That is a myth and there are still more United fans in Manchester / Salford etc, but elsewhere regionally there are more City fans, particularly young ones. The City fans at my workplace have become far more vocal recently and bang on about world domination, and will always gloat over any trophies during meetings in a joke but not joke kind of way. City also do a lot more outreach in the city-region with kids so there will be more CIty fans than Unite fans one day. This all comes back to the owners of the two clubs and how they operate.
"City have more fans in Manchester than United"
- Thread starter Andycoleno9
- Start date
Before I started this new job (which has a mix of United and City fans), I met only 2 City fans in 3 years. Everyone I met through uni who were from Manchester, through working at Piccadilly station and then in Spinningfields, even through friends and their colleagues were United fans. I think I’ve posted about it on here before but from my experience of living in Manchester I can comfortably say there’s more United fans. Proofs in the pudding when I can easily think of 5 United pubs in the city centre and only 1 City pub.
Newsflash: they are bandwagon jumpers, (like most on here) not fans
Real, sustained support is founded over more than a couple of bought titles .
It's one of them stupid things BlueMoon & Twitter wankers (about 3% of them actually live in Manchester) had talked enough about, to the point where it seems like it's true. And then the "medias" reported them as clickbait news. Honorable mentions :
- Rags
- PiGMOL
And kids.
Which shouldn't be underestimated. Successful teams do attract young followers and if the success is lasting, those kids won't jump on the next bandwagon before some kind of proper connection has been established. That's how it works.
Well, traditionally anyway. There's some reason to think that kids these days are more prone to follow individual players - rather than teams - than was the case back in the day. But still: look at Chelsea. They weren't a small team before Roman (they did have some history, and they did have a reasonably strong local support) - but on the global scale they were nothing to speak of (behind a number of English clubs with some history to their name). Now, they have a large world wide fan base (not compared to United or Liverpool - but compared to most teams). And that is all down to the "plastic" success they've enjoyed in the Abramovic era.
The "artificial" taint wears off over time. That will happen with City too - I'm sorry to say.
I went to school in Stockport in the 90s/00s. In my primary school, there were 4 City fans in my year (c. 80 people) and at high school, maybe 20 in the year (of c. 150).
Never understood this fans in Manchester thing. Their numbers have increased this decade but the attendance figures say it all, when a student can buy an ST for City for £120 but they still have 20,000 empty seats watching the best players in the world.
Never understood this fans in Manchester thing. Their numbers have increased this decade but the attendance figures say it all, when a student can buy an ST for City for £120 but they still have 20,000 empty seats watching the best players in the world.
A true fans team should be in their blood from childhood... doesnt matter If its Hyde United, Stockport, City or a big club like United. Who cares who have the most fans... its your team and you are there backing them through the good times and bad.......
Yeah it will be interesting to see because tbf to their horrible owners they've done a fantastic job in the local community. United do a lot of work too but not with the same commitment and money as City I don't feel. It's one of the reasons I don't hate City even though they have more than their fair share of complete gimps in the fanbase.
Feels like I've read this claim about every single city that has more than one (vaguely relevant) club. Though I suppose if trends aren't reversed this might actually become true at some point?!
https://e-space.mmu.ac.uk/12506/1/seasonticketreport - brown1.pdf
Think this is what you’re looking for OP.
Came out years ago and the findings then were as anyone who has grown up in the area knew already:
• United have more fans in Manchester.
• A random United fan was less likely to be from Manchester than a random City fan. Obviously, cause United have supporters all over the World, back then City didn’t.
Stupid myth perpetuated by a yoyoing fans base who’s biggest heroes were Shaun Goater & Paul Dickov
Think this is what you’re looking for OP.
Came out years ago and the findings then were as anyone who has grown up in the area knew already:
• United have more fans in Manchester.
• A random United fan was less likely to be from Manchester than a random City fan. Obviously, cause United have supporters all over the World, back then City didn’t.
Stupid myth perpetuated by a yoyoing fans base who’s biggest heroes were Shaun Goater & Paul Dickov
City don't even fill their stadium. You can see that each week with your own two eyes. It's obvious they don't have as many fans in Manchester or anywhere else for that matter.
Never Stockport then?
Haha, I live in Stockport and although it’s as blue as it gets, I’d still say growing up here there were more reds than city fans. Was about 75/25 red at my school too.
I went to school in Manchester in the 1970s/80s. My class of 30 contained 24 united fans 5 city fans and 1 Oldham fan. City fans were vastly outnumbered.
That's quite the bump
It is. Sorry. I just got reading this thread without realising how old it is.
Well it is a funny old game
It was just a stick to beat United with when they were succesful.
It might be a more even split now but it definitely wasn't true at the time.
One of the papers did a survey at the time and it came out about 75% United 25% City.
The idea a team would gain loads more local fans by being shite for decades doesn't really need a survey to prove it's nonsense though
It might be a more even split now but it definitely wasn't true at the time.
One of the papers did a survey at the time and it came out about 75% United 25% City.
The idea a team would gain loads more local fans by being shite for decades doesn't really need a survey to prove it's nonsense though
let’s get you back to the care home, grandad.
Ah I didn't mean to take the mick, just made me chuckle to see how out the blue it was!
In what universe would city have more fans than us. Not in Manchester, certainly not worldwide. Just watch one of their games on tv and that says it all. There atmosphere is atrocious aswell.
Compare their treble celebrations to ours.
Enough said.
Enough said.
Grew up always knowing more United supporters than City but in school it was 60/40, there were a surprising amount of blues in my area. Guess where I was born? Stockport.
This was before all of their success.
This was before all of their success.
What do Manc reds think of non-Manc reds? Pain in the arse and wish they'd f**k off, or welcome to support the club?
I love that we have fans from all over the world. I don't think I'm a better fan than anyone just because I'm from Manchester.
This is third fall this month.
Read somewhere there are more Utd fans in London than Manchester
And yet there's still more United supporters in Manchester than there are City fans.
It seems incredibly unlikely to me that united have more fans than city everywhere other than their own city. Makes absolutely no sense at all. We have pretty much always had more fans and been a bigger club.
I think this is along the lines of ‘United dont even play in Manchester’ etc with the city council boundaries not really reflecting the city.
In Greater Manchester there would be way more United than City. Places like Salford and Trafford are red.
If you just look within the council boundary its probably a lot closer.
In Greater Manchester there would be way more United than City. Places like Salford and Trafford are red.
If you just look within the council boundary its probably a lot closer.
Was there an advertising machines in Manchester last week with a QR code where you voted whether you’re red or blue ?
Seen it online I’ll see can I find it .
All welcome unless you're a prick. I've never really understood following us without a connection to the city in the family somewhere but each to their own.
Loads of City fans in Oldham and Stockport, to be fair.
Always been one of the biggest myths in football.
Was it on Bluemoon?
I'm an Irish Red (lived in Manchester/Stockport - so Greater Manc, since 2006) and can tell you we are the biggest pain on the arse going.
The arguments I had growing up amongst Irish Liverpool fans. Christ. Usually, which was the most Irish was the hotly disputed point.
The city fans myth was widely believed when I was growing up, chiefly due to a radio DJ called Des Cahill. He's allegedly behind the term 'ABU'. It gained some traction, too. Met people who believed it wholesale.
An early introduction into how misinformation pervades the public space.
Well London has a population of 8.8 million and Manchester around 550k, so every person in Manchester could support united and less than 10% of London's population and it would still be more
Well London has a population of 8.8 million and Manchester around 550k, so every person in Manchester could support united and less than 10% of London's population and it would still be more
City of London is tiny, to be fair. Whereas Greater Manchester's pop is just under 3m. Anyway I doubt London's got that many United fans(armchair). Too many big clubs in London for the locals to follow. We've been shite for 12 years yet the club are considering a 100k stadium. That's mental. Personally I'd make it even bigger and let local kids in for free. Could email Jimbob with my idea...
You pay a fiver for him to open it mate
Loads of Manchester suburbs were given to other boroughs in 1974. I reckon the Manchester city region must have a population just under 2m.
I do see more City jerseys than United ones where I live in California. But I think a lot of that has to do with recent success and fair weather fans. Also see tons of Arsenal kits.