Thousands of Manchester United supporters have had their season-ticket accounts restricted as part of a club investigation into alleged ticket touting — and many are furious, insisting they have done nothing wrong.

Andy, a season-ticket holder for more than 35 years, received notification on Monday that his account had been suspended. He told BBC Sport the experience has left him seething. "I feel angry about it — they just want us gone," he said.

His frustration runs deeper than inconvenience. His father, a season-ticket holder since 1974 when Manchester United were in the second division, relies on Andy to navigate the club's digital ticketing system. "Going the match is our bond," Andy said. "Things like that are what keep older people alive sometimes. It's stressful enough for my own mental health but I think it could make my dad ill."

What the club has said

In an email seen by BBC Sport, Manchester United told one affected supporter: "We have identified patterns linked to your ticketing account that we need to understand more clearly. We need to establish whether there is a straightforward explanation for the activity identified."

Those flagged have had their accounts locked, blocking them from buying or transferring tickets. They have been invited to submit evidence in their defence — but many say they have not been told precisely what they are accused of, leaving them anxious and confused.

Manchester United have not revoked any season tickets yet. An appeals panel will rule on each case before the Premier League season begins on 22 August. The club declined to comment when approached by BBC Sport.

In a message to the club's fans' forum, United defended the operation, stating they are "confident that the vast majority of accounts identified for misuse have been correctly flagged." They said the investigation targeted accounts showing patterns of centralised control, coordination by a single individual, or automated software activity.

Scale of the action

Manchester United Supporters' Trust described the situation as affecting "thousands" of supporters and said they had been "overwhelmed" with requests for help, having already sent individual advice to hundreds of fans.

The secretary of a supporters' club in Northern Ireland, a United fan for more than 50 years, told BBC Sport that every single member with a season ticket had received the club's email. He said accounts in his supporters' club are legitimately linked because members share tickets among themselves at face value when someone cannot attend. "The club don't seem to understand that, or want to understand it," he said. "It's just so disappointing. Everybody is really angry."

Loyal fans caught in the net

Supporters argue that the club's automated, third-party software has erroneously swept up long-standing matchgoers whose behaviour — such as asking a family member to log in to their account, or passing a ticket to a friend at face value — has been misidentified as touting.

"It feels like you're not allowed to help your mates out," Andy said. "But you can sell your ticket back to the club and they'll sell it to someone else at a much higher price. It's all wrong."

Manchester United conducted a separate touting crackdown last season, cancelling 22,000 tickets across the first five home fixtures. The club believes around 10 to 15 percent of season tickets are controlled by touts and regards that earlier action as "the tip of the iceberg."

The number of season-ticket holders at Old Trafford has fallen from 64,000 in 2006 to 46,800 in 2026. Some fans suspect the club's wealthiest owners prefer to reduce season-ticket numbers because individual match-day sales generate greater revenue per seat.

A wider Premier League issue

Thomas Concannon, Premier League network manager at the Football Supporters' Association, said the situation reflects broader anxieties across English football. "Season ticket rules are definitely a concern," he said. "We've all benefited from passing a ticket on to a mate for face value, and fans worry that even something like that is now deemed against the rules. We need a proper consensus on the rules across all clubs."

He added that stripping a fan of a season ticket causes lasting damage. "Taking a season ticket away harms the atmosphere and means you're losing that fan for life," he said. "We stand behind protecting season-ticket holders and having as many of them as possible."

Andy's verdict was blunter. "They don't care about how it affects people, their relationships, maybe their health and mental health. There is no empathy. They don't want fans, they want customers."