Man Utd fan, 6, has season ticket limited by the club, making other fans upset
Manchester United have restricted a season ticket for a six-year-old fan as part of their efforts to stop ticket touts.
Before the new season started, the club has been working hard to catch people breaking the rules around ticket sales. Some fans shared on social media that they got emails from United after their season ticket accounts were flagged.
According to The Guardian, the club reached out to fans who used six or more devices to log into their accounts or who shared tickets with people who aren’t members. Fans affected have been asked to prove if they were wrongly accused — and many say they were.
Many supporters are upset that restrictions were put in place before they got a chance to explain. A joint statement from fan groups agreed that strong action is needed against professional ticket resellers and automated ticket buying, but the rules must be fair, clear, and reasonable.
They said, “Longtime fans, who’ve supported Manchester United for years and even passed that love through their families, shouldn’t be treated like suspects without clear proof or a real chance to respond.” They added, “Right now, fans feel like the club is banning first and asking questions later.”
This whole situation has added pressure on United’s co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who faced criticism for raising matchday ticket prices to £66 midway through the 2024/25 season.
On social media, a fan named Katie Ryan shared she got an email saying her six-year-old son Ruairi’s season ticket was restricted. She said this was because she logged into his account, meaning he can’t apply for tickets to the first away game against Hull City. “I can’t even tell him because it would break his heart!” she wrote. “If they checked my Instagram, they’d see he hardly misses a game!”
The email, reported by the BBC, said that Ruairi’s account was accessed many times along with lots of other accounts, suggesting they were controlled by one person. It said no wrongdoing was directly accused but the pattern raised concerns, so the club felt the account was under someone else’s control.
Katie told The Independent she manages 11 accounts belonging to family and friends who all sit together at Old Trafford. She appealed the decision on six accounts. Her first appeal was rejected after just four hours, which felt like an automatic reply to her.
In her second appeal, she explained that no tickets were sold for profit, shared, or advertised to unauthorized people. She also said no bots or scripts were used, and she only used the official system to pass tickets to family members who couldn’t attend.
The club has said they trust most of their flags were correct but admitted some could be mistakes. SPORTbible has reached out to Manchester United for comment but hasn’t heard back yet.