Offside or on track: Why Manchester United fans have mixed reactions to the new stadium

Earlier this week, English football club Manchester United announced plans to build a new stadium. The new stadium will be built next to the club's existing Old Trafford stadium, one that has served the team "brilliantly for the past 115 years," said Sir Jim Ratcliffe, co-owner of Manchester United. 

"By building next to the existing site, we will be able to preserve the essence of Old Trafford, while creating a truly state-of-the-art stadium that transforms the fan experience, only footsteps from our historic home," he added.

The new stadium, as seen in concept art, features a vast umbrella to harvest energy and rainwater and will be twice the size of Trafalgar Square. The outward-looking stadium will also be walkable, served by public transport and endowed by nature.

And while exciting for the brand, analysis by media intelligence firm CARMA revealed that conversations around the stadium has been mixed by fans, with 36.4% positive and 23.9% negative sentiments. Many of the positive mentions refer to Ratcliffe’s comments on the stadium such as how the new stadium has potential to be the most iconic in the world. On the other hand, some netizens disapprove of the stadium's design, using terms such as "circus tent" and "hideous" to describe the stadium, said CARMA.

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In addition, the club's former football manager Sir Alex Ferguson said "Manchester United should always strive for the best in everything it does, on and off the pitch, and that includes the stadium we play in."

"Old Trafford holds so many special memories for me personally, but we must be brave and seize this opportunity to build a new home, fit for the future, where new history can be made," he added. 

For the uninitiated, Old Trafford first opened in 1910, initially designed with a capacity of 80,000. The stadium suffered significant damage during the second world war and was rebuilt and reopened in 1949. Over the years, the stadium underwent several renovations and hosted numerous historic moments in football. Till today, the Old Trafford stadium remains a symbol of Manchester United's legacy. 

So why are fans so split on the news?

Dhruv Rao, senior strategist and Valerie Lim, head of strategy at The Secret Little Agency describes heritage as a mix of the team's history and ongoing achievements. Heritage shapes reputation, fan loyalty, traditions and overall identity. "Nothing encapsulates this better than its famous terrace chant: Hated, adored, never ignored," said Rao and Lim. 

Similar to a brand's purpose, heritage makes it easier for fans to understand the core values of the team. Sports brands with rich heritage, such as Manchester United, Wibledon and Lord's can use this legacy to craft a compelling story about who they are and why they hold such a prestigious place in the sporting world, added Rao. 

Rohan Lightfoot, CEO and founder of Signal Consulting said that heritage is vital in sports branding, and that sports brands that mess with its heritage take an enormous risk. 

"Most sports teams are connected to a location. For a team to even consider changing location within a city can be incredibly controversial. Location is just one aspect of heritage, but the value that fans put on it is a marker of the importance that heritage plays in their love of their team," he said. 

In the UK especially, heritage is important in football. UK football fans have formed their own teams because they felt the owners of the clubs they loved were out of touch with the values that fans felt were important. This includes teams such as FC United of Manchester and AFC Wimbledon for example. The latter was formed because fans objected to Wimbledon FC being relocated to Milton Keynes and renaming to Milton Keynes Dons. 

To ensure fans feel connected to the new stadium, Manchester United has to win games, name stands or parts of the stadium after former players to connect to its heritage and reserve particular areas of the stadium for the most passionate fans to give them a sense of ownership. Opening up the stadium to fans for events and activities beyond match day will also help. However, all of these strategies are secondary to winning on the pitch, Lightfoot said. 

In addition, Manchester United can learn from brands such as UFC, which hosts events on different venues but is still able to connect with the audience through heritage-driven elements such as the iconic octagon ring, the distinctive voice of its fight announcer and widely accessible pre- and post-fight conferences, added Rao and Lim. 

How to remain authentic while modernising? 

To successfully ensure Manchester United doesn't lose authenticity in this move to construct a "state-of-the-art" stadium, it will have to invest in the wider community at the same time as it develops a new facility. Additionally, Manchester United can involve fans groups in the consultation, design and construction process of the new stadium. "However, authenticity is a function of how you behave, it's not something that you can add after the fact," said Lightfoot. 

"You've got to walk the walk in order to be authentic and that's a huge challenge for a sports brand with many stakeholders that may be in opposition over how a club should modernise," he added. 

One other way a sports brand can modernise without losing authenticity is to invest in participation by women. Many different sports around the world are benefitting from fresh investment, fresh thinking and new audiences as a result of opening up participation. Some sports have a perception that it's preserved for certain social groups or that it may exclude minority ethnicities. "Broadening the base of participation is almost always going to make a sports brand - or any other brand - feel more relevant, more representative and more modern," he added. 

Nicolle Jayne Sing, business director, DARKHORSE said that at the end of the day successful modernisation hinges on understanding and respecting the core values and historical narrative that underpin a brand's authenticity.

Moreover, brands should be transparent about their modernisation efforts, explaining the rationale behind changes and acknowledging any potential impact on the brand's heritage. “Honesty fosters trust and helps maintain authenticity,” she said.

Meanwhile, Rao and Lim believe that brands need to evolve in ways that align with what its audience really wants. One such example of this is cricket, a sport deeply rooted in British tradition. Originally played in the five-day test format, the game adapted over time to fit modern lifestyles, first with the one day format and later with the fast-paced T20 version. These changes didn’t alter the essence of cricket but made it more engaging and accessible to a wider audience by delivering the action in a format fans preferred.

The same principle applies to brands - Modernisation shouldn't mean changing for the sake of it. It should, however, focus on areas where fans or consumers are looking for innovation. For Manchester United, this means enhancing the viewing experience, improving fan engaging, strengthening community outreach, making ticket bookings more seamlessa and more, said the pair, adding that: 

By listening to their audience and evolving where it matters, brands can stay relevant without losing what makes them special.

Moving forward, to really resonate with fans, the club must now engage fans in new ways including having diverse fanbase, inclusive experiences and even including those from different communities, explained Edd Hood, senior director of sports activations, George P Johnson.

“Modern fans face increased competition for their time, necessitating flexible and engaging stadium experiences to justify their attendance,” Hood added.

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