porter noting that his takeover “came to pass without any prominent or concerted objections from City supporters”.

(2013-09-23/leftfootforward)