Football: Fans' delight as Sky falls in

Football: United's future uncertain after buy-out blocked

AS MANCHESTER UNITED supporters toasted yesterday's government decision to block Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB bid for the club as "a victory for football", question marks arose over the future ownership of the Old Trafford side.

Michael Crick, a spokesman for the Shareholders United Against Murdoch, one of the groups which campaigned against the bid, said that the SUAM now want to explore the possibility of setting up a trust to combine the shares owned by Manchester United fans. He added that his group wanted an urgent meeting with the club's board to discuss the future ownership of the club.

Whether or not such a meeting materialises, the position of United's chairman, Martin Edwards, will now come under scrutiny, as will the viability or otherwise of another company stepping in to make a bid for the club. Edwards' failure to sell the club to Sky may not necessarily prevent him from selling it to another interested party, whether it be a broadcaster or a company from commercial sector such as corporate entertainment.

For the moment, supporters' groups are celebrating yesterday's decision. "The announcement is not just a tremendous victory for the fans of Manchester United, but a victory for football," Andy Walsh, chairman of the Manchester United Independent Supporters Association, said.

"Back at the beginning of September when the takeover was made public, nobody gave us a snowball's chance in hell of blocking the bid.

"But, through a passionate belief in the need for Manchester United to remain independent, we have succeeded. That is due to the overwhelming opposition of the majority of Manchester United fans.

"United fans from all over the world have contacted us to voice their opposition and offer their support.

"But we could not have done this on our own and we have had support from fans all over the country, from Slough Town to Newcastle United, and that is why this is a victory for football. Our feeling is one of absolute euphoria. This is great for us and for anyone fighting for the independence of their club."

IMUSA's vice-chairman Steve Briscoe added: "There was the arrogance of the actual taking over, saying it was for the good of the fans.

"Mark Booth [Sky's chief executive] couldn't name our right-back; he couldn't name the players on the plaque who died at Munich; he doesn't know the history of the club.

"As we argued to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission, football is totally different. It's not a soap brand - you can't go and watch another team like Liverpool. It's football and Manchester United is what matters."

For the moment, it is likely to be business as usual at Old Trafford. Fears of propriertorial interference have subsided and although the club will not have the forecast extra millions to spend, it remains the richest in the world and in a dominant position in English football.

Paul Richards, of the SUAM, said: "I think this has drawn a line in the sand. All those media conglomerates who've been planning to take over clubs have to go back to the drawing board. We're now going to push for a place for grassroots fans to be on the board because we need to make sure football is run in the eyes of everyone, including fans, and not just those who stand to make money."

The question of whether United will be taken over by another company is unlikely to remain unanswered for too long. The Trade and Industry Secretary Stephen Byers said: "The MMC's findings are based mainly on competition grounds where they concluded that the merger would adversely affect competition between broadcasters." His statement does not rule out, per se, the possibility of broadcasters other than Sky, or indeed any other large company, coming in with a bid. Martin Edwards, who has now failed to sell United on three occasions (to businessman Michael Knighton in the late 80s, and to the media company VCI a few years ago, as well as to Sky) may still consider other offers for the club.

Byers added that the takeover would have damaged the sport "by reinforcing the trend towards growing inequalities between the larger richer clubs and the smaller, poorer ones," but at the same time he also announced he was referring the possible takeover of Newcastle United by cable TV company NTL to the MMC.

Sky's Mark Booth said: "This is a bad ruling for British football clubs who will have to compete in Europe against clubs who are backed by successful media companies." Few in football seem to agree this morning.