The Prime Minister will meet football bosses and fans on Tuesday in a bid to halt football’s new European Super League.
Boris Johnson will take part in crunch talks with representatives from the FA, Premier League and supporters’ groups after six of England’s top clubs announced plans to breakaway and form their own division.
In a direct message to fans via The Sun newspaper, the PM said: “It is your game – and you can rest assured that I’m going to do everything I can to give this ludicrous plan a straight red.”
Fellow cabinet members have joined Johnson in his opposition to the new league.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Monday, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said the government will do “everything to protect our national game.”
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“The football authorities have robust rules in place to deal with this, and I know from my conversations today that they are rightfully considering a wide range of sanctions and measures to stop this move in its tracks,” he stated.
“My message to them was clear: they have our full backing. But be in no doubt: if they can’t act, we will. We will put everything on the table to prevent this from happening.”
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If the past year has taught us anything, it’s that football is nothing without its fans.
These owners are only the temporary custodians of their clubs; they forget fans at their peril. pic.twitter.com/W82mhFtrDu
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson denounced the Super League on Tuesday morning – claiming it was a concept “dreamed up by money men” and “must be stopped”.
Many local MPs have also expressed concern over the division – including Manchester’s Lucy Powell, who called it “disastrous for the game and its fans.”
Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham echoed the sentiments of ex-Manchester United star Gary Neville – who has repeatedly called the proposals “disgusting.”
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Fans are united in their outrage over the #SuperLeague announcement. I've supported @ManCity from Division 2 to the Champions League and that's part of what makes our national sport what it is. These proposals will be disastrous for the game & its fans. My Question in Parliament pic.twitter.com/A4mpxTAEOh
The European Super League has even come in from criticism from the monarchy – with Prince William publishing a statement deploring the move.
Writing via the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s social media account, he stated: “Now, more than ever, we must protect the entire football community – from the top level to the grassroots – and the values of competition and fairness at its core.
“I share the concerns of fans about the proposed Super League and the damage it risks causing to the game we love.”
Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur have all agreed to take part in the European Super League alongside Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan – which would have no promotion or relegation.
The division is set to be funded by investment bank JP Morgan – with participation expected to be highly lucrative for all the clubs involved.
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The chairman of the league – Real Madrid President Florentino Perez – claimed the tournament would “save football“.
He told Spanish TV: “We’re doing this to save football, which is in a critical moment.
“The important clubs in England, Italy, and Spain must find a solution to a very bad situation that football is going through.”
But critics have called the league “anti-competitive” – and anger has continued to mount since the official European Super League statement was released on Sunday evening (April 18).
Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin has already warned that players who take part could be banned from representing their countries at international level.
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On Monday, fans from clubs across England hung banners at stadiums protesting the formation of the league, with some claiming they would not return to watch their team if the division went ahead as planned.
During Liverpool’s game against Leeds last night, United’s players wore t-shirts bearing anti-Super League messages – including ‘earn it’ next to the Champions League logo and ‘football is for the fans’.
A plane also flew overhead trailing a ‘Say No To Super League’ banner.
The 14 Premier League clubs not involved in the Super League will discuss the situation together on Tuesday.
It is understood that the six clubs preparing to breakaway will not be invited.
News
Greater Manchester bin and recycling collection dates for Christmas and New Year 2025
Danny Jones
We know it’s a somewhat boring bit of life admin, but anyone who’s been caught out missing the refuse collection dates when the various recycling bins inevitably pile up over Christmas and New Year will know it’s worth knowing ahead of time.
Let’s help you avoid any unnecessary trips to the tip or having to find other ways to get rid of extra rubbish this holiday season.
You can thank us later.
Here are all of the relevant bin collection dates for each of the 10 Greater Manchester boroughs this Christmas 2025 and the first few days of the New Year.
When are the bins being collected this Christmas?
Bolton
Grey bins
Wednesday 31 December 2025
Wednesday 14 January 2026
Wednesday 28 January 2026
Wednesday 11 February 2026
Beige bins
Wednesday 7 January 2026
Wednesday 4 February 2026
Burgundy bins
Wednesday 24 December 2025
Wednesday 7 January 2026
Wednesday 21 January 2026
Wednesday 4 February 2026
Green bins
Wednesday 7 January 2026
Wednesday 1 January 2026
Wednesday 4 February 2026
Wednesday 18 February 2026
Bury
Brown bin collections will be paused from Monday, 22 December to Sunday, 4 January, while dates for grey, green and blue bins will also change for most households until January.
Bury Council has advised that bins should be put out at the usual collection point by 7am and all waste must fit inside the bins with the lids fully closed.
A full list of revised collection dates:
Thursday, 25 December, will change to Wednesday, 24 December
Friday, 26 December, will change to Monday, 29 December
Tuesday, 30 December (no change)
Wednesday, 31 December (no change)
Thursday, 1 January 2026, will change to Friday, 2 January
Friday, 2 January, will change to Saturday, 3 January
Manchester (central)
No change to collections on Monday, 22 December and Monday, 29 December
No change to collections on Tuesday, 23 December and Tuesday, 30 December
No change to collections on Wednesday, 24 December and Wednesday, 31 December
Thursday collections move from Thurs, 25 Dec to Sat, 27 Dec, and 1 January to Fri, 2 January 2026
Friday collections move from Fri, 26 Dec to Sun, 28 Dec and from Fri, 2 Jan to Sat, 3 Jan
Oldham
Bins due on Christmas Day (December 25):
Blue bins will be collected on Monday, 29 December
Grey bins will be collected on Tuesday, 30 December
Brown bins will be collected on Wednesday, 31 December
Green bins and food caddies to be collected on Thursday, 18 December and Saturday, 3 January
Bins due on Boxing Day (26 December):
Blue, grey and brown bins will be collected on Saturday, 20 December
Green bins and food caddies to be collected as normal on (Fri, 19 December and 2 Jan 2026)
Bins due Monday, 29 December to Wednesday, 31 December:
Blue, grey, and brown bins will be collected as normal
Green bin and food caddy a week earlier from 22-24 December and one week later from Jan 5-7.
Bins due on New Year’s Day (Thursday, January 1):
All bins will be collected on Saturday, January 3.
Rochdale
Thursday, 25 December 2025 (Christmas Day) – your bin collection will move to Sat, 27 Dec
Friday, 26 December 2025 (Boxing Day) – your bin collection will move to Mon, 29 Dec
Thursday, 1 January 2026 – your bin collection will move to Sat, 3 Jan 2026
Salford
NO COLLECTION
REPLACEMENT DATE
Thursday 25 December 2025
Saturday 20 December 2025
Friday 26 December 2025
Saturday 27 December 2025
Thursday 1 January 2026
Saturday 3 January 2026
Stockport
The next black bin collection will be on Monday, 29 December
Blue bins will be collected on Friday, 2 January 2026
Brown and green bins will also be collected on Friday, 2 January
Tameside
Thursday 25 December – No Collections
If you are due a green (general waste) bin collection, it will be collected on Monday, 29 December
If you are due a black (comingled recycling waste) or a blue (paper recycling waste) bin collection, it will be collected on Wednesday, 31 December
Friday 26 December – No Collections
If you are due a green (general waste) bin collection, it will be collected on Tuesday, 30 December
If you are due a black (comingled recycling waste) or a blue (paper recycling waste) bin collection, it will be collected on Friday, 2 January
Thursday 1 January – No Collections
If you are due a green (general waste) bin collection, it will be collected on Monday, 5 January
If you are due a black (comingled recycling waste) or a blue (paper recycling waste) bin collection, it will be collected on Tuesday, 6 January
All other green, black and blue bin collections are due to run as normal over the festive period.
Trafford
NORMAL BIN DAY
NEW COLLECTION DATE
Monday 22 December
No change
Tuesday 23 December
No change
Wednesday 24 December
No change
Thursday 25 December
Saturday 27 December
Friday 26 December
Saturday 27 December
Monday 29 December
No change
Tuesday 30 December
No change
Wednesday 31 January
No change
Thursday 1 January
Friday 2 January
Friday 2 January
Saturday 3 January
Green bins and food waste
There will be no green bin collections during Christmas week. Any green bins presented from Monday, 22 to Friday, 26 December will not be collected; the green bin collection service will resume from Monday, 29 December.
Wigan
Bin collections, which usually take place on Tuesdays, will be done on Monday, 22 December and Tuesday, 30 December.
Those whose rubbish is normally collected on Wednesdays will move to Tuesday, 23 December and Wednesday, 31 December.
Thursday bin dates will move to Wednesday, 24 December and Friday, 2 January 2026.
Bin collections normally scheduled on Fridays will be carried out on Saturday, 27 December and Saturday, 3 January 2026.
Green bin collections will be suspended from Monday, 29 December until 9 January; the normal schedule will then resume starting January 12 or 19 – depending on the area.
We hope you have a wonderful, stress-free Christmas and New Year; as for those of you still looking to buy those last few bits, you might find the list below helpful, too.
NASA reveals exact time you can see ‘Santa’s sleigh’ fly over Greater Manchester this Christmas
Emily Sergeant
There’s not long left until Santa and his reindeer crew fly over the skies of Manchester to drop off all those presents.
And it seems like Manchester must have been extra nice this year, as Santa is treating us to lots of chances to catch a glimpse of him on his mission to deliver millions of gifts in time for Christmas.
Just like every year, Santa is dusting off his sleigh and polishing his boots to prepare for his biggest night visiting lots of kids and families. The sleigh is being filled with lots of goodies and surprises as we speak… it’s almost like he can smell the milk and cookies from here.
NASA, one of the world’s leading space companies, has been working meticulously to find out Santa’s route for 2025.
The world-renowned space agency has given us an exact time to look up at the stars to spot the main man himself and catch the glimmer of lights from his sleigh.
NASA has reveals the exact time you can see ‘Santa’s sleigh’ flying over Greater Manchester this Christmas / Credit: Tim Mossholder (via Unsplash)
As a man who has lots of experience globe trotting, it’s safe to say the big man knows how to efficiently cover as many houses as possible all in one night.
Santa’s sleigh will, coincidentally (*wink wink), be present at the same time as the International Space Station (ISS), however anyone looking to see this festive vehicle can notice the lights won’t change direction and will not flash.
This time round, Santa is swooshing round Greater Manchester on Christmas Day a whole hour earlier than last year, meaning that nice list must be the longest it’s ever been.
___
Wednesday 24 December
5:21am
Santa’s sleigh lights will be visible for two minutes travelling South East to East, as the man of Christmas weighs up his North West delivery route.
6:54am
There’s a six minute opportunity to catch those bright lights of Santa’s sleigh in the Manchester sky as he travels from West to South East, finalising his map before the big night ahead.
Thursday 25 December
4:35am
It will be visible for less than a minute, no movement, in a static position. Santa will be doing a headcount of all the houses to make sure he’s not missed a single chimney.
6:08am
The sleigh will be seen for four minutes, moving from South West to South East, by now Santa will have finished his Manchester delivery drop and will be heading on over the hill to our friends in Leeds.
The Manc -
20th April 2021 
