"Second Life" in Stratford Stands: Manchester United fans awaken their home spirit with actions

Before the start of the game against Arsenal last Sunday, the Stretford stands at Manchester United's home court at Old Trafford Stadium were particularly eye-catching. Manchester United fans hung more than 70 flags and banners. These decorations were designed by fans themselves and the cost was borne by the "The Red Army" fan group. One of the banners reads "Manchester, built in 1878" and the side pattern encompasses every trophy that the club has won in history.

There is another banner that needs to be supported by two brackets, which read "We are united and we stand side by side. We are the greatest team, undoubtedly the king of this land." The scene also showed images of David Beckham scoring the classic goal against Wimbledon at Selhurst Park in 1996, as well as banners with lyrics, such as "All men and women are smiling and walking along Warwick Road to witness the Warriors under Matt Busby."

It is joyful to see such a scene in the core area of ​​the Stratford stands. You should know that just two years ago, these areas were only for senior executives and fans, and there was no sign of any flag. Back in 1993, Manchester United set up high-priced VIP seats in the heart of Old Trafford's most vocal and traditionally a working-class fan, a decision that has always been puzzling.

Last Sunday, the "The Red Army" fan group distributed flyers to the audience entitled "Retake the Stretford Stand", detailing the banner display rules and the post-match recycling process.

The group has actively cooperated with the club, and the club has relaxed some regulations - such as allowing the use of flags that require two brackets to support. This cooperation was a complete success. Although the club is not always consistent with the "The Red Army" fan group, the two sides have maintained effective communication, and the group has indeed helped to improve the long-standing slightly dull atmosphere in Old Trafford. Instead of complaining, they took the initiative to change the status quo.

Like all Premier League stadiums, the full seat renovation and rising ticket prices implemented in the 1990s once weakened the atmosphere on site to a certain extent. Now, the return of the safe standing area has significantly improved the atmosphere of the stadium.

But how to solve the problem of live sound waves? Last week, Manchester United sent a questionnaire to season ticket holders asking about their preferences for background music related to the event. A total of 6,500 people participated in the response, of which 40% were from fans in the Stratford stands.

Club wants to know whether the team should play "Glory belongs to Manchester United" immediately after winning. Among the respondents, 24% said they hoped that the team would not play any music after losing, while more than 50% believed that "Glory belongs to Manchester United" should be played regardless of the outcome.

You should know that Manchester United has long gone from a team that rarely loses at home to a team that now frequently loses at home, which has also led to the stadium falling into silence many times after the game.

This was the game last Sunday - after losing to Arsenal 1-0 at home, the atmosphere was unexpectedly sluggish. At this time, Arsenal fans sang songs to commemorate the team's winning league championship in Manchester (among the old Arsenal fans present, some still remember witnessing the team's winning championship with their own eyes). Faced with such a situation, what else can the club do? Should we play "Looking at the Light of Life forever" which was once popular in the stands to overshadow the songs of the fans of the visiting team?

"The Red Army" fan group believes that after Manchester United wins, they should not play background music, but let fans create their own voices. This view is reasonable. But thinking from another perspective, it is still unknown whether Old Trafford can truly "boil" even if Manchester United beat opponents like Burnley or Bournemouth.

It is not easy to reach a consensus on this issue. Currently, the songs played by players when they warm up are chosen by players themselves. Diogo Dalot is particularly active in the song selection process, and they tend to choose tracks that have special meaning to them.

The players' warm-up session ends 15 minutes before the start of the game. For the focus battle, there is often an atmosphere "window period" during this period, which should have been filled by the cheers of fans. As for some games with low attention, songs such as "The Moon is Black and Wind" are played on site, and fans will also adapt the lyrics and sing: "I saw the Stretford stands awake, and I see the challenge coming soon. Don't go out tonight unless you are wearing a red and white robe, and I see the challenge is in front of you."

Before each game, when players gather in the player channel, the prelude to the classic song "This Is That Song" of the Stone Rose band will ring. Some fans regard this melody as a signal of entry and seating. As the rhythm of the song gradually reached its climax, the referee blew the whistle and the players lined up to the court. After the playback of "This Is That Song", the official theme song of the Premier League will be heard, and the players complete the handshake ceremony with their opponents and referees. Immediately afterward, the Manchester United custom version adapted from John Denver's "Take Me Home to Country Road" will be played on the spot - "Take Me Home, Manchester United Road, Back to where I belong. Go back to Old Trafford, go witness Manchester United, take me home, Manchester United Road!"

This song was specially requested by captain Bruno Fernandez before Manchester United's home game against Liverpool a year ago.

In April 2025, Fernandez explained to fans: "The lyrics of this song are very compatible in the home context, so after comprehensive consideration, we think this will be a good choice. Obviously, we don't want to blindly follow the trend just because other teams do this. But we think this is the common idea of ​​the players... We discussed with several teammates, 'How do you think of this song? How will you feel when you play it before the game? Can it bring you motivation and make you more excited? Tell me what you think. ’Initially, our core appeal was that we did not want this song to be played simply, but to resonate with fans. We play this song as the opening, and then continue to sing by fans, without the need for music to accompany it all the time. ”

Manchester has a profound music history, but "Take Me Home in Country Road" has nothing to do with this city and this club. The melody of this song is too melancholy and does not fit the temperament of "team song", but it still gains the love of many fans. It is highly popular, and the emotional core of "returning home" and "affiliation" deeply touched the heartstrings of the fans. The rhythm of the song gradually reaches climax, and it will not be interrupted until the referee blew the kick-off whistle, and then Manchester United fans will continue to hum the melody of the song.

In the game last Sunday, 70,000 home fans took pre-season The enthusiasm for the game, the expectation for the return of football and the desire for the focus battle, sang "Take Me Home in the Country Road" together, and the scene was excellent.

But not every game is like this. In some focus battles, players will not play any music after the warm-up. The original intention of doing this is to allow fans to create an atmosphere independently, and usually, fans do this. Obviously, fans' enthusiasm will be even higher when facing strong competitors.

The atmosphere of Old Trafford since I started watching Manchester United live in the late 1980s The problem has always existed. In 1991, during the preseason tour in Scandinavia, I saw in a Norwegian football magazine that Old Trafford and Anfield were hailed as "the best stadium in the world". I was very proud at the time, but the Manchester United fans around me complained that the atmosphere was no longer as good as before.

Several of the best teams in Manchester United's history have fought in an atmosphere of "more dull season after season". I have traveled around the world, and whenever I see the warm atmosphere of stadiums in South America, Italy or Turkey If you are surrounded, you will be envious. Not long ago, when I was communicating with David Moyes, he was impressed by the South American fans he met at the Club World Cup, hoping that there would be more voice and vitality in the Premier League.

A few days later, I talked to Mattes de Ligt about the fan atmosphere. I don’t think he would just say clichés like “our fans are great”, and it is true.

"English fans are extremely devoted to the game," said De Ligt. "If someone completes a tackle, they will cheer; when there is a chance to shoot, everyone will shout 'Shot! ’This is what I appreciate the most. They are passionate, keep up with the pace of the game, enjoy the confrontation between players, and the most primitive charm of football. This is exactly why I love English football. In Germany, fans will sing the whole show, but their investment is slightly lower - I feel that their emotions are not closely related to the progress of the game, and it is more like singing a few fixed songs repeatedly throughout the whole show. This atmosphere is of course very good, and it can always feel the vitality of the scene, but it is completely different from England. ”

"The atmosphere in Italy is more confrontational, especially when you represent Juventus against Napoli, Fiorentina or Inter Milan. They don't want you to be there and treat you in a hostile, aggressive way. But because of this, that kind of joy is even stronger when you beat them. In the Netherlands, the atmosphere of Ajax's match against Feyenoord is extremely intense, especially the fans of the two teams do not like each other, so this derby is full of tension and can bring extremely strong energy - for me personally, I can also get great happiness from it. ”

The discussion on the atmosphere of Old Trafford will continue. A winning team does not always bring a warm atmosphere - because when fans need to fully support the team and overcome difficulties with the team, the "spirit of resistance" can inspire their enthusiasm.

But Manchester United's fan culture and fan song library are top in the football world. This culture requires support, vitality and the participation of young fans, and more importantly, the ticket price is friendly. In 1993, these core elements of the Stratford stands were stripped away one by one, causing the atmosphere of the stands to plummet. Ironically, the situation of the team was not like this.