The outrage came after a Manchester United fan had his banner confiscated due to its anti-Glazer message.
The incident occurred at the entrance to the Reale Arena before the Red Devils’ Europa League match against Real Sociedad.
The stewards stopped a fan and took away his flag and the stewards justified the act by saying:
“Because it says ‘anti-Glazers’ mate, they don’t want it. They don’t want him there.”
The incident was caught on camera, with the shocked fan saying, “So because it says Glazers off of that, I’m not allowed in the stadium?”
The butler confirmed.
The full video was tweeted yesterday:
UNITED OFFICERS REMOVING MY FLAG ME ENTERING THE STADIUM BECAUSE IT HAS STAINED GLASS IN IT. #MUFC #GlazersOut pic.twitter.com/zRRyDk7ULx
— Chris (@Busby1999) November 3, 2022
The club denies any involvement in the confiscation and insists it has no authority to influence rules set by local stewards at other stadiums.
A statement issued by the club further affirms this:
“To reiterate our position, Manchester United recognizes the right to peaceful and lawful protest, and the club has a clear position that anti-ownership flags are not prohibited at Old Trafford as long as they are not offensive.
“However, we do not control the policies of the clubs that host us on our travels and the decision to ban certain flags from the Reale Arena last night was made by our opponent and not by Manchester United.
“Our stewards are instructed to act in accordance with the home club under the rules of the host venue, and that includes a rule that prohibits any political banners.
“The local club interpreted this to include banners against the owners.
“At no time has Manchester United called for or recommended this approach and we are clear to all the clubs we visit that we do not advocate the confiscation of banners of this nature.”
While there is merit in the suggestion that the club cannot control the actions of stewards at other stadiums, stewards at Old Trafford have previously been filmed doing the exact same thing in August.
The 1958, a group of anti-Glazer supporters, tweeted the video:
“This is the security status of our club illegally confiscating a GLAZERS OUT flag from the TRA disabled section last night.
“By the Club’s own definition, it does NOT fit into any of the categories (political, commercial, illegal…)”
This is the state of our club
Security illegally confiscating a GLAZERS OUT flag from the TRA disabled section last night
By its own definition, the Club does NOT fit into any of the categories (political, commercial, illegal…)
We’ll pick this up with @MU_ST directly pic.twitter.com/7Stpc0iZvo
– The 1958 (@The__1958) August 23, 2022
Fans will continue to be outraged by any such incident wherever it happens, but if it happens again at Old Trafford the backlash will be immense. 
United Matchday Magazine – Stay on top of all things red! Take a seat for the Aston Villa game and join the debate on United’s hottest topics!
Get all the match preparation, articles, news, riddles, nostalgia and humor. Online soccer content like you’ve never seen it before. No ads, no clickbait, no fake news – just 100% pure United. secure online ordering Click Preview to see more or buy for just £1.25 / $1.50
