Manchester United owner Avram Glazer attended the Women’s FA Cup final on Sunday in a shock appearance at Wembley Stadium.
United succumbed to a 1-0 defeat to Emma Hayes’ side, who claimed their third FA Cup title in a row after Sam Kerr’s 27th goal of the season proved the difference in a tightly-contested affair.
The game broke two major records, with the 77,390-strong crowd proving to be a record for a women’s club game in England and a world record for a women’s domestic cup match.
Glazer is on the verge of selling his family’s majority stake in United, but made time to attend the final in the royal box on Sunday despite not being at Old Trafford for United’s men’s team’s Premier League game against Wolves on Saturday.
He played a huge part in the Red Devils not having a women’s team for 13 years, as the Glazer family played a major role is disbanding the women’s team after they took over in 2005.
Avram Glazer was present at the Women’s FA Cup final at Wembley on Sunday afternoon
Glazer sat in a royal box as he watched his Manchester United side fall to a 1-0 defeat against Chelsea
Glazer played a major role in disbanding the team in 2005 before reluctantly bringing it back
Since the team reformed in 2018, they have impressed domestically and came ever so close to winning their first ever trophy on Sunday.
United could have been three or four-nil ahead at half-time. And those wasted chances proved crucial, with Kerr only needing one to score the winning goal.
It was ironic that Glazer was in the stands for what was the biggest moment in the club’s short history.
The women’s team was reluctantly re-formed in 2018 after much pressure but have been playing catch-up for the last five years. Marc Skinner has done a greeat job in getting United to where they are – an FA Cup final and probable Champions League qualification. But you can only get so far on a shoe-string budget.
United lost the game 1-0 in what would have been their first FA Cup win after Sam Kerr’s goal
Glazer and his family are on the verge of selling the club, though may stay invovled
It remains to be seen how much of an interest prospective owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe with pay
The Glazers have not invested enough into the team at all – not enough to push Chelsea off their pedestal.
That Hayes could bring a five-time Champions League winner off the bench in Kadeisha Buchanan to help them see out the game, spoke volumes.
Wembley is almost a second home for Chelsea whereas it was United’s first visit here for what was the first ever sold-out Cup final.
Perhaps the success of the final will persuade Glazer and his family to increase their investment, for however much longer they are making decisions. Or Jim Ratcliffe, who looks set to take over as majority owner, will give the team the respect and attention it’s obviously earned.