Sport

Manchester Derby FA Cup final confirmed for the first time ever

History made and more to come.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 24th April 2023

It’s official: for the first time in the history of English football, we are going to have a Manchester Derby for this year’s FA Cup final. This is going to be massive.

An all-Manchester final was confirmed on Sunday night after Manchester United also booked their return trip to Wembley by beating Brighton 7-6 on penalties.

It was a fairly open game from start to finish with both sides giving a good account of themselves, and a strong performance was very much needed for United following their 3-0 exit from the Europa League.

Nevertheless, they responded positively and while they had to go to penalties to get it done, Reds won’t care one bit and both sides are now licking their lips at the thought of not only another Manchester derby victory but one that will see them lift a major title.

It’s United’s first FA Cup final since their loss to Chelsea back in 2018 and City’s first since 2019 when they went on to win it against Watford.

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United have won 12 FA Cups down the years, the last coming in the 2016/17 season, while the blue half of the city will be hoping to win their seventh.

Furthermore, not only did the winning seventh penalty from Victor Lindelöf send United to their second final this season — Erik ten Hag winning his first trophy at the club with the EFL Cup Final back in February — but it was also the first time the Red Devils have won a penalty shootout in 152 years of the competition’s history.

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Seems like a crazy stat, doesn’t it?

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As for Pep Guardiola‘s side, they have an equally big game this Wednesday as they take on Arsenal who are still clinging on at the top of the table — a win would be huge if they are hoping to remain Premier League champions. The Spaniard has called on fans to turn up in their droves and in full voice.

Both halves of Manchester will return to Wembley Stadium on 3 June for the FA Cup final.

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It’s going to be quite the occasion and it’s safe to say those trains down are going to be quite interesting.

You can watch the highlights of Manchester United vs Brighton down below or Manchester City’s victory over Sheffield United HERE.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Image — Manchester United/Manchester City

Sport

Co-op Live announce UFC 304 is coming to the brand-new arena for Manchester return this year

Danny Jones Danny Jones UFC 304 returns to Manchester

Co-op Live has announced one of the biggest nights yet and their first-ever sporting event after confirming that the UFC is coming to the new state-of-the-art arena.

While the shiny new music and live entertainment stadium suffered an unfortunate setback earlier this week, with both of Peter Kay’s gigs being postponed following power supply issues discovered during their test event, the confirmation of UFC 304 at Co-op Live is a big plus for the opening month.

Rumours had been circling that a huge sporting event might be coming to the UK’s newest indoor arena, one of the biggest of its kind in Europe, but this being just the fourth time the UFC has washed up on British shores, it’s a huge coup for their debut year.

Announced on Wednesday, 24 April, the global MMA phenomenon and multi-billion-dollar promotion company will be bringing their 304th fight night to Manchester on 27 July and you can roll your eyes at the pun all you like, but it’s going to be a knockout.

The UFC is coming back to Manchester for the first time in eight years.

As the UFC has said in an official press release, “UK MMA is currently experiencing what is being described as an unheralded golden era, with stars such as welterweight champion Leon Edwards, interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall, and local favourites, including Paddy Pimblett, Molly McCann, Muhammad Mokaev, Michael Page and Arnold Allen, with more rising through the ranks.”

That being said, there isn’t a better moment for the brand to capitalise on the growing fight audience here in the UK and 0161, specifically, with the aforementioned Aspinall having created a real appetite for the discipline in and around the city.

The Greater Manchester region has always been home to iconic fighters regardless, be it boxing or otherwise; Ricky Hatton, Tyson Fury, Amir Khan, as well adopted Manc MMA legend Michael Bisping, whose pedigree helped bring UFC to Manchester and the AO Arena for the first time back in 2016.

Nearly a decade later the promotion is now part of Co-op Live’s maiden calendar and set to be the first of many sporting events they hope to host – a plan bolstered by their partnership with neighbours, Manchester City.

ufc returning to manchester july 2024
ufc co-op live
The UFC 304 fight card is yet to be announced but there are a few local names you can probably bank on. (Credit: The Manc Audio)

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“I’m so excited to get back to Manchester, and no better time than this summer,” said UFC President and CEO Dana White. “We have two champions from the UK and fans have been dying for a UFC PPV event. So here we come to the largest indoor arena in the UK. See you soon, England!”

As for Co-op Live, Executive Director and General Manager Gary Roden added: “With the north of England home to so many of the world’s leading fighters, we are primed and ready for UFC and its knowledgeable, passionate fanbase.

“Offering a state-of-the-art platform for globally broadcast events, Co-op Live is extremely proud to welcome entertainment of this scale and calibre as the future home of combat sports in the UK.”

Co-op members get early access to presale tickets at 10am on 5 June and general admission goes live via Ticketmaster at the same time on Friday, 7 June. UFC Fight Club members will also have the opportunity to purchase tickets early on the Wednesday from 9am BST.

You can also register your interest HERE to gain access to a special pre-sale which starts on Thursday, 6 June 6 from 10am as well. Roll on fight night!

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group/Supplied

Sport

Manchester United in talks with Disney over ‘multi-million-dollar documentaries’ deal

Danny Jones Danny Jones Manchester United talking to Disney Plus about documentary deal

Manchester United are said to be in talks with Disney over a potential deal to create a number of “multi-million-dollar documentaries”.

Just a week or so after the first trailer for their upcoming 99 series on Amazon Prime Video, which will follow their iconic treble-winning campaign – and only a couple weeks after Manchester City dropped their own over on Netflix – it looks like we’re getting more Manchester football media.

As per the report by The Athletic‘s Adam Crafton, the discussion between the footballing icons and entertainment giants centres around the proposal to make multiple documentaries about the club, with a specific focus on Sir Alex Ferguson and the legacy he left behind.

With Disney+ now the third biggest streaming service available, boasting more than 150 million subscribers according to the most recent estimates, and Man United still one of the most instantly recognisable brands on the planet, it goes without saying that the viewing figures would be huge.

Man United and Disney are reportedly exploring a collaboration for multiple documentaries.

The article goes on to detail how the prospective documentaries would also ideally involve “substantial interview time with Ferguson”, the now 82-year-old former manager and footballing legend who won a total of 38 trophies in 26 years as the Man United boss.

Disney would reportedly also be given access to the club’s wealth of archive footage along with key ambassadors and figures from their rich sporting heritage, including former captain Bryan Robson, goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel and more.

We’d be surprised if you didn’t see plenty of David Beckham, Gary Neville and other Class of ’92 members involved as well, sitting as arguably the most iconic and foremost serial winners in their history.

As the plans are still in their infancy, Ferguson and his former players would need to formally agree to be part of the documentaries and United would have their say over final edits.

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It is said that the current deal on the table is “in the low seven figures” and is actually lower than the terms originally offered to the club when the idea was first floated a couple of years ago.

There is still no indication as to how many projects could be in the pipeline or when we might see the first released if/when a deal is agreed upon.

As for out on the pitch itself, it’s been a turbulent season for the Red Devils, to say the least, but they have still managed to secure a place in the FA Cup final for the second year running following a game they made difficult for themselves against Coventry City.

Set to be just the second Manchester derby final in history, kick-off has once again been moved to an earlier start time to aid with travel issues and potential crowd problems.

FA Cup final confirmed for 3pm kick-off time as Metropolitan Police stress safety for fans

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Hquan2508 (Wikimedia)/Disney UK/minhquangle87 (Flickr)

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