Best Manchester United fan websites (Part-1)
Republik of Mancunia
It would be a crime to tell the story of Republik of Mancunia without first revisiting the 1998 World Cup in France.
It is well documented that David Beckham was sent off against Argentina for kicking Diego Simone. England lost the game on penalties and were knocked out of the World Cup. Beckham was vilified by the press, and his effigy was hung outside a London pub.
This hatred against Manchester United players continued into the next millennium; when the likes of Paul Scholes, Beckham, Gary Neville and Nicky Butt took to the field for England in international games, 'Stand up If you hate Man U' was chanted from the stands by the England fans.
This made the Mancunian movement even stronger. Scott, who runs the Republik of Mancunia, says that those living in Manchester feel they are more Mancunian than they are English.
However, this did not lead to the founding of Republik of Mancunia, but, what it achieved was, it laid the foundations for the fan site and united all the Mancunians under one common banner.
The members of the Republik of Mancunia firmly believe that UNITED > England.
Started as a Manchester United news site in 2006, it evolved into an opinionated site with strong views on everything that is United. It is primarily updated by Scott, but you can also read posts from other guest bloggers, too. What makes ROM so special is that it doesn't hold back from criticising the club and its players. Every Man Utd fan should have this Mancunian site on their bookmarks.
United Rant
United Rant is probably the best Manchester United fan website in the country. Ask Scott from ROM, he will testify to this fact before a United fans jury.
Rant was born at a time when the Glazers were buying off the controlling shares at the club, and United were faltering in the league and in Europe. In the 2004-2005 season, Rant's owner and editor Ed Barker famously called for Sir Alex Ferguson's head in a fan column that was published in the Guardian newspaper.
That was in the past and it wasn't even half as bad as the fan who unfurled the infamous 'Tara Fergie' banner. Today, the Rant is a platform for deconstructive analysis of the best supported team in the world, Manchester United. They release a podcast every week and publish a to quality online fanzine every month.
Rant is not a site for somebody who are looking for their daily fix of transfer rumours, funny GIF's, and top 5 lists. It is a niche website that influences the way a United fan thinks, and it allows them to see things from a different perspective.
Rant also encourages budding writers to get in touch with them and get their views published. Rant has a huge following in Manchester and outside England.
Manutd24
It is hard to put an exact date on when Manutd24 was founded. Probably due to the site owners own admittance that he was far too lazy to update the site in its first year.
Despite spending its initial years in doldrums, it gained mass following sometime in the 2010 season. Those were the times when Michael Carrick was being slated from left, right and center by the United fans. Manutd24 was, probably, the only blog that stood by Carrick from the outset.
In their own words, Manutd24 want to stand out from the thousands of Manchester United fan blogs.
"Just be different. And good. People appreciate good. It’s been a few years since then and we’ve been working hard to achieve our aim. This is what we promise you. Or, at least, try to promise you:
1. Retro features, opinion pieces, analysis and some fictional stuff, if you’re lucky.
and…
2. No news. No transfer rumours. Not here."
Their retrospective series is a hit among its readers. It isn't just a blast from the past series; it takes you down the nostalgia lane, where you can reminisce United's past heroes and events that made United the team it is today. Its opinion pieces carry incredible in-depth analysis and even the minutest details are tightly scrutinized under Manutd24's magnifying glass. In a nutshell, Manutd24 is the website to read for United fans looking for something different.
Leela Prasad
@theblcksheep