Man Utd should avoid becoming 'fraudsters'.

Perhaps never before in the modern history of world football has a major club like Manchester United been subjected to so much comparison and ridicule as it is today.

The Glazer family makes a considerable amount of money from the faith of Manchester United fans.

Since Sir Alex Ferguson left the manager's seat in 2013, Manchester United has embarked on a long journey – not to reclaim glory, but to maintain the illusion of glory. Increasingly, it's clear that the fans' faith is being exploited like an asset to be squeezed dry, to the point where many feel they bear a resemblance to victims of pig slaughterhouses in Cambodia.

Trust betrayed after promises were broken.

Over the past ten years, Man Utd has spent billions of pounds on player transfers, managerial changes, and squad rebuilding. Each summer, the story begins the same way: a new project, a fresh start, a promise that “things will be different.”

And just like the "pig butchering" scenarios that the online world is condemning, the victims here are none other than the fans – lured by dazzling slogans and dreams woven by the media.

Fans spend hundreds, even thousands of pounds on season tickets – tickets whose prices have steadily increased by 5% each year since 2023, after more than a decade of being "frozen." They still believe next season will be different. Meanwhile, people in Asia, from Vietnam and Thailand to Indonesia, are willing to stay up all night to watch Man Utd play, pay for TV channels, buy jerseys and souvenirs. But what they receive, season after season, is only disappointment.

The players' nightmare when they go to the 'pig slaughterhouse'.

Not only the fans, but the players themselves have also become victims in Manchester United's "chain of failure." Many names who once shone brightly at their former clubs — such as Romelu Lukaku, Jadon Sancho, and most recently Antony and Rasmus Hojlund — arrived at Old Trafford with promises of a glorious future where their talents would be celebrated. But then, they were caught in a whirlwind of pressure, lost their way in an unstable environment, and gradually became symbols of decline.

Antony was also a victim when he came to Man Utd.

It's not because they've run out of talent. Lukaku shone brightly at Inter Milan after leaving Man Utd. Sancho was once considered a prodigy at Dortmund, but he had to return to Germany on loan to rediscover himself. Hojlund struggled with the mentality and confidence in a team where everyone was more afraid of making mistakes than daring to be creative. When Hojlund left Man Utd for Napoli, the Danish striker was like a bird released from its cage.

Or more accurately, Antony was bought by Man Utd for £100 million from Ajax and became a clown at Old Trafford. But when Antony moved to Betis, the Brazilian star shone again, just like when he played in the Netherlands.

Perhaps, they all thought with regret: If only they hadn't come to Old Trafford. The players helped keep fans spending money to watch Man Utd, but then they themselves became victims at Old Trafford.

American business leaders and the "art of cultivating illusions"

While the team is struggling, the Glazers – the American owners – are thriving. They don't need championships to generate profit. Manchester United is a world-leading football brand, operated like a giant financial machine: selling image rights, e-commerce, and especially season tickets.

According to statistics, Manchester United's stock on the New York Stock Exchange at one point surpassed its pre-pandemic value. Commercial revenue continued to increase, thanks to the global appeal of the name "Manchester United." Like fraudulent financial scams, the Glazers sustained this illusion by injecting doses of psychological stimulants: a blockbuster contract, an advertising campaign, or a promise of "rebuilding." Once faith was rekindled, money continued to flow into their pockets.

The Glazer family faced backlash from Manchester United fans.

The paradox is that the more Manchester United fails on the pitch, the more successful they become on the balance sheet. The more outraged the fans are, the more the brand is talked about. The dissatisfaction of the fans, inadvertently, becomes a tool to maintain the team's popularity in the global media environment.

If the "pig slaughterhouse" in Cambodia is a place where people cultivate the trust of their victims in order to seize their assets, then Man Utd – under the Glazer family – is doing something similar in football: cultivating the trust of its fans, and then profiting from that loyalty.

Man Utd remains a great name. But if the fans' faith continues to be exploited, if the players continue to be drained in a toxic environment, then the name "Red Devils" will only be a symbol of the past — and in the present, just a perfectly functioning illusionary operating machine in the modern world of football.

Source: https://znews.vn/man-utd-hay-dung-bien-minh-thanh-ke-lua-dao-post1594436.html