Manchester United ready to introduce safe standing at Old Trafford as they request permission to install rail seating before the end of the season
- Manchester United are planning to implement safe standing at Old Trafford
- United have approached their local authority to ask for the green light
- They want to bring in 1,500 rail seats in the stadium’s North East Quadrant
Manchester United hope to introduce safe standing at Old Trafford. Sportsmail can reveal that the club have requested permission to install rail seating which could be in place later this season.
United have approached their local authority to ask for the green light to bring in 1,500 rail seats in Old Trafford’s North East Quadrant.
They believe the seats, which allow people to stand against a barrier, will ‘enhance spectator safety’ in areas where there is persistent standing.
Manchester United have requested permission to bring in safe standing to Old Trafford
The club are waiting to hear back from the Safety Advisory Group — a partnership between the local authority and other bodies including the police and fire service — on whether they will get the go-ahead.
Sources have suggested a trial could take place before the end of the current campaign, depending on the speed of response.
The move comes after Sportsmail revealed in September that United had launched a consultation on the matter.
Aware of fan support for safe standing, the club carried out a ‘detailed and comprehensive study’ into the feasibility of installing rail seats at the ground. United lodged the request in December and it is currently under review.
A recent change to the stadium safety guide means clubs can now install seats incorporating safety barriers in their grounds.
Rail seating could be in place in the stadium later this season if permission is granted
Standing was outlawed in the top two divisions following the Taylor Report into the 1989 Hillsborough Disaster.
As reported by Sportsmail, the Sports Grounds Safety Authority (SGSA) have compiled an interim report into their season-long study on the safety risks of standing in stadiums.
The findings reveal that the installation of barriers in seated areas at football grounds, such as the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Molineux, has ‘mitigated the risk of crowd collapse’.
United have long voiced their support for safe standing, and the Government is keen to deliver its manifesto pledge of overseeing its introduction.
Tottenham already have the safe standing rail design implemented at their new stadium
Meanwhile, United have confirmed that they decided to cut away allocations to 3,000 for both legs of last month’s League Cup semi-final with Manchester City as part of a pre-emptive move, because they believe they are historically ‘unfairly’ penalised by their neighbours.
The club have described City’s decision to reduce their allocation at the Etihad for previous matches as ‘incorrect’ and believe it is unfair that they are the only team whose arrival is classed as having a ‘high risk of disorder’, which results in increased segregation.
United expected an allocation of signficantly less than the 5,500 they were entitled to under League Cup rules and acted to ‘ensure parity’ via the agreed cap for both ties. City would ordinarily have been allowed up to 7,200 seats at Old Trafford.
The move prompted a backlash from sections of both clubs’ support and United have made assurances that they will endeavour to provide full allocations in future.
United’s claims appear to have come as a surprise to City. A City spokesperson said: ‘This position is contrary to the case put to us by United before Christmas, which was to reduce the allocation at Old Trafford on the grounds of safety and which meant that commensurate action had to be taken for the fixture at the the Etihad.’
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