The 2022 FA Youth Cup final is set to attract the biggest crowd of the season in England outside of games at Wembley and Manchester United’s home matches. Wednesday’s match between Manchester United Under-18s and Nottingham Forest’s youngsters will be staged at Old Trafford and 59,500 tickets were purchased by noon on Saturday, including 5,200 to Forest fans. Their supporters haven’t visited Old Trafford since 1999.
United have sold 10,000 tickets in the last two days as the crowd nudges towards their stadium’s 73,000 capacity. The gate is set to beat the 60,356 which attended the Premier League game between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United in October, the 60,223 crowd which witnessed Arsenal against Manchester United two weeks ago and 59,958 which saw West Ham’s highest league crowd of the season – also against Manchester United.
Tickets cost just £1 to see Travis Binnion’s side and all proceeds are going towards United’s charitable foundation. United have won the competition a record 10 times, including the first five competitions in the 1950s, with Chelsea lifting the trophy nine times.
Chelsea, who Forest beat in a dramatic semi-final in Nottingham, have been the pre-eminent force in English youth football in the last decade, while United have not won the Youth Cup since 2011 – that two-legged final was watched by 29,977 in Sheffield and 24,916 at Old Trafford.
Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard, who are both set to leave United this summer, played in that game, while Harry Maguire featured for Sheffield United.
A home crowd of 24,347 watched United lose to Liverpool in the 2007 final, while there were 19,518 at Anfield. United’s success at Old Trafford against Middlesbrough in the 2003 final second leg was watched by 14,849.
In 1995, 3,503 watched Tottenham in the final against United, with a crowd of 20,190 in the second leg as United won the cup.
United’s famous class of ‘92 final attracted a crowd of 14,681 to Old Trafford for the second leg of their final against Crystal Palace which featured David Beckham, Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt, Keith Gillespie, Ben Thornley and Robbie Savage, while crowds of 30,562 and 31,037 saw both legs of the 1993 final between Manchester United and the victorious Leeds United.
Manchester United 3-0 Brentford ratings
How to register as a donor
1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention
2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants
3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register.
4) The campaign uses the hashtag #donate_hope
The story in numbers
18
This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens
450,000
More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps
1.5 million
There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m
73
The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association
18,000
The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme
77,400
The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study
4,926
This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
A cryptocurrency primer for beginners
Cryptocurrency Investing for Dummies – by Kiana Danial
There are several primers for investing in cryptocurrencies available online, including e-books written by people whose credentials fall apart on the second page of your preferred search engine.
Ms Danial is a finance coach and former currency analyst who writes for Nasdaq. Her broad-strokes primer (2019) breaks down investing in cryptocurrency into baby steps, while explaining the terms and technologies involved.
Although cryptocurrencies are a fast evolving world, this book offers a good insight into the game as well as providing some basic tips, strategies and warning signs.
Begin your cryptocurrency journey here.
Available at Magrudy’s , Dh104
