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World War I had a disastrous impact on the whole world. It didn’t limit to just the political and social sectors of Europe, but also the freedom, joy, and livelihoods of its citizens. Football which had been one of the major pastimes in Britain was deeply affected by the war. Manchester United, one of the most famous and oldest football clubs of Britain has had their fair share of struggles surviving through the war.
Today, Manchester United reigns as one of the most popular football clubs with more than 600 million fans across the globe (as resulted in 2012, numbers could have increased by now). TV views on their matchdays have increased 14% every year to currently amount to 1.6 million per show. Modern online sports betting platforms, such as jackpot mobile casino, report that they have seen a rise of visitors during the matchdays of Manchester United. Of course, with the rise of social media, the football club’s growth in the online world must have catapulted to reach staggering numbers.
However, things were not so promising during wartime (1914 - 1918). The war took over everything, the social, political, and entertainment sectors of the country. Surviving war and fighting for the country became the need of the hour. As a consequence, football players were required to enlist as soldiers and fight in the war. Unfortunately, some of those young, skilled, football players didn’t return, turning it into huge tragic losses for the football club.
It was not just the loss of players that the club had to witness, but also the destruction of their home stadium, the Theatre Of Dreams (nickname for Old Trafford). German bombers had targeted the industrial complex at Trafford Park, which was then one of the wartime manufacturing centres of Britain. But when they dropped the bomb, they missed by a mile and the bomb hit the football stadium, scorching and destroying it in the impact. By the next morning, the majestic stadium that had been a home to the club since 1910 had been destroyed into just a pile of rubble and broken concrete. It was devastating for the club.
It was then that Manchester City, United’s rival, made an unlikely gesture of offering their stadium, Maine Road, to the club. For supporters of City, this generous gesture was not easy to digest. But Manchester United made a deal, they had to pay 5000 as rent along with additional gate receipts, and City would get access to the United’s Cliff training ground for the purpose of reserve matches, and so, in 1941, just mere weeks after the bombing, United was able to play its first ever “home” match against Blackpool on the grounds of their rivals.
Wartime also meant that the post-war systems were difficult to execute, hence football clubs had to come up with new systems to maintain whatever semblance of peace within sports until the war ended. A part of such new reforms was the guest player system, in which soldiers were allowed to play with the clubs that were present near their postings. It didn’t matter which clubs they were originally signed for, Liverpool, Blackpool, or Airdrieonians, they could play with any club that was present nearby. The United has a record of at least 28 players who had played with the club as guest players during this period. However, it's not clear since the records made during the wartime were considered unofficial and were incomplete. Allenby Chilton is one such player. He was signed with Liverpool initially, but during the war, he played for United and grew to become one of the best defenders the club had ever seen.
To City, it was just a friendly gesture to help a neighbour football club, but for United, it helped them maintain their club and grow, and they did grow. By the end of the 1940s, United was thriving both financially and on the ground. While City managed to reach only mid-table or worse, United would win the cup. The size of Maine Road also helped United have larger audiences, amassing up to 83,260 people at one point, which remains one of the highest attendance of people for a football match. However, City tried to remind the club that they were playing on foreign grounds with the limits they had enforced. For example, even though Maine Road was temporarily considered to be United’s home ground, they were still not allowed to use the changing rooms.
It took a long time for the stadium at Old Trafford to be built back up again. After financial and labour constrictions, the stadium had finally reopened but without a roof in 1949. Even though it was only barely playable, more than 40,000 people had come to attend the club’s match against Bolton Wanderers, which they won 3-0. This victory meant more, because it was a symbol that the club had returned to their home.
Britain saw some of its darkest days during the war, and when it comes to sports, what helped was all clubs coming together as a collective to protect the peace within sports and keep the enthusiasm and culture alive until the war ended. The camaraderie stood the test of time and helped the spirit of football and Manchester United survive the harsh conditions that the war brought. |
