Paul Scholes has revealed he was forced to use a ticket tout to secure tickets for a match at Old Trafford, highlighting the disconnect he feels with his former club. The Manchester United legend, who made 718 appearances and won 11 Premier League titles under Sir Alex Ferguson, said he no longer knows whom to contact for legitimate tickets.
Speaking on The Good, the Bad & the Football podcast alongside fellow Class of 92 graduate Nicky Butt, Scholes said: “It's a very different football club to the club we knew… I don't really know anybody there. If I wanted a ticket, I wouldn’t know who to phone.” He added that despite holding four season tickets, he had to turn to a tout when asked for tickets by a friend. “I've had to ring a tout. Am I allowed to say that? Honestly, I know a tout. I just don’t know anybody at the club!”
Butt echoed the sentiment, recounting an incident where the club threatened to revoke his season ticket due to insufficient use. “I've had an email saying ‘you're having your ticket taken off you’. So I rang them up… and they go ‘who am I speaking to please?’, and I go ‘Nicky Butt’ and they go, ‘OK, well who's that?’” Butt, a former United midfielder with over 450 appearances and seven league titles, said he did not press the point but noted the club has become “a different world”.
Scholes stressed he does not expect preferential treatment despite his storied career. “I'm not complaining about that… Just because you played for the club, you're not entitled to stuff.” He added: “We don't mind paying for them, we just don't know who to ring because the club is just different.”
Both players, part of the famous Class of 92 that also included the Neville brothers, Ryan Giggs and David Beckham, said the modern Manchester United bears little resemblance to the one they knew during their playing days. Mirror Football has contacted Manchester United for comment.
