Manchester United Fans’ Forum – Minutes Friday 1st May 2015 Aon Training Complex

Forum Members Brian David Phil Peter Colin Josh Joanne Ruairi Roger Marc William Philip Lindsay Alan Andy

Airley Blackledge Downs Evans Howard Llewellyn McDonnell McMenanin Muckle O'Day Prestwich Reynolds Roe Thomas Whitehead

Over 65s Representative Season Ticket Holder MUDSA Representative Branch Representative (Cardiff & South Vale Branch) Branch Representative (Bridgwater & SW Branch) Season Ticket Holder Manchester/Salford/Trafford resident ST Holder 16-21 Representative Executive Club Representative Official Member Official Member Season Ticket Holder Branch Representative (Nottingham Branch) Official Member Family Stand Representative

Club and Foundation Officials John Richard David Sam Gillian Guy Chelsea Philip

Alexander Arnold French Kelleher Mitchell Smith Mould Townsend

Topic

Club Secretary Group Managing Director Director of Venue Head of Ticketing and Membership Operations Relationship Director, Manchester United Foundation Director of Venue Operations Ticketing & Membership Services Team Leader Director of Communications

Speaker

1. Apologies / Introductions

RA

 

Gillian Mitchell attended in place of John Shiels Chelsea Mould (from Ticketing) attended in place of Stephanie Toman

2. Minutes (last meeting)

RA



The previous minutes were agreed.



The summer tour to the USA and participation in the ICC Trophy was announced this week.



The following games will form part of the tour:

3. Tour Update

JA

Opponent Club America (from Mexico City) San Jose Earthquakes

Date

Location

Friday 17th July

Seattle

Tuesday 21st July

Barcelona

Saturday 25th July

TBC but likely to be San Francisco Bay area Santa Clara`s Levi Stadium

Paris Saint -Germain

Wednesday 29th July

Soldier Field

Topic

4. Offensive Chanting

Speaker 

At the Manager`s request the team will base themselves in two camps, initially Seattle and then San Jose.



In accordance with the Manager`s wishes there are no plans for any games after the USA tour.



A ticket pre-sale is available from Monday 4 May – supporters can register at www.manutd.com/Tour2015



The Club also expect to receive a small allocation of tickets, but would recommend that supporters register for the pre-sale and try to obtain tickets directly from the promoter.



The pressure group Women in Football wrote to us in February with a complaint about sexist chanting directed at the Chelsea physio at the game between the two teams in October. As the game had already passed (and the matter was not drawn to the attention of stewards at the time, nor was a complaint made on the day or subsequently) the Club advised that the only recourse was to make a formal complaint to the police. After a request from Women in Football, the Club itself made the complaint to GMP.



As part of the positive dialogue with Women in Football, the Club agreed to include a request for vigilance on sexist chanting in the briefing for stewards before each Old Trafford game (in addition to that on racist chanting) and to raise the matter at the next available Forum in order to seek the views of fans on how to tackle this issue. The Club also agreed to improve the advertising for the text alert service (Help to 60442) which allows fans to report offensive behaviour.



All acknowledged this would be difficult to resolve but a number of options were raised by members:

PT

th

− − − − − −

5. Persistent Standing

The extension of Kick It Out activity to cover sexism as well as racism (already begun but possibly needs accelerating) Anti-prejudice advertisements in the programme and on digi-boards Greater publicity for the anonymous whistleblower text service including texting ST holders pre match and heightened awareness during games and in fan literature throughout the season Use of branches to communicate key messages Co-operation with the Premier League to tackle the issues nationally Have a guaranteed annual discussion at the Forum and in meetings with fan groups



In response to an increase in the number of complaints received from supporters in relation to persistent standing within the stadium, the Club is proposing to introduce a campaign for the 2015-16 season to educate supporters that persistent standing is not accepted by other supporters.



Whilst the Club is obliged to address persistent standing as a condition of our stadium safety certificate, we believe that the most workable solution is for the majority of supporters remain seated of their own volition. Therefore the campaign will focus on the impact of persistent standing on fellow supporters rather than the Club enforcing its obligations. It is proposed to draw on the experiences of supporters who are unable to stand for long periods (such as children and older supporters) as well as those who prefer to sit down.



Members suggested that communicating the effect on other fans would be beneficial but called for greater consistency in enforcement by stewards. It was suggested that the issue was raised when season tickets are distributed.

GS

Topic

6. Stadium Acoustic Update

7. Away Game / Loyalty Pot Validation Update

8. MU Foundation Update

Speaker 

RA reaffirmed that he and the Board are supportive of safe standing in the right environment and believes that such a measure would alleviate this issue. He acknowledged that there were many issues to think through before such a measure was possible, though



The suggestion of unreserved seating was considered impractical because of the likely reduction in capacity that would result from a reassessment of the stadium’s licence in such circumstances.



We have been monitoring the decibel levels at each Premier League home game and have compiled a list of the average & highest level for each game.



The loudest ‘moment’ recorded was following Herrera’s 91st minute goal against Aston Villa (final goal in the 3-1 victory) which was recorded at 118.2db. To put this into context, physical pain is said to start at 125dB



The highest average noise level recorded for a game this season was th 95.7dB vs. Manchester City (Sunday 12 April 2015).



Further to the update in the February Forum, unfortunately there has been little progress in terms of validating additional LP members. − Collections were cancelled at Newcastle & Chelsea as they had no collection points available − Liverpool was deemed unsuitable



As previously discussed, additional checks / validation processes will be put in place for Executive Club members and Season Ticket holders in the Standard Pot for the 2015/16 season; however full details are still being planned.



As soon as plans are confirmed, we will notify all relevant supporters.



RA restated the Club’s primary focus is to systematically address issues (real and perceived) in order to increase allocations to the maximum possible, e.g. issues such as standing in aisles and other elements of bad behaviour. Some 11 clubs have reduced MU’s allocation this season.



Red Heart United June 14 ; a great family day out – a mixture of the Legends game, with music and lots of our projects represented, real demonstration of how the Foundation has grown.



Development plans growing, we are working in more schools with more children, making more of a difference.



We have started new pilot course in our Hub Schools, United Ambition. In talking to the Police, they highlighted that the exploitation of girls and sexual trafficking is highly prevalent in all of the areas where we work (Rochdale and Rotherham are the tip of the iceberg). We are working on a course to promote Girls Leadership, on the premise that we would get to strong females who would then go and mentor younger girls in their school.



‘Lead the United Way’ is the equivalent for boys in schools. The situation in Education, is that the sector that achieves the least academically, is white working class boys. We have therefore created ‘action learning courses’ through football, where we can engage and motivate these young people to do better from a coaching standpoint.

DF

SK

GM

th

Topic

Speaker

9. MUDSA Update

PD



We are just completing a very successful first season sponsoring a local grassroots junior league (the first club to do that). Over 6,500 children play in the league with teams from Salford, Manchester and Trafford. As well as building awareness for the Foundation with these families through high exposure, we also encourage older players in the league to do a level 1 coaching course, and then volunteer with their clubs. We also run coaching sessions for local team mangers.



Next season we hope to start a similar relationship with the local Girls’ League.



PD was recently invited to present about our disabled facilities at FC Barcelona.



A review of short/medium term options for upgrading certain aspects of disability related seating is being conducted, which may also mean a potential change to the Club’s Policy/Access Statement.



A review is being conducted into the Suitability criteria for those wishing to attend matches with disabilities to try and ensure information is accurate and any safeguarding issues are avoided.



A MUDSA documentary and book re 25 years anniversary is currently in production.



The migration of calls away from the MUDSA 0845 enquiry number to a standard number is underway.



The issue of disabled car parking was discussed, as it sells out very quickly. PD explained that some spaces are sold seasonally and the remainder sell quickly. RA suggested that the Club should investigate pairing membership applications with known needs so that if successful in the ballot, the Club is aware of the parking and mobility issues that arise from that successful application. In addition, the Club agreed to investigate an expansion of the electric buggy service currently operating from N3.

10. Members' Questions (Updates / New Questions)

Update: Why are shirt replicas not made in XXXXL?

a.

Shirt availability in XXXXL

DF

Last update: This question has previously been raised, and at the time, when discussed with Nike, it came down to a commercial decision (lack of demand). However, we will discuss with Adidas, and also undertake a fan survey to understand the demand for additional sizes, and if the demand is there, the Club will look to directly provide a service. 

We have discussed with Adidas and as a result ordered XXXXL shirts for the 2015/16 season which will be available in the Megastore from August / September 2015. If demand proves to be there, we will continue to offer these in future seasons (note: we still intend to include the subject of shirt sizes in a fan survey in the coming months).

Topic

Speaker Q: When the club reaches a cup final, ticket applications are first limited to those that have applied for the semi and or away games. Is there a reason this method is not used for big league games i.e. to apply for Liverpool or city away you need to of applied for so many other away games.

b.

Away game ticket allocation distribution

SK



Applications for cup finals have not recently taken into account semifinal or other away game applications.



Given our recent efforts to ensure that the people who apply for tickets are actually those who are attending the game, allocating tickets in this way would be a backwards step, i.e. allocating tickets for bigger games to those who have applied for the most away games would encourage people to apply who have no intention of attending the game.

Q: Regarding away games, is there any reason why it would it not be possible for a successful applicant (Standard Pot or Loyalty Pot) who is unable to attend the match for a genuine reason to nominate a replacement?

c.

Away game ticket exchange

SK

The named replacement should be someone who applied for the game but was unsuccessful. Their name, Season ticket number, date of birth and postal address could be supplied to the club and if required s/he would be able to collect the ticket on the day of the game with photo ID for validation purposes. The background to this question is that Execs are allowed to nominate other people for away games and so also, in effect, are all Season Ticket holders for home games, where they may choose to give their ticket to someone else. 

Again, this would encourage people to apply who have no intention of attending the game.



We already have an average of 9,000 unsuccessful applications for every game.



The fairest way of allocating any additional tickets (e.g. not required by players) is randomly, to unsuccessful applicants, as per the ballot process.



Tickets are dispatched immediately after the ballot to the registered ticket holder, therefore making the proposal to collect tickets on the day of the game, unworkable.

Q: Can I bring the question of support for the building of steam locomotive 61662 Manchester United to Richard Arnold. A few Forums ago, the subject was introduced by myself and the club were considering ways they could assist. d.

Manchester United locomotive



GS

Support has been offered and representatives from the Club and restoration group remain in monthly contact. Offers to date include: − Historic research by the museum − Visit to the project (may be with legend) − Exposure on social media − We have already featured the project in the match programme which can be repeated

Topic

Speaker 

We have had several meetings with TfGM about the proposed Metrolink extension and are supportive of this proposal. We have also met with representatives from Trafford Council to discuss public transport to Old Trafford more broadly and have further meetings scheduled to develop our thoughts for how this could be improved

Q: Why is the Red Café not open in the evening? e.

Red Café opening times



We do open the Red Cafe later in the summer months to tie in with the extended opening hours of the Museum and Tour Centre, however demand has not been there to support this on an on-going basis.



However, if through research, we establish there is a demand for a stadium restaurant to be open in the evenings, we will look at options.

DF

Q: I would like to request that the role of the Fans Forum be highlighted more on the website or emails be vetted. I have received several emails through the fans forum requesting favours from the club and players which I have no control over. I have referred these people to write in to the club, but it can be very time consuming dealing with requests I can't help with.

f.

Role of the Fans’ Forum representatives



The Forum now has a link from the new CSR section of the website but any change of the main site has to be in a broader redesign project, which is under consideration but not imminent.



Raising the profile of the section is likely to lead to more traffic not less; we can include a signpost to the FAQ section and to the Enquiries line but, short of us vetting the emails before you see them (which may destroy people’s anonymity) there is no option but to allow direct access.



Any irrelevant emails, please feel free just to forward straight to Enquiries – even without a note from you at the start. They will then be dealt with under the correspondence system outlined in the Club Charter. PT agreed to circulate the enquiries email and look at the drafting of the Forum page to make its activities more prominent.

PT

Q: Tickets for European away games. Is it possible to sell away games earlier or get fans to show interest to purchase to maybe getting a greater allocation and to help fans get better travel deals so getting more time. Away games in December you only have a couple of weeks to organise travel once you know you have got a ticket making it more expensive than if you knew in September.

g.

European away game timings



The reason for ‘delayed’ ballots for European away games is that we allocate tickets to people with credits for previous games.



We therefore have to wait until the previous game has been played before we can open applications for the next game.



Having said that, if we qualify for European competition next season, and there is a particularly short time frame between two European away games, we will review the application dates for the latter fixture.

SK



As a reminder, for the first European away game we will use credits obtained in the 2013/14 season

We usually request the highest number of tickets available, or if we do not believe demand will exist, we have never been in a scenario where we have requested a lower allocation, and then been over-subscribed.

Topic

Speaker 

We've consulted with our travel partner who conducts regular market research, and they have confirmed that price hikes are seen as soon as the fixture is announced (rather than a staggered increase as the game approaches).

Q: As it will be 58 since 58 are the club planning anything different to remember Munich by?

h.

Munich memorial plans

11. Any Other Business

PT



For some time now the Club has only made extra plans to commemorate the Munich crash on major number anniversaries (40th, 50th etc.).



No plans to deviate from that practice.



We have in recent years put effort and resource into helping the supporters run their own memorial event to make it a fitting tribute.



Will continue to work with fans to do that.



When asked if there were any plans to redevelop the south stand, RA said that there were no immediate plans in relation to the south stand, but that the Club is looking at the layout of areas around the stadium to see if they can be improved for match-going fans.



Members who have come to the end of their two year term were presented with a gift by RA and thanked for their service. Retiring members were:

RA -

Will Prestwich (Official Member Rep) Marc O'Day (Official Member Rep) Brian Airley (Over 65s Rep) Andy Whitehead (Family Stand Rep) Roger Muckle (Executive Member Rep) Joanne McDonnell (Local Rep) Phillip Reynolds (Season Ticket Holder Rep) Colin Howard (Branch Rep)