Manchester United F.C.

Nickname(s)
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**Manchester United Football Club** is an English professional football club based in the area of Old Trafford, Greater Manchester. They are currently competing in the Premier League, England's top flight, and play their home games at Old Trafford, the second largest stadium in England by capacity. They are England's most successful club.

Manchester United was formed in 1878 as Newton Heath LYR Football Club by the Carriage and Wagon department of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (LYR) depot at Newton Heath. In 1888, they were founder members of The Combination before joining the newly formed Football Alliance, which ran for three seasons before being merged with the Football League, in 1889. The club started the 1892–93 season in the First Division but were relegated after two seasons in the division.

In October 1945, the return of football after World War II led to the appointment of Matt Busby as manager. Busby would go on to become one of the most successful managers in English football history, leading *The Red Devils* to five First Division titles, two FA Cups, five FA Charity Shields and a European Cup title.

On the way home from a European Cup tie away at Red Star Belgrade, the team's plane crashed on the runway at Munich-Riem Airport. Seven players and three club officials were among the 20 people who were killed at the scene; Duncan Edwards died from his injuries two weeks later as the final death toll reached 23, while two other players were injured to such an extent that they never played football again. The tragic events would become known as the Munich air disaster and the anniversary of the disaster is still remembered every year.

After a mixture of fortunes in the 1970s and 1980s, including a relegation, Scotsman Alex Ferguson was appointed manager on 6 November 1986. Ferguson would go on to become arguable the greatest and most successful manager in football history, winning thirteen top-flight titles, five FA Cups, four League Cups, two European Cups, the Cup Winners' Cup, the Super Cup, the Intercontinental Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. Ferguson retired in 2013 and was replaced by David Moyes. Since Ferguson's retirement, United have appointed four different managers but have failed to win a single league title.

Despite recent fortunes, Manchester United remain England's most successful club, the Premier League's most successful club, and one of the world's biggest, most famous and most valuable clubs.

## Rivalries

*Main articles: Manchester derby, Liverpool F.C.–Manchester United F.C. rivalry, Leeds United F.C.–Manchester United F.C. rivalry, Arsenal F.C.–Manchester United F.C. rivalry.*

Manchester United maintain rivalries with various clubs. Fans of the club consider Liverpool to be their fiercest rival. The rivalry, known as the North West derby, stems from the competition between the two cities during the 19th century Industrial Revolution when Manchester was famous for its textile industry while Liverpool was a major port as well as the fact the two clubs are England's most successful clubs.

United's other fiercest rivals are Leeds United, with whom they contest the Roses derby which stems from the Wars of the Roses and the rivalry between Yorkshire and Lancashire, and Manchester City, with whom they contest the Manchester derby which stems simply from location.

United also maintain a strong rivalry with Arsenal. The rivalry between the two stems from the numerous times the two sides competed for the league title in the 1990s and 2000s.

Other rivals to a lesser extent include Chelsea and Bolton Wanderers.

## Honours

### Domestic

#### League

* **First Division**/**Premier League**
	+ **Winners (20; record):** 1907–08, 1910–11, 1951–52, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1964–65, 1966–67, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13
* **Second Division**
	+ **Winners (2):** 1935–36, 1974–75

#### Cups

* **FA Cup**
	+ **Winners (12):** 1908–09, 1947–48, 1962–63, 1976–77, 1982–83, 1984–85, 1989–90, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1998–99, 2003–04, 2015–16
* **Football League Cup/EFL Cup**
	+ **Winners (5):** 1991–92, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2016–17
* **FA Charity Shield/FA Community Shield**
	+ **Winners (21; record):** 1908, 1911, 1952, 1956, 1957, 1965\*, 1967\*, 1977\*, 1983, 1990\*, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2016 (\* shared)

### European

* **European Cup/UEFA Champions League**
	+ **Winners (3):** 1967–68, 1998–99, 2007–08
* **European Cup Winners' Cup**
	+ **Winners (1):** 1990–91
* **UEFA Europa League**
	+ **Winners (1):** 2016–17
* **European Super Cup**
	+ **Winners (1):** 1991

### Worldwide

* **Intercontinental Cup**
	+ **Winners (1; British record):** 1999
* **FIFA Club World Cup**
	+ **Winners (1; British joint record):** 2008