Manchester United’s ‘new’ sporting director Dan Ashworth only made the move to Old Trafford back in July and now, just five months later, he has officially left by ‘mutual agreement’.
Announced over the weekend, not only did the news come much to the surprise of United fans but given that his appointment was confirmed long before his start date, Ashworth actually spent almost just as long not quite having joined the club as he did on the job. Sounds messy, we know – because it is.
In short, both Newcastle and now Manchester United’s 53-year-old ex-sporting director was placed on gardening leave back in February after a clear approach by what would be his short-lived new home.
They also paid the North East side a large sum to secure his services – far from a measly number when you consider where else they’ve pinched pennies this year…
INEOS at Manchester United:
– Got rid of Dan Ashworth after five months having had him on gardening leave for the same amount of time. Oh and paid £3 million for him.
– Put ticket prices up to £66 for everyone, including children and pensioners.
To put things into context, while in footballing terms £3 million might not sound like a lot of money (the industry being as overinflated as it is), when you take into account what that money could have gone towards, it doesn’t necessarily make for great reading.
Oh yeah, you also have to tot up how much he was paid as his regular wage during a five-month stint in which even more money was spent on players and those hoping to grab a ticket to one of the remaining games this season (we’re not even in Christmas yet) were asked to fork of £66 for the privilege.
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The technical director for the FA’s elite development programme will have likely been on a higher wage in Manchester than he was in Newcastle, where he is said to have taken home around £1.5m a year, and probably notched a good chunk of that amount in less than half a year.
Even operating on the assumption that the INEOS Group matched his rate at St James’ Park, this means that he will have made at the very least an estimated £625k since switching Uniteds.
Add that on top of The Times‘ claims that the actual compensation figure Jim Ratcliffe and co. paid to release him from his previous role were actually upwards of the reported figure, then you’re looking at something closer to over £5m for as many months of work.
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Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth left his role after just five months.
Just as a reminder, roughly £200m has been spent on new players since Ashworth took up the position and 250 staff members were made redundant from various roles throughout the club, which was also said to have tacked on another £8.6m to the overall expenditure.
Although exact details are still yet to be fully verified, Ashworth and the new United hierarchy have clearly clashed: it is thought he was lumped with the decision to keep Erik ten Hag and extend his contract before his eventual sacking and also made clear suggestions as to his replacement.
It is also thought Ashworth had tipped other frontrunners to replace the Dutchman instead of new head coach Ruben Amorim, who CEO Omar Berrada to tie down before his former employers Manchester City could line up as Pep Guardiola’s eventual successor.
Whatever ultimately comes out in the wash, we think it’s fair to say it all sounds like a bit of a shambles and the atmosphere around the club – especially following the recent protests over increased ticket prices – looks to be less than rosy once again.
One thing is for sure, like most of those who have attempted since Sir Alex Ferguson, the new manager has walked into a much bigger task than he could have ever predicted and given the Ashworth developments, recent sackings and fan frustration on multiple fronts, United could really do with a win.
Featured Images — BT Sport (screenshot via YouTube)
Sport
The annual Manchester Remembers Foundation charity football match has shut down
Danny Jones
The annual Manchester Remembers charity football match has been cancelled for 2025, and unfortunately, the wider Foundation has also shut downfor the foreseeable.
Set up back in 2020, the Manchester Remembers charity game was created to help raise funds for the families of those lost in the tragic 2017 Manchester Arena attack, raising nearly £200,000 in donations for multiple organisations.
It has been a truly treasured community event across Greater Manchester, welcoming thousands to the likes of Manchester City Academy Stadium and Oldham Athletic‘s Boundary Park, as well as spotlighting local musicians and notable figures volunteering their help for a deeply important cause.
However, the Foundation is now set to hang up its boots. Confirming the news over the bank holiday weekend, founders Aaron Lee and Paul Corrigan shared “a difficult statement to make and a decision not taken lightly.”
— The McrRemembers Foundation™️⚽️🐝 (@McrRemembers) May 3, 2025
As explained in the lengthy and emotional post, it is with a “heavy heart” that this year’s charity match has now been officially cancelled, and tickets already purchased up to this point are now being refunded.
Having played a small part in helping spread awareness around the game and the Foundation since it began, we were gutted to learn of this sad news.
The 2025 MCR Remembers game was scheduled to take place this June at a new venue for the event, Bury FC’s home ground at Gigg Lane, but following what they have labelled “a lack of support” from Greater Manchester leaders and “influential people needed to carry the event forward.”
Lee – a former police officer turned firefighter who was one of the emergency responders on 22 May, 2017 – went on to share a follow-up video reflecting on the announcement.
As he puts in the piece to camera, he says that even if those who had been reached out to in recent times were to suddenly respond, that it is “sadly too late.”
Taking time to thank not only past sponsors, managers, ex-pros and celebrity players who have been part of the event in the past, but everyone who bought tickets to the event(s) over the past few years, stating simply: “We cant thank you enough.”
Lee, who was given both a Chief Fire Officers Commendation and British Citizen Award in 2024, went on to address those “so-called leaders and influential people” in a subsequent post, adding: “All we needed was a bit of help. But we were ignored. Thanks for the memories.”
Unsurprisingly, the comments on social media have been awash with messages of love, support and sadness upon learning of this year’s cancellation and the end of The Manchester Remembers Foundation after more than half a decade.
There is some hope, though, as he ends the video by saying, “Who knows if this is the end or not? […] I dare say we’ll be back at some point.” We can only keep our fingers crossed he’s right and the MCR Remembers charity game won’t be shut down for good.
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Manchester Remembers Foundation
Sport
25,000 free footballs are being given away across the UK
Danny Jones
A total of 25,000 free footballs are up for grabs this month as part of a new scheme from Barclays, who are giving them away to mark a special anniversary.
The British multinational universal bank, which boasts over 850 branches and more than 48 million customers worldwide, has been supporting the beautiful game for a quarter of a century now and has been the primary Premier League sponsor since the 2001/02 season.
Approaching 25 years helping fund and promote English football, they’ve come up with a new initiative to celebrate, simply called the ‘Lost Ball Project‘.
We’ve all seen scenes like these before.
Credit: Barclays (supplied)
Tapping into the national and generational memory of losing a ball to a pond, up a tree, over a fence or on a roof and so on, Barclays are making up for those heartbreaking little losses – one ball at a time.
Lost Ball will see the bank give away 25k footballs across the UK, with Barclays customers able to claim a free ball for themselves or someone else who has lost theirs.
Already up and running, the scheme is off to a flyer and free footies will be available until Thursday, 22 May, so we wouldn’t wait around.
The bank has played an integral role throughout the British football pyramid for decades now, sponsoring to only the Premier League but also the WSL, Barclays Women’s Championship; the Northern Irish Women’s Football Association, Scottish Women’s Championship and the Scottish Women’s League One
They’ve even put together this emotive, albeit a bit tongue-in-cheek video:
As they put it, the mission of the Lost Ball Project is simple: “Let’s keep the nation playing the beautiful game. Because there’s no football without grassroots football.”
In addition to backing established leagues, they have continued to support the country’s footballing community at large, especially in terms of the women’s game.
For instance, the Barclays Girls’ Football School partnership with The FA has seen the number of participating schools rise from 3,000 in 2019 to 20,000 in 2024, helping more than 2.5 million schoolgirls access football.
Important work done from the ground up.
Credit: Supplied
Barclays’ Group Head of Sponsorship, Tom Corbett, said in a statement: “We are immensely proud of our pioneering work and funding to grassroots football over the past 25 years.
Giving away 25,000 balls to replace our customers’ ‘Lost Balls’ means they will never be without the one thing you need to be able to play the game we’ve supported at Barclays for all these years.”
If you bank with the group, you can find out how to claim your free football HERE.
Danny Jones -
9th December 2024 
