The city centre will be painted sky blue this evening as Manchester City are set to celebrate their treble title-winning season.
In case you somehow missed it, Manchester City made history this past weekend.
On what was a humid summer’s night in Istanbul on Saturday, Pep Guardiola‘s men fought hard in the Champions League final to clinch a 1-0 win over Italian side Inter Milan, and although it ended up being a much harder challenge than many seemed to be expecting, a decisive goal in the 68th minute by midfielder Rodri secured the Citizens the biggest title in European football.
Not only was it a historic moment for the club and fans, as the Champions League was the only major title missing from their ever-growing trophy cabinet, but it was also a historic moment in general, as City became only the second English side to claim this coveted domestic treble.
2022/23 will always be remembered as the season the Sky Blues took home the Premier League title, the FA Cup, and the Champions League.
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And tonight, the lads are set to show all three trophies off to their tens of thousands of fans.
As always when teams claim historic victories like this, a whole host of events are planned for fans to suitably celebrate – with an open-top bus parade right through the heart of Manchester hat ends with the players, manager, and staff taking to the stage to greet the crowds all set to take over the city centre this evening.
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From parade routes, to event times, road closures, and more, here’s everything you need to know about Manchester City’s treble-winning title parade.
Manchester City lifting the Premier League and FA Cup trophies / Credit: Manchester City (via Facebook)
Open-top bus parade route
The open-top bus tour through Manchester city centre is always the headline-grabbing highlight of any title parade, with tens of thousands of fans all coming together to line the streets and celebrate as their heroes show off their shiny trophies.
Manchester City has published a handy map of the open-top bus parade route this year.
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Manchester City open-top bus parade route 2023 / Credit: Manchester City
Pep Guardiola and the squad will depart from Tonman Street at around 6:30pm and travel down Deansgate, before turning right on to St Mary’s Gate, continuing past Marks and Spencer, and then turning right on to Cross Street.
At the junction of King Street, the bus will then turn left towards Brown Street and work its way along Brown Street, Booth Street, and Nicholas Street until it reaches George Street.
It will travel down George Street until it reaches Princess Street.
Road closures
We all know by know that title parades do tend to cause a bit of disruption across the city centre, with many major thoroughfares being shut off – and this year is no different, as Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has now confirmed which roads will be closed as part of the parade route and stage show.
Oxford Street – Mount Street to Chepstow /Portland St
Hall Street – Bale Street to Oxford Street
12pm (midday) to 12am (midnight) on Monday 12 June
Portland Street – Oxford Street to Princess Street
Oxford Street – Portland to Whitworth
Chepstow – Great Bridgewater to Oxford Road
12pm (midday) to 9pm on Monday 12 June
Deansgate – Liverpool Road to Blackfriars Street
2pm to 9pm on Monday 12 June
St Mary Gate – Deansgate to Market Street
Market Street – St Mary’s Gate to Cross Street
Cross Street – Market Street to Albert Square
3pm to 10pm on Monday 12 June
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King Street – Cross Street to Brown Street
Brown Street – King Street to Booth Street
Booth Street – Brown Street to Mosley Street
Nicholas Street – Mosley Street to Faulkner Street
George Street – Charlotte Street to Princess Street
Princess Street – Cooper Street to George Street
Back George Street – Princess Street to Dickinson Street
Dickenson Street – back George Street to George Street
Manchester City lifting the Champions League trophy / Credit: Manchester City
Stage show and entertainment
As well as the open-top bus parade, a live stage show will also take place on Oxford Street, with onstage entertainment starting at 5:30pm.
The parade will be hosted by Manchester City’s City Square presenters Danny Jackson and Natalie Pike, who’ll also be joined by former players and special guests, and there’ll also be live music from bands and DJs, as well as three DJ booths dotted across the parade route.
The entrance to the parade stage viewing area is accessible via Oxford Street and Portland Street from 5pm, and all fans will be searched before entering.
As this is a non-ticketed event, Manchester City is advising fans arrive early to get the best possible viewing experience, but don’t worry if you can’t secure the best view in the house, as there’ll also be screens on Oxford Street, Chepstow Street, and Portland Street showing all the action on stage.
The players are expected to arrive on stage at around 7:30pm.
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The team and manager Pep Guardiola with the Champions League trophy / Credit: Manchester City
What is the Council saying?
As they have done in previous years, Manchester City Council has been working together with Manchester City and external partners to ensure the parade runs as smoothly as possible so that fans can properly enjoy the celebrations.
“Winning the treble, crowned with an historic first Champion’s League triumph, is an incredible achievement,” Cllr Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council said ahead of the event.
“We extend our congratulations on behalf of the city to the club and its fans.
“We’re sure the parade will be a joyous and unforgettable occasion as fans gather in the city centre to celebrate with the team a success which will resonate around the world and showcases once again Manchester’s huge sporting legacy.”
Find out more on the Manchester City website here.
Featured Image – Shaun Botterill (Getty via Manchester City)
Sport
The 2025/26 Premiership Women’s Rugby season has been delayed
Danny Jones
The next Premiership Women’s Rugby (PWR) season has been officially delayed by nearly three weeks.
Announced on Tuesday, 21 January, the decision has been taken in an effort to help promote the Women’s Rugby World Cup (WRWC), the proximity of which is rather close to the national union championship competition.
With sporting bodies also trying to nurture a growing interest in female rugby, the start of the next PWR season will be pushed back not only to give players more time to rest but in an effort to drive a larger audience to the WRWC as well, the final of which is being played here in England.
The hope is that it will also better the Red Roses’ chances of winning the international tournament in turn – fingers firmly crossed.
Get excited 🤩
The PWR 2025-26 Season will officially kick off on Saturday 25th October PLUS the PWR Cup will return 🙌
The conclusion of the international tournament is taking place at Twickenham Stadium in London on 27 September, just days before the 2025/26 Premiership season was due to start.
Local side Sale Sharks are sadly at the bottom of the table this current campaign, which kicked off on 5 October 2024 and ends this March, but with eyes already on the WRWC the focus for lots of players in the division will no doubt already be shifting.
Not only is the domestic women’s rugby season being delayed by nearly three whole weeks – meaning the first games won’t happen until 25 October – but this comes after the current schedule of fixtures was also reduced with player recovery in mind ahead of the World Cup.
Speaking to BBC Sport, the PWR’s operations manager, Amy Walmsley, said: “The Rugby World Cup is a generational moment for women’s rugby and will create a huge opportunity for both PWR and our clubs to grow and celebrate with their fans.
“The optimum time between the Rugby World Cup Final and our first league match will ensure we capitalise on what we already know will be the biggest and best World Cup ever, while also ensuring player welfare with adequate rest across the season.”
The stats back it up too as 2024 saw numerous milestones for the women’s game; in addition to record crowds at the Olympics, last year’s Guinness Women’s Six Nations was the most viewed on record with 8.1 million fans tuning in, not to mention an increased interest among 18-24-year-olds.
You can find the run-down of the Sale Sharks Women fixtures below:
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝘂𝗻 𝗜𝗻
All of our fixtures for the 24/25 season are locked in. Let's bring that Northern roar to every game #SharksFamily 🦈
As for the final of the Premiership Women’s Rugby, the date has been reverted to its usual window in June, which should also fit within what congestion remains.
Nevertheless, with the Women’s Six Nations in late April and England – who have won all but one of their last 51 games – set to begin their World Cup on 22 August, the margins are still going to be somewhat fine if they are to head into the tournament in the best shape possible.
With the tickets selling extremely well, the expectation is that the Rugby World Cup final break is set to break the world record for the best-attended women’s rugby fixture in history.
In the meantime, Greater Manchester is gearing up for the men’s action as the Six Nations gets underway at the end of this month and the city is boasting the perfect place to watch it.
Ian Evatt sacked by Bolton Wanderers after emergency board meeting
Danny Jones
Bolton Wanderers have reportedly sacked manager Ian Evatt following yet another defeat in League One on Tuesday night, losing 2-1 to Charlton Athletic.
Marking their 10th defeat of the campaign so far, having only won just more than that tally and drawn five with a negative goal difference, it’s said an emergency board meeting was called after the result, with Evatt being ultimately let go.
The 43-year-old has been with the Greater Manchester side since 2020 after being snapped up following his impressive performance at Barrow AFC, where he got the non-league outfit promoted into the EFL after nearly half a century.
An official announcement by the club explains the decision was come to by “mutual consent” but regardless, the result is still the same and Evatt’s four-and-a-half-year tenure at Bolton has now come to an end.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club today announces that First Team Manager Ian Evatt has left the Club by mutual consent.
We would like to express our gratitude to Ian for his professionalism, commitment and creating a legacy during his time at the Club.#bwfc
Thanking for his “professionalism, commitment and creating a legacy during his time at the Club”, Bolton Wanderers Chairman, Sharon Brittan, goes on to add in the full statement: “Ian arrived at a challenging time for Bolton Wanderers Football Club and his dedication to rebuilding both on and off the pitch has been commendable.
“He instilled a renewed sense of professionalism and purpose, and we are grateful for his significant contributions during his four and a half years at the helm.
“He has been a pleasure to work with and I personally thank him for his hard work and passion for this Club. He has created a tremendous legacy and will always be remembered for the successes he has brought. We wish him nothing but success in the future.”
The decision for him to be sacked doesn’t exactly come as a surprise as the downturn in results over the last couple of seasons has been notable, and although Evatt made a bright start at Bolton, it’s been rather topsy-turvy for a while.
The former defender famously won them promotion to the third division when they were at risk of dropping into the National League amid their financial struggles and went on to win the EFL Trophy in 2023 – their first piece of silverware for more than 30 years.
It’s achievements like this that have given him a lot of goodwill around the Toughsheet Stadium but, in the end, the results just haven’t quite been enough. Despite many supporters having called for a change in leadership for some time, there was still plenty of gratitude for his efforts overall.
Thank you for everything, Ian Evatt.
Before this season, you built something special. The connection to the club had been the strongest it's been for a long, long time, so a big thank you.
No doubting, he tried. He did everything possible –but it just wasn't enough to take… pic.twitter.com/pb5dc5je9d
Evatt has also had more than his share of controversial moments in the dugout, as well as on the pitch.
It was only back in October 2024 that he was officially charged by the FA for misconduct after he squared up to a Shrewsbury player, leaning his forehead against captain Morgan Feeney in an aggressive manner, receiving a £3,400 fine and a three-game touchline ban.
As for the man himself, Evatt signed off by saying: “I’ve absolutely loved my time here at Bolton Wanderers Football Club. Working with Sharon and Nick [Luckock] has been a pleasure, and I’ve been superbly backed along the way by my team of staff and the players.
“There comes a point in football when a change needs to happen and the last thing I want is to damage what we have all built together. I believe the Club is still well-placed to achieve its goals this season, and I want to give the Board and players the best chance of doing that.
“I’m very grateful for everybody’s support and to be the manager of this wonderful football club has been the greatest honour of my career. To our fans, thank you for the support you have shown me and my staff. Together we have created some very special memories and I will always be a fan of this amazing football club.”
Bolton will be announcing an interim replacement in due course.
Joined us at one of our lowest moments.
A huge part of the journey in making us dream again.
Emily Sergeant -
12th June 2023 
