#ACITYUNITED against COVID-19: Man City, United donate £100,000

Manchester rivals, United and City have both teamed up in a fight against the coronavirus pandemic by donating £100,000.

The donation will help food banks in Greater Manchester meet increased demand from vulnerable people as the UK battles the spread of coronavirus which has infected 3,983 and killed at least 177 as of March 21.

As a result of the donation, local food banks will increase capacity and compensate for the temporary loss of food donations on matchdays through the MCFC Fans' Foodbank Support and MUFC Fans' Foodbank.

According to manutd.com, each club will donate £50,000 to the Trussell Trust who has a network of over 1,200 food-bank centres as beneficiaries.


In a joint-statement, Manchester City and Manchester United said: "We are proud of the role our supporters play in helping local food banks and recognise the increased strain likely to be placed on these charities by the impact of coronavirus. At a time of challenge for our community, we are pleased to come together with our fans to help vulnerable members of society in a City United."

Commenting on the donation, MCFC Fans' Foodbank Support, said: "We're delighted that City and United have donated such a huge amount to Fans Supporting Foodbanks. This will be an enormous help for the Greater Manchester community at a time when people need it most. We'd like to thank everyone on both sides for demonstrating that hunger doesn't wear club colours, and for the show of community solidarity."

The Trussell Trust’s senior operations manager Rachel Macklin said: "As the coronavirus pandemic develops, more people than ever may need help from food banks across our network. This situation presents a huge additional pressure on already overstretched resources. We may start to see a reduction in food donations and volunteers may become unavailable if they are in the at-risk categories or are self-isolating.

"We’re working closely with our network to understand each food bank’s situation, offer guidance, and work out how we can best support them. We know we won’t be able to do this alone, so we are truly grateful for the support Manchester United and Manchester City are showing local food banks. On behalf of food banks in our network in Manchester, we thank you so much."