Ryan ChartrandRegarding Kory Harbeck’s article “When the NBA just isn’t enough” – Manchester United is not known to fans as “Man U.” Official club abbreviations are Man Utd, Man United, and MUFC.
Why am I so nitpicky? “Man U” is a term used only by rival fans to insult Man Utd fans by insulting the 23 passengers who died in the Munich Air Disaster of 1958. Some examples:
“Man, you Man, you went on a plane,
Man, you Man, you never came back again…”
“Man U Never Intended Coming Home” (M.U.N.I.C.H.)
“Man you are manure-rotting in your grave.”
No official club merchandise would ever dare employ the words “Man U,” and a simple mention of the phrase in the Manchester area will surely offend someone and likely can lead to violence.
Here in the States, the term has become so common that casual and even devoted fans of the club will use it, not knowing that it is the most derogatory thing anyone could possibly say regarding United. It’s analogous to Cal Poly students mocking the 18 lives lost in the plane crash of 1960. I’m sure none of the fans that do use the term realize the gravity of what they say, but, in the interest of avoiding a fistfight, Internet flame war, or the sheer irony of insulting their favorite club, these fans should learn to strike the term “Man U” from their vocabulary and never use it to identify the club they know and love.