- Address: Sir Matt Busby Way, Stretford
- Country: United Kingdom
- Capacity: 74,000
- Opened: 19 February 1910
- Main use: Football
- Tenants: Manchester United (football)
Extra stadium info – Old Trafford
The stadium became one of the largest stadiums by capacity in Europe. It has been the home of Manchester United Football Club since it opened in 1910. The venue was nicknamed The Theatre of Dreams by the Manchester United legend Robert Charlton. It became a common nickname for Old Trafford, which became an all-seater stadium in the early 1990s.
The 1966 FIFA World Cup
Old Trafford was one of the eight 1966 FIFA World Cup venues. It hosted its first-ever FIFA World Cup match on 13 July 1966. The national football team of the Portuguese Republic, commonly known as Portugal, won the match against Hungary 3-1. 29,000 spectators attended the world championship game. The second FIFA World Cup match at the venue was also won by the Portuguese Republic. They defeated Bulgaria in front of a crowd of 25,000. The third FIFA World Cup game at the stadium drew an attendance of 24,000. The national football team of Hungary won the game against Bulgaria 3-1.
Manchester United
Manchester United Football Club use Old Trafford for home matches. The club was founded in 1878 under a different name. MUFC is among the most popular sports clubs in the world. During World War II, the venue named Old Trafford suffered bomb damage. Manchester United, also known as The Red Devils, played their home games at the home of rivals Manchester City FC for several years because of the damage.
The Premier League
Manchester United Football Club won the first two editions of the English Premier League. The Premier League is widely regarded as one of the major sports leagues in the world. In 2013, MUFC became the first football club with 20 English top-flight league titles. They drew an average attendance of 75,000 in their 19 Premier League home games during that football season.
The FA Cup and Alexander Turnbull
In 1909, MUFC won the FA Cup for the first time in their history. They won the title after defeating Bristol City. Alexander Turnbull scored the only goal in the FA Cup final between Bristol City and Manchester United. He also scored the first goal at Old Trafford. Turnbull received a lifelong ban from football in 1915. He was involved in a match-fixing scandal. In 1917, Turnbull was killed during a World War I battle at the age of 32.
More FA Cup titles
In 1999, MUFC became the first English club with 10 FA Cup titles after winning against Newcastle United. The final between Manchester United and Newcastle United took place in London in front of a crowd of 79,000. Arsenal became the second English club with 10 FA Cup titles after winning a penalty shoot-out against Manchester United in 2005. The final between Arsenal and Manchester United took place in Cardiff in front of 71,000 spectators.
The European championship for football clubs
The Red Devils were crowned European champions several times. On 29 May 1968, they played their first-ever European championship final against SL Benfica from the Portuguese Republic. The final took place in the English city of London in front of 92,000 spectators. It was the first European championship final with a football club from England. Manchester United won the final 4-1. Robert Charlton, George Best and Brian Kidd all scored for MUFC in the final. Jaime da Silva Graça scored the only goal for Benfica in the match.
The UEFA Champions League
In 1999, MUFC won their second European championship title after beating FC Bayern München from Germany in a UEFA Champions League final. The game took place in the Spanish city of Barcelona in front of 90,000 spectators. Manchester United won the UEFA Champions League again after defeating Chelsea FC from London in 2008. The final between MUFC and Chelsea took place in the Russian city of Moscow in front of a crowd of 67,000.
The Toyota Cup
Manchester United won their only Toyota Cup, the former world championship for football clubs, after beating the Brazilian side Palmeiras in 1999. The game between Manchester United and Palmeiras took place in the Japanese city of Tokyo. 53,000 people attended the match. MUFC began the game with David Robert Joseph Beckham, Gary Alexander Neville, Jakob Stam, Joseph Denis Irwin, Mark John Bosnich, Mikaël Samy Silvestre, Nicholas Butt, Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Paul Scholes, Roy Maurice Keane and Ryan Joseph Giggs. Roy Keane scored the only goal in the match.
The FIFA Club World Cup
MUFC won their first FIFA Club World Cup title in 2008 after defeating Liga Deportiva Universitaria from Ecuador in the final of the world championship for football clubs. 68,000 people attended the match, which was played in the Japanese city of Yokohama. Wayne Rooney scored the only goal in the game. MUFC reached the final after beating the Japanese side Gamba Osaka and LDU reached the final after defeating the Mexican side CF Pachuca.
Robert Charlton
Robert Charlton, commonly known as Bobby Charlton, was born in 1937. He signed with MUFC in 1956. Charlton played 606 domestic league games for Manchester United. He scored 199 domestic league goals for Manchester United. Robert Charlton won the 1966 FIFA World Cup final with the national football team of England. In 1968, Charlton played for Manchester United in his first-ever European championship final. He scored twice in the final.
George Best
George Best, who won one European championship title with Manchester United, joined MUFC in 1963. He scored 137 goals in 361 league games for The Red Devils. In 1974, George Best left the club. He played for football clubs in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Ireland, the United States and Australia during his senior football career. Best, who played for the national football team of Northern Ireland, is widely considered one of the greatest football players never to have played at a FIFA World Cup. George Best was considered briefly by William Laurence Bingham, who was the manager of the national football team of Northern Ireland, for the 1982 FIFA World Cup. At the age of 35, with his football skills dulled by age and drinking alcohol, he was not selected.
The extravagant lifestyle of Best
The football legend George Best became known for his looks and extravagant celebrity lifestyle. He earned a fortune. Best lost almost all of it. When asked what happened to the money, Best made clear he spent a lot of money on booze, women and fast cars. He said he just squandered the rest. George Best suffered from alcoholism for most of his adult life, leading to various controversies and his death. In 1981, he robbed a woman in the United States by taking money from her handbag. In 1984, George Best received a three-month prison sentence for drunk driving, assaulting a police officer and failing to answer bail.
The last years of Best and the aftermath
George Best was diagnosed with severe liver damage in 2000. In 2002, he had a successful liver transplant in London. Two years later, Best was convicted of another drink-driving offence and banned from driving for 20 months. On 25 November 2005, George Best died at the age of 59. The first match at Old Trafford after Best’s death was a match between Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion. George Best made his debut for Manchester United against WBA in 1963. The game between MUFC and WBA in 2005 was preceded by tributes. Tens of thousands of Manchester United fans at Old Trafford held aloft pictures of Best, which were given out before the match.
Alexander Chapman Ferguson
Alexander Chapman Ferguson was the manager of MUFC between 1986 and 2013. Manchester United won two world championship titles, two European championship titles, 13 Premier League titles and five FA Cup titles under Alexander Ferguson. They won several more titles under Alexander Chapman Ferguson, who is widely regarded as one of the best football managers of all time.
Wayne Mark Rooney
The English football legend Wayne Mark Rooney left Everton FC in 2004 for The Red Devils. He played hundreds of matches for MUFC before he returned to Everton in 2017. One year later, Wayne Mark Rooney signed with DC United from the United States. He ended his professional football career with Derby County in 2021. Rooney became the manager of Derby County before he became the manager of DC United in 2022. The famous British golf legend Rory Daniel McIlroy, one of the first golfers with 1 million followers on his main social media page, made clear that Wayne Rooney became his favourite football player.
