.jpg) Leeds United and Manchester United atOld Trafford on 14 August 2021. | |
| Location | Northern England |
|---|---|
| Teams | Leeds United Manchester United |
| First meeting | 20 January 1923 Second Division Manchester United 0–0 Leeds United |
| Latest meeting | 12 February 2023 Premier League Leeds United 0–2 Manchester United |
| Next meeting | 4 January 2026 Premier League Leeds United v Manchester United |
| Stadiums | Elland Road (Leeds United) Old Trafford (Manchester United) |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 113[1] |
| Most wins | Manchester United (50) |
| Most player appearances | Bobby Charlton (29) |
| Top scorer | Bobby Charlton (9) |
| All-time series | Manchester United: 50 Draws: 37 Leeds United: 26 |
| Largest victory | Manchester United 6–0 Leeds United 9 September 1959 (1959–60 Football League) |
  Leeds United  Manchester United | |
Therivalry between Leeds United and Manchester United, sometimes nicknamed theRoses rivalry,[2] is afootballingrivalry played between theNorthern English clubsLeeds United andManchester United. The rivalry originates from the strong rivalry between thehistoric counties ofLancashire andYorkshire, which is popularly believed to have its origins in theWars of the Roses of the 15th century. Although the cities ofLeeds andManchester lie over 40 miles (64 km) apart, the tradition is upheld and this strong feeling can still be seen between the two clubs.[3] Independent research by theFootball Fans Census has shown that, withinEnglish football, both Leeds and Manchester United are ranked within the top three clubs based on the number of clubs that consider them to be their rivals.[4]
In the past, rivalry between the two clubs has gone beyond the action on the field atOld Trafford andElland Road. Hostility became more intense over the years and during the 1970s, whenBritishfootball hooliganism was at its height, fights between theLeeds United Service Crew and Manchester United'sRed Army, the club's respectivehooligan firms, were commonplace and became known as some of the most violent clashes in British football.[5] Many people were injured in these encounters but violence between fans of the clubs has declined sharply since the 1970s for a number of reasons, mainly due to the general reduction in hooliganism. As recently as January 2010, prior to the two clubs meeting in theFA Cup 3rd round, Manchester United managerSir Alex Ferguson described the matches as "fantastic, feisty occasions" with an "electric" atmosphere.[6] The rivalry has also been labelled byThe Daily Telegraph as "English football's most intense – and inexplicable – rivalry".[7]
These encounters have been particularly scarce since 1982, the year that Leeds were relegated to the Second Division. Hooliganism was still rife among fans of English league clubs at this stage, and by the time Leeds returned to the top flight in 1990 the problem was less severe and has remained a lesser problem since. The rivalry and the hooliganism have been effectively curtailed since 2004, when Leeds were relegated from the Premier League. The teams met only twice between 2004 and 2020, and while polling showed Leeds fans still considered Manchester United to be their main rivals, Manchester United fans consideredLiverpool to be their main rivals, followed byManchester City,Chelsea, andArsenal.[4] The rivalry was renewed in the2020–21 Premier League season, following Leeds United's promotion after winning the2019–20 EFL Championship, with the sides' first encounter thereafter ending 6–2 to Manchester United.[8] In terms of trophies won, the rivalry has been heavily in favour of Manchester United, who have won 68 trophies to Leeds United's 9.
The rivalry is considered to be asporting manifestation of the established rivalry between the counties ofYorkshire andLancashire, which can loosely be traced back to theWars of the Roses,[3] a series ofcivil wars fought between the rivalPlantagenet royal houses ofYork andLancaster for the throne ofEngland during the 15th century. The battles contested during the wars were particularly bloody, especially theBattle of Towton, which took place just 15 miles (24 km) away from Leeds and is described as "England's bloodiest ever battle".[9]
The colours of each football team'shomeshirts fittingly correspond to the respective rose representing their historic county – Leeds with a white kit, resembling theYorkshire rose and Manchester United with a red shirt, like theLancashire rose. However, Manchester United's colours have not always been red and Leeds only adopted their white kit in the 1960s, inspired byReal Madrid. There is a similar rivalry in the sport ofcricket, in which matches are contested on a county basis. In this case, theRoses Match is the name given to games played betweenYorkshire County Cricket Club andLancashire County Cricket Club. Although the clubs cover the larger county region, Yorkshire are based in Leeds and play at theHeadingley Stadium, while Lancashire play at theOld Trafford Cricket Ground in Manchester, close to the football stadium of the same name.[10] Manchester is now in the metropolitan county ofGreater Manchester, while Leeds is now in the metropolitan county ofWest Yorkshire.
A direct rivalry between the cities of Leeds and Manchester sprang up during theIndustrial Revolution inBritain during the 18th and 19thcenturies. The entire country was going through an unprecedented phase of economic growth and Leeds'economy had grown rapidly thanks to thewoollenindustry. Meanwhile, to thewest in Manchester, thecotton industry began to flourish, with factories fuelled by the transportation of cheapcoal down theBridgewater Canal.[11]
During the mid-19th century, Leeds had constructed the impressiveGrade I listedLeeds Town Hall, though the wealth which Manchester had acquired allowed them to retort by constructing striking architectural works of their own, such as the Grade I listedManchester Town Hall. This served to establish the rivalry between the two cities even further.[11]
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Manchester United were the first side to emerge, despite club football itself firstoriginating in Yorkshire.[12] The club was founded in 1878 asNewton Heath L&YR by employees ofLancashire and Yorkshire Railway, with the company – as the name suggests – covering both historic counties. The club's new owners later changed their name to Manchester United in 1902.[13] Leeds had traditionally been arugby league city so it was a while before the attraction of football finally appealed to the local people. An association football club was finally made though in 1904, whenLeeds City emerged. The two sides clashed for the first time in theSecond Division at Manchester United'sBank Street stadium on 15 January 1906 in front of 6,000 fans. Leeds City won the game 3–0, but United won the return game atElland Road 2–1 in April.[14]
These matches proved to be both the first and the last times that the two clubs met, as Manchester United were promoted to theFirst Division at the end of the 1905–06 season and Leeds City were eventually forcibly disbanded due to financial irregularities.[15] A new club was formed under the name "Leeds United", and they began playing in theMidland League, taking the place vacated by Leeds City's reserve team. The club also took over Elland Road, which had been occupied byYorkshire Amateur since the demise of Leeds City.[11] Leeds United were elected to the Second Division on 31 May 1920 and they met Manchester United for the first time at Old Trafford on 20 January 1923. However, the 25,000 spectators went home disappointed as the match ended 0–0. Manchester United claimed the first victory, and indeed the first away win, between the two sides, when they beat Leeds 1–0 at Elland Road a week later on 27 January. It took Leeds until the1925–26 season to gain their first victory, winning 2–0 at Elland Road on 3 October.
In the1928–29 season Leeds achieved their first away victory against Manchester United, with a 2–1 win at Old Trafford in theFirst Division. Leeds also won the fixture at Elland Road 3–2 and became the first of the two sides to achieve a double over the other (winning both fixtures between the two sides in one season). Manchester United's first double over Leeds, however, did not come until1946–47, when a 3–1 win at Old Trafford was followed by a 2–0 win at Elland Road. Neither side was particularly successful during this period though, and the two sides only met sporadically due to several promotions and relegations.[11]
It was not until after theSecond World War that Manchester United became a fully-fledged footballing power, as they picked up threeleague titles during the 1950s.[16]Matt Busby was the man who had coached Manchester United to glory and he remained at the club until 1969. Meanwhile, across to the east, Leeds United had signed up former playerDon Revie as theirplayer-manager and he soon took themanager's post full-time. Manchester United's side during this era featured the likes ofBobby Charlton,Denis Law andGeorge Best, while under Revie Leeds had gained a reputation as a tough, uncompromising side, with the likes of Bobby's brotherJack Charlton,Billy Bremner, andNorman Hunter. Another key member of Revie's side was the IrishmanJohnny Giles, who joined Leeds from Manchester United for £33,000 in 1963.
During the1964–65 season, the two sides were drawn against each other in thesemi-finals of theFA Cup for a chance to reachthe final. The tie atHillsborough was a very rough game – the image of Jack Charlton and Denis Law punching each other and wrestling on the ground epitomised the spirit in which the game was played – and it ended 0–0, with theYorkshire Post commenting "both sides behaved like a pack of dogs snapping and snarling at each other over a bone".[17] The replay at theCity Ground was tense and it took 89 minutes for Bremner to fire in the winner for Leeds.[17] The two clubs finished 1st and 2nd in the league that same season, both on 61 points, but the Mancunians won the title due to a bettergoal average.[18]
The rivalry between the two sides carried on at full force throughout the rest of the 1960s and the 1970s. Leeds achieved both domestic and European success, winning the First Division title in the1968–69 season and the1973–74 season, as well as finishing runners-up five more times, and never finishing outside the top four places whilst Revie was at the helm.[19] Leeds earned a feared reputation for toppling European sides, including the likes of Juventus, Barcelona, Napoli, Anderlecht and Valencia; in doing so they becameInter-Cities Fairs champions twice and once runners-up,[20] and controversially came runners up in the1973 European Cup Winners' Cup Final and1975 European Cup Final.[21] Leeds new dominance was highlighted by the fact that in 1970 they came close to achieving an historicCup Treble, however they finished runners up in both the league and FA cup, and were knocked out of the European cup at the semi-final stage. During this period Manchester United only won the league once, in the1966–67 season, and were at the end of several defeats inflicted by Leeds, including a 5–1 defeat at Elland Road in 1972,[22] they were relegated in the season Leeds became champions in 1974. However they had other successes, including winning theEuropean Cup in1968, an honour Leeds have never won.
The 1977 FA Cup Semi-Final between Manchester United v Leeds United at Hillsborough Sheffield was labelled 'The Battle of the Roses' on the cover of the official match-day programme. There was extensive violent clashes between supporters outside the stadium both before and after the match plus during the match inside the stadium, with numerous arrests and injuries. Manchester United won the match 2-1 and went on to beat Liverpool 2-1 in the Final at Wembley Stadium.
In 1978,Joe Jordan andGordon McQueen, two of Leeds' best players at the time, were both sold to Manchester United. This was tough for the Leeds fans to take, especially in the case of McQueen as he was a fan favourite. The following season, the two players appeared against their former club. McQueen was targeted in particular withbooing and jeering at Elland Road and objects were hurled at him before he scored a headed goal for Manchester United to silence the home fans.[14]
The Roses rivalry did not take place for nearly a decade because Leeds were relegated in1982, while Manchester United remained competitive in the First Division and in the hunt for honours almost every season.
Leeds eventually returned under the stewardship ofHoward Wilkinson in 1990 with a newly strengthened squad that had finished asSecond Division champions. The first two seasons after Leeds won promotion brought draws between the two sides in all four league meetings, though Manchester United triumphed over the Yorkshire side in League Cup and FA Cup ties during that time.
The last league championship before the introduction of thePremier League came in the1991–92 season, two seasons after Leeds' promotion, and for much of the season it was a straight title race between Leeds United and Manchester United. Thanks to the likes ofGordon Strachan (who was bought from Manchester United),Lee Chapman,David Batty andEric Cantona, Leeds won the league by four points.[23] However, much to the surprise of Leeds fans, Cantona was sold to Manchester United for £1.2 million, later in 1992.[18] He would be the cornerstone of Manchester United's 1990s revival, leading them to the Premier League title on four occasions in just five seasons and he thus became one of the club's legends.[24] In 2001, he was voted their player of the century and, to this day, Manchester United fans refer to him as "King Eric".[25]
On-pitch clashes continued to happen between the clubs, with notable incidents including the beginning of a personal grudge between Manchester UnitedcaptainRoy Keane andAlfie Haaland in September 1997,[26] a clash betweenIan Harte andFabien Barthez in March 2001,[27][28] and a tussle betweenRobbie Keane andDavid Beckham in October 2001.[29]
Two Leeds United fans were stabbed to death during aUEFA Cup game againstGalatasaray in2000.[30] Many Manchester United fans paid their respects, leaving tributes at Elland Road, and there were even reports of Leeds and Manchester United fans embracing, withThe Independent using theheadline "Old rivalries forgotten as fans unite in grief".[31] However, by the time the two sides faced up in the league, a subsection of Manchester United fans unfurledbanners bearing the words "MUFC Istanbul Reds"[32] and "Galatasaray Reds", glorifying the killers and mocking Leeds supporters. The Manchester United fans who unfurled these banners may have been retaliating to consistent taunting by Leeds fans about theMunich air disaster over the years (these chants have also been made by the supporters of many other clubs, particularly Liverpool), but these banners angered the Leeds fans, who retorted by chanting songs about Munich, and there were reports of seats being ripped up and confrontations after the game.[33]
After going through a period of extreme financial difficulties, resulting from huge amounts of money being poured into the club to help them reach theUEFA Champions League semi-finals in2001, Leeds were relegated from the Premier League at the end of the2003–04 season.[34]Alan Smith, a local boy and firm fan favourite at Leeds, shocked the Leeds fans after their relegation by transferring to Manchester United.[18] The Leeds fans dubbed him "Judas" and his actions were made particularly hard for them to take as Smith had been noted for kissing the club badge on his Leeds shirt and he had said that he would stay with the club even if they went down. He had also previously stated years before on an interview withSoccer AM that he would never join Manchester United.[18] He was welcomed by Manchester United fans and soon became a fan favourite, the fans respecting him and his decision to join a rival club.
The two sides have rarely met since Leeds' relegation from the Premier League. A 2003 poll by theFootball Fans Census showed that while Leeds fans still consider Manchester United to be their main rivals, Manchester United fans considerLiverpool to be their main rivals, followed byManchester City,Chelsea andArsenal.[4]
On 3 January 2010, the teams met for the first time in nearly six years in anFA Cup Third Round tie at Old Trafford. Despite being 43 places lower in the league than their rivals, Leeds United won the match 1–0, giving them their first win at Old Trafford for over 28 years.[35]
The clubs were drawn to meet in the third round of the2011–12 Football League Cup. The match was played at Elland Road on 20 September 2011, with Manchester United winning 3–0. The current gulf in resources of the two clubs was illustrated by Manchester United resting many regular first team players yet still comfortably beating a near full-strength Leeds side.[36] After the match theWest Yorkshire Police opened an investigation into 'disgusting' chants from both sets of fans, about the Munich air disaster and the murder of two Leeds fans in Turkey.[37]
The clubs met again in the2020–21 Premier League, after Leeds got promoted by winning the2019–20 EFL Championship. Their first Premier League meeting in nearly 17 years resulted in a 6–2 loss for Leeds at Old Trafford, followed by a 0–0 draw in the reverse fixture at Elland Road. The following season held a similar fate for Leeds as they were thrashed 5–1 on opening day at Old Trafford, this being the first game in front of a full capacity crowd at the stadium in 524 days. The latter game again featured controversial incidents involving both sets of supporters; Leeds fans were accused of singing about the Munich air disaster and aiming abuse at former Leeds and Manchester United defenderRio Ferdinand, while Manchester United supporters were filmed dropping a Turkish flag into a group of Leeds supporters in the away section.[38]
| Competition[1] | Leeds United wins | Draws | Manchester United wins | Leeds United goals | Manchester United goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | 23 | 34 | 41 | 105 | 146 |
| FA Cup | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 10 |
| League Cup | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 12 |
| Total | 26 | 37 | 50 | 114 | 168 |
| Date | Home team | Score[1] | Away team | Venue | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 April 2021 | Leeds United | 0–0[39] | Manchester United | Elland Road | Premier League |
| 14 August 2021 | Manchester United | 5–1[40] | Leeds United | Old Trafford | Premier League |
| 20 February 2022 | Leeds United | 2–4[41] | Manchester United | Elland Road | Premier League |
| 8 February 2023 | Manchester United | 2–2[42] | Leeds United | Old Trafford | Premier League |
| 12 February 2023 | Leeds United | 0–2[43] | Manchester United | Elland Road | Premier League |
| Club | Player | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leeds United | Jack Charlton | 22 | 5 | 0 | 27 |
| Paul Reaney | 21 | 6 | 0 | 27 | |
| Manchester United | Bobby Charlton | 24 | 5 | 0 | 29 |
| Club | Player | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leeds United | Mick Jones | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Manchester United | Bobby Charlton | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Team | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Community Shield | European Cup | UEFA Cup | Cup Winners' Cup | European Super Cup | Inter Cities Fairs Cup | Intercontinental Cup | Club World Cup | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leeds United[47] | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Manchester United[48] | 20 | 13 | 6 | 21[1] | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 68 |
| Combined | 23 | 14 | 7 | 23 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 77 |
(Charity/Community Shields includes shared honours after a drawn match, as per competition regulations prior to 1993)[49]
| Name | Date of transfer | Fee paid | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Jordan | 4 January 1978 | £350,000 | [50][51] |
| Gordon McQueen | 1 February 1978 | £500,000 | [50][52] |
| Arthur Graham | 1 August 1983 | £65,000 | [50][53] |
| Eric Cantona | 12 November 1992 | £1,200,000 | [50][54] |
| Rio Ferdinand | 22 July 2002 | £29,100,000 | [50][55] |
| Alan Smith | 26 May 2004 | £7,000,000 (p/e)[56] | [50][57][58] |
| Name | Date of transfer | Fee paid | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freddie Goodwin | 16 March 1960 | £10,000 | [50][59] |
| Johnny Giles | 1 August 1963 | £33,000 | [50][60] |
| Brian Greenhoff | 1 August 1979 | £350,000 | [50][61] |
| Gordon Strachan | 21 March 1989 | £300,000 | [50][62] |
| Lee Sharpe | 14 August 1996 | £4,500,000 | [50][63] |
| Danny Pugh | 27 May 2004 | p/e[56] | [50][64] |
| Liam Miller | 4 November 2005 | Loan | [50][65] |
| Scott Wootton | 21 September 2013 | Free | [66] |
| Cameron Borthwick-Jackson | 7 August 2017 | Loan | [67] |
| Daniel James | 31 August 2021 | £25,000,000 | [68] |
