'Conflicted, misunderstood, don't care what people think': This is how it feels to be City (2024)

Some Manchester City fans have got a clear idea of what they’re all about. “I couldn’t give a f*ck what anybody else thinks,” one said last week, and it’s an enviable stance, it must be said.

It’s not easy being a football fan these days, and City have taken theirs on one hell of a journey over the years. Once held up as an example of “true fans”, the long-suffering antithesis of Manchester United’s glory hunters, they are now often cast, unfairly, as the glory hunters themselves, mocked about the “Emptihad”.

And they have seen unprecedented scrutiny, scrutiny that some City fans feel has been unfair when compared to their rivals. Over the years, there have been fines and investigations over spending sponsorship arrangements. The Court of Arbitration ruled in their favour against UEFA, although a Premier League investigation is ongoing. The owner, Sheikh Mansour, has put in around $1.8 billion (£1.36 billion) since the 2008 takeover, with the club now valued at $4 billion, according to Forbes.

City are not legally owned by the state of Abu Dhabi but Mansour is the deputy prime minister, and the country’s human rights record is regularly criticised by Amnesty International. The organisation’s most recent report found that the United Arab Emirates, of which Abu Dhabi is the capital, restricts freedom of expression (via the imprisonment of peaceful government critics), conducts unfair trials and arbitrarily detains citizens after completing prison sentences. Amnesty also highlighted that “women remained unequal with men under Emirati law”.

For the last seven years, a Saudi Arabia-led coalition, including the UAE, has waged war on Yemen, with the United Nations estimating that, as of late 2021, more than 377,000 people have died due to the conflict, 60 per cent of those from “indirect causes”, including famine and preventable diseases.

Former City CEO Garry Cook has said that Abu Dhabi was looking for a “proxy brand” the club was bought, tying into the concept of “sportswashing” — a word that has grown in popularity in the past few years to describe countries or businesses that launder their dirty reputations via sporting events or institutions.

But what does all this mean for the men and women on the streets of Manchester? When things are spelt out in black and white, as they are above, it would be easy to suggest that fans simply renounce their club, but human beings, and our relationships with football clubs, are complicated. Things aren’t always black and white. There are grey areas where real and understandable emotions exist, sometimes in conflict with each other. Is it fair, even, for a football fan to be put into these situations?

Here is a selection of views from City fans, providing a range of thoughts and feelings. They are not intended to be representative of an entire fanbase but simply the personal feelings of those who have kindly taken the time to give their thoughts.

Anonymous.

I’m in my 30s, have had a season ticket for 30 years and I work in international diplomacy. There’s something really simple about it all and there’s something really complicated about it all. The simple thing is that I really love football and always have. At the moment we’re watching arguably the best football in the history of English football and we’re so lucky to have that.

I feel privileged every time I go and see Pep’s City. I used to go with my dad, brother and sister, my dad’s died now and I sit in his seat, and all of that stuff matters. All clubs build a sense of belonging and that matters emotionally, it’s a strong emotional pull, it’s simple and joyful, and every time I walk up to the game I get excited in the same way I always did.

But then the nature of modern football makes that simple view really naive because it’s a massive business and our club, which we think belongs to us, is owned by an individual who treats it as a business — very successfully — but any City fan who’s looking at it objectively would probably say that there are some mixed motivations there. There are very real questions about human rights. Climate change is a massive concern, too, and these guys make their money off the burning of fossil fuels. Nobody is asking those questions. At the same time, City probably have the best environmental sustainability model across the Premier League, arguably in European football, the work they are doing is genuinely brilliant, but they’re owned by an individual who is part of a family and a set of enterprises that are making hundreds of billions a year off the thing that’s causing climate change, plus the stadium is named after an airline. These are massive contradictions that nobody talks about.

It does get to me that there is no meaningful conversation about this among City fans as far as I’ve been able to tell. I would like to have City fans coming together constructively on some of these issues — not as activist crusaders, just as concerned citizens who feel that human rights, climate change and similar things matter, and would like to see City be a real force for good.

As it is, everybody just lives with it. And why shouldn’t they, I suppose, because it’s just football. I’m not saying I’m comfortable with this, but that is where I come down on it. I’ve thrown a lot of moral dilemmas out there but I’ve made my decision. I’ll moan about the model of English football and Sky and it being all about the product, but I’ve got a Sky subscription because I want to watch football. And I’ll moan or ask questions about the way that City is a very successful business model but definitely part of the brand for Abu Dhabi, but I’ll still pay £800 a year for a season ticket. I’m not going to stop doing that. I’ve made my bed with it, almost, and maybe me occasionally raising these issues with other City fans is trying to make myself feel better about something that doesn’t sit easily.

Sophie, 32, Manchester

There’s a whole grey space where rival fans and some journalists think City are horrid and evil and there are some fans who think solely we’re targeted. I’m kind of in the middle where, no, our owners aren’t innocent — no owners are. I just feel City get targeted more in the media and by UEFA, and that the club suffer from more bad press than most.

I try to differentiate the owner and what happens in his country from what he does at the football club. I understand that there are issues regarding human rights records and stuff in Abu Dhabi and that, maybe, there’s an effort to try to make Abu Dhabi seen as a better place. But I’m a supporter of the football club and I judge what happens at my club. I’m grateful for the success we’ve had and hopefully continue to have.

I just get fed up every time I go online or open a newspaper and see another article rehashing the same thing about City. You never see those things about other clubs, so I can understand the view as to why some fans feel one extreme and defend them constantly. The negative stuff comes from them being successful with their investment — if we weren’t as successful would we receive this press? I don’t think we would.

If football really wanted change they wouldn’t put the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi and they wouldn’t put the World Cup in Qatar. I don’t have blinkers on when it comes to the club but that doesn’t stop me from feeling happy when we win trophies. The grey area is really large and I will fluctuate depending on certain situations.

Brent Lees, 59, Berkshire (formally of Middleton, Manchester)

I’m 59, have been a City season ticket holder since the 1970s, I’m a member of Amnesty International, I’m a snowflake/woke/lefty whatever you want to call it in terms of my politics.

I’m so sympathetic to any kind of human rights and social justice in the UK and all across the globe. To that end, I’ve been on marches and protests against Saudi Arabian atrocities, pro-Palestine, as well as many others including against policies of both the UK and US governments.

I’ve also worked for many big global IT organisations and I have travelled extensively, especially to the Middle East, and there are some laws there that I find abhorrent, things like gay rights and justice generally and how it’s implemented. However, as a country, they are 40 or 50 years old and still in development. And remember, it’s only since the late 1960s that hom*osexuality has been legal in the UK. Countries develop at different rates and I think our country still has numerous challenges in terms of human rights.

The biggest problem I have had with the ownership of City was when Thaksin Shinawatra took over. He was barbaric towards certain sections of the Thai community, corruption and the brutal way he dealt with anyone involved in drug dealing.

But nobody seemed to be bothered back then. Certainly not the journalists that now have lots to say about our current ownership.

City fans raised this at the time but since we weren’t a threat in football terms, nobody seemed to be bothered.

I was genuinely so pleased when they were sold, and it was to Sheikh Mansour. There is zero conflict for me there, it doesn’t affect me whatsoever.

It’s a “Let he without sin cast the first stone” kind of thing in terms of football owners. There’s no conflict for me. Perhaps somewhere deep in my subconscious, there is something there, but I genuinely don’t see it.

I don’t see anything directly that the owners have done. I see the current ownership as incredibly clever businessmen who have doubled the value of their investment.

I’ve seen how, as a region, they have wanted to move away from their dependence on oil revenues, and branch out into property, tourism and all these different things that they’re doing. I see City as part of that, and I certainly don’t see it as sportswashing. And I have enjoyed every minute of the last 10-plus years.

Josh Green, 30, Urmston, Manchester

I’ve been a City fan since I was a kid and following them in the ’90s. I’ve seen us go from a laughing stock to what we are now. At the time, I fully believed everyone was out to get us and that the owners were perfect. Then, over the last couple of years, I’ve been forced to step back from it all due to the pandemic. I’ve mellowed out and been able to take a balanced look on City and football in general.

The Super League was the catalyst for the change in my feelings towards the club and owners in particular. I still love the club and I’m grateful for what they’ve given us as supporters but it’s never been more obvious to me that they don’t actually care about the supporters in the romantic way we all long for as football fans.

We are all consumers and our owners are generally very good at playing to our wants and needs as supporters. When City “pulled out” of the Super League, our supporters were desperate to forgive them. You could tell the uproar was temporary. I haven’t forgotten it and it’s damaged my feelings towards the club. I’ve been to one game in the last three years. I still have my season ticket but have deferred it and I’m still 50/50 on whether I want to go back. I barely even watch the games anymore. I’m content with listening on the radio or just checking the result. There’s only one game I won’t miss: the Manchester derby. I still hate United just as much as I did before!

Finally, I think there is something in the questions asked about the morals of our owners and the sportswashing suggestions. More should be focused on other owners, though. City and Newcastle can’t be the only clubs with owners that have “questionable” ethics/backgrounds.

I love the club but love is conveniently blind for the vast majority of our supporters.

Cristina, 37, Italy

I’m not sure how much my opinion counts, but I am Cristina, Italian, love football and am a City fan because when I was 12 and Oasis were at their best, I decided that if City was their team, then it would also be my team. It was a bit hard to follow the team in the ’90s in Italy. I would just follow the results every week in La Gazzetta dello Sport, then in the 2010s, we had Sky at home, so could watch games. Now I have been living in London for the past 10 and a half years and go to the Etihad as much as I can (the derby next).

Anyway, first of all, I think that every single person that has enough money to buy a top-flight football club or sponsor it is probably not exactly clean. I can’t see how someone with that much money can maintain moral integrity throughout their whole life. In the case of City, there is also the aggravated part — that in Abu Dhabi, they do not respect human rights (and the same goes for owners who are not just from the Middle East).

The important thing for everyone is to try to educate themselves as to why those are bad people and we should really not chant their names in glory. Educate yourself, educate others. It is a bit harsh to call on fans to stop supporting their team when fans are in it to enjoy the football. They just want to get their minds off things for a couple of hours every few days. I have heard podcasts where fans are urged to stop following their club (or at least, the pundits said that’s what they would do), which I don’t think is fair.

You can’t put this on fans when the problem is clearly the checks the Premier League does when approving any change of owners. Fans can’t do anything about it, it’s out of their hands. Recognising the bad side and educating yourself and others, not chanting their names… that’s what people can do. The pure football side should be kept separate. Otherwise, you would also need to ask players only to sign for teams owned by nice people. Would anyone do that?

Joe, 25, Denton, Manchester

I’m torn. The club clearly had to do “things” in the early days to get us into the Champions League spots, which caused controversy, I’m sure. In that sense, I understand where some of the accusations come from.

But could we have gotten to where we are now by not doing that? I don’t think we could. And a big reason for that is that the “top four” had it sewn up. Biggest sponsorships, biggest budgets, biggest wage bills and biggest incomes — how else are you going to push yourself up that hierarchy?

I accept that side of things in the early years, and I don’t have an issue with opposing fans using it as tribalistic jibes, but it does wear thin given our financial position in the last few years.

Gavin Shortall, 45, Ireland

I’m an Irish season ticket holder who has lived in Manchester since 1995, and used to live in Whitworth Park, five minutes from Maine Road.

Following City over the last few years has been amazing. The trips to see trophies won, the Sergio Aguero goal, the unbelievable players, all of it. The club is so much better, in so many ways. It’s given me some of my most memorable moments of the last 15 or so years. The owners try to run the club with the fans in mind. I like the way they organise away tickets, I like that cup schemes aren’t compulsory (like United) and they always seem keen to embrace the history of the club while still trying to achieve new things, which isn’t always easy.

At the same time, I can’t help feeling deeply uncomfortable about what is, essentially, state ownership of a football club. The Der Spiegel leaks were really unedifying and it’s hard to see anything other than a group of people who are used to getting what they want, spending whatever it takes to get what they want. I feel used to dealing with the fact that life has become like that, in the main. Sport should be different. The whole concept of sportswashing makes me feel really uncomfortable, especially as I feel complicit every time I walk through the turnstile.

I don’t know what the answer to all of this is. I’m not giving up my season ticket. I still want City to win every game.

There isn’t any way of being successful in professional sport without significant investment. Once that door is opened, the logical endgame is state ownership. But that doesn’t make it OK.

Maybe I should leave City and go and follow a more grassroots team but that would be a big loss. I’ve got pals at City, my routine is City and the results really matter to me. It’s not life and death, but it’s not nothing, either.

Hannah, 20, Stockport

It’s quite obvious that our owners aren’t squeaky clean but it’s really difficult to find an owner of a football club who is. All owners are all mega-rich people so it’s slightly unfair that no one ever really gives the same attention to other clubs, but it’s also why I don’t think it’s worth my time sitting here and defending them about certain things.

I’m also not going to think any worse of them than what other fans think of their owners though. The only thing that really gets to me is when some parts of the media try to make out as though City fans are bad people for following a club with the owners that we have. Supporting City has been in my family for generations and we’re not just going to stop because the media tell us that the people now running our club are bad.

Ross Walter, 21, Warwickshire

As a City fan, I feel very guilty about the ways our owners made our fortunes and the fact that Sheikh Mansour is part of a government that says that being gay is a crime.

It’s something I find very hard to justify. If a musical artist is a bad person, I detach myself from funding them but for some reason with City, it’s different. It’s a bit of cognitive dissonance, I suppose. They were the first club that brought me to football so I have a really close attachment to the club itself, not necessarily the owners.

I’m more comfortable with not paying for tickets or shirts first hand, as to not directly fund the club. I know that sounds like I’m a bad fan, but in my mind being a “bad fan” is better than directly financially supporting owners who destroy the planet. It is comparable to having a friend that you know has bad tendencies, but you put up with it because you love them.

Anonymous

Although I don’t think fans of clubs owned by people like the Sheikh are 100 per cent powerless and probably could use their energy to at least raise awareness of certain issues, it’s ultimately up to UEFA and the Premier League to protect fans from having to make these kinds of decisions.

Football clubs are local and regional institutions and, just as we would expect football’s governing bodies to protect communities and clubs from business people who can’t manage their finances and run football clubs into the ground, we should also expect them to create an environment that allows football fans to enjoy their hobbies without having to consider major ethical caveats every time they enter a stadium or buy a shirt.

Gillian, 49, Manchester

I am uncomfortable with our ownership. I don’t see corruption at the club but human rights issues do matter to me. But I’m also uncomfortable with mass genocide, gay rights abuses, countries eradicating women’s rights… the world is pretty f*cked up, certainly extending beyond the Middle East. So, yes, I’m also uncomfortable with the money we have from Chinese investment.

However, I don’t see that football should necessarily be viewed any differently from other sports or industries. Globalisation and the inclusion within it of states that inflict abuses is a fact of everyday life. We either take the view that we ban all, which could be a valid view, or we crack on, rather than being selective as it seems now, often to suit agendas. Hypocrisy is a human’s favourite hobby. That’s how I guess I can make some form of troubled peace with our ownership and my love of City. Our club has also been a force for good in the local community and city.

There’s money from sources whose regimes/corporate entities we might not like at pretty much all Premier League clubs — it’s not whataboutery, I’m just saying I’d probably feel uncomfortable with funding sources, whichever club I supported.

Too many Blues are myopic when it comes to any and all journalists — rational debate can be very limited. Outrage and tribalism on Twitter is par for the course whatever the topic… I hope people know that most Blues would be rational and decent if you met us in person.

(Top photo: Martin Rickett/PA Images via Getty Images)