Manchester United Accused of Undermining Women's Football by Campaign Group

After a gripping World Cup and a thrilling effort from Mark Sampson’s Lionesses, football fans in England really bought into the women’s game this summer. But Manchester United don’t seem intent on tapping into this latest boom in the sport and have duly received some staunch criticism.

The campaign group “Women In Sport” have had their say on the matter, with the Red Devils one of just two of the current 20 Premier League sides that does not have a women’s side, per Sam Cunningham of the Daily Mail:

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In the current climate, it is barely comprehensible that one of the world's most recognisable football teams still refuses to properly engage with women's football.

Time and again, the country's elite female footballers have demonstrated their abilities on the domestic and world stage, and the progress made on and off the field in women's football has been a real success story for the UK.

These successes run the risk of being dangerously undermined when institutions such as Manchester United fail to show their support. We hope that the club and its directors will urgently reconsider their position on women's football and seize the opportunity to become part of women's football's development, rather than a barrier in its path.

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It’s certainly a peculiar scenario and calls for the club to set up a women’s side are not something new. As reported by Cunningham, local Manchester MP Barbara Keeley wrote to then Red Devils boss David Moyes in 2013 on the back of a fan petition urging the club to start a team.

Her reply stated that the matter was “under review,” a similar response to what the United chiefs gave this summer on their pre-season tour when quizzed on the matter.

As noted by Cunningham, the club used to feature a women's team but disbanded it in 2005.

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It’s strange that a club of United’s commercial clout are not tapping into the lucrative benefits that’d surely accompany the inception of a team.

After all, given the amount of pulling power the Red Devils have around the world, the commercial gains of any women’s team would receive could make it well worth their while from a business standpoint. In addition, they’d also be one of the most well supported clubs anywhere in the game.

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The Women’s Super League is thriving, the game burgeoning on an international scale and the FA Women’s Cup final was staged at Wembley. At this point, it's both safe and exciting to say that the women’s game isn't going anywhere.

It also could be argued there's a certain duty of responsibility on the club to get this amended. While the women’s game has been derided in the past, the Red Devils showing their support would only reinforce the recent strides that have pushed the women's game into prominence.