How the MUMSC Ticket Ballot Works – And Why It Matters

📝 TL;DR – Key Points

• Only eligible members can apply: valid Man Utd + MUMSC membership required

• Tickets are limited and allocated via ballot

• Face value only – MUMSC makes no profit

• Ineligible or unserious applications waste time and may be blocked

• Missed payments and misuse put our access at risk

• Members who repeatedly misuse the system may be excluded from future ballots

• Automation is coming to reduce admin time and improve fairness

How the Ballot System Works

1. Around 3 months in advance of a particular home game, MUMSC is invited to apply for a set number of tickets. This number is often dictated by a poll that we run with members to gauge interest.

2. Roughly 2–3 months ahead of the fixture, we are allocated a number of tickets – sometimes our full request, other times less, depending on the fixture and demand.

3. We then open a ballot to eligible MUMSC members. Tickets are always offered at face value, and MUMSC makes no profit from this process – it is a voluntary service for members.

4. To be eligible, members must:

   • Hold a valid Manchester United membership

   • Be a registered member of MUMSC

     The above applies to all people that apply, including anyone else that you wish to nominate for a second ticket, where that be a family member or friend - they must have a valid Man Utd membership AND be registered with MUMSC.

5. After the ballot closes, successful applicants are randomly selected and contacted for payment.

6. Once payment is received, tickets are formally assigned.

Why do we have to register with MUMSC to receive the tickets?

When you join MUMSC and have a valid Manchester United membership, we submit your details to the club. They then officially link you to our supporters’ club on their internal system. Only members registered this way can be assigned tickets. If you're not listed as a MUMSC member in Manchester United’s system, we’re unable to allocate a ticket to you — even if you applied through our ballot.

Why We Have Deadlines

When we receive our allocation, we are only able to hold those tickets for 7 days before they are removed. Within this tight window, we must:

• Run the ballot

• Verify eligibility

• Chase outstanding payments

• Assign tickets to paying members

This is why meeting deadlines is critical.

What Issues Are We Facing?

Unfortunately, recent ballots have exposed serious challenges:

1. Members not paying after being successful wastes hours of admin time and denies other members the opportunity.

2. Ineligible applications – including expired Man Utd memberships or non-MUMSC members – force us to manually verify and reject applicants who shouldn’t have applied in the first place.

3. Missed payment deadlines extend the admin burden and cause delays in ticket assignment.

4. Sharing the ballot link with non-members breaches club rules and puts our system at risk.

5. Unfulfilled allocations risk our future access. Manchester United has warned all Official Supporters Clubs that repeatedly failing to fulfil ticket allocations may result in this privilege being withdrawn.

What We’re Doing to Improve

We are in the process of building an automated ballot system that will:

• Filter ineligible applications automatically

• Speed up the selection and verification process

• Reduce the time spent chasing payments

This will protect volunteer time and improve the member experience, in shā’ Allāh.

Conclusion

We hope this helps members understand why the ballot system exists and the responsibility we all share in keeping it fair, efficient, and sustainable.

From now on, members who:

• Apply but don’t meet the eligibility criteria

• Are successful but then decline or ignore payment

...may be excluded from future ballots unless a valid reason is given.

We thank all those who follow the process properly and help keep MUMSC running smoothly. If you have any questions or feedback, please email us at info@mumsc.org.

JazākumAllāhu khayran,

MUMSC Admin Team