May 14 – FC United of Manchester, the breakaway club founded in opposition to the Glazer family’s takeover of Premier League giants Manchester United, won the UEFA-approved Fenix Trophy for non-league teams on Sunday.
FCUM, who play in the seventh tier of English football, sealed a 4-0 victory over the multi-national Czech-based side Prague Raptors to pick up the trophy for the second time in three years.
The club, many of whose fans still support Manchester United but refuse to pay to watch them, was set up in 2005 in protest against the Glazers’ leveraged buyout.
The Fenix Trophy, set up and run in Italy, is an invite-only tournament for clubs who have made a social or cultural difference and have a strong community ethos.
Twelve teams from 10 different European countries entered this season’s group stage, with the group winners qualifying for the final four mini-tournament on Lake Garda.
FC United beat fellow English club Lewes FC 1-0 in the semifinals while Prague Raptors won an epic penalty shootout 13-12 after a 0-0 draw against Enfield Town, the UK’s first fully fan-owned club who looked somewhat jaded having begun last week by winning promotion via the playoffs to National League South – Step 2 of the non-league pyramid – for the first time in their history.
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