Lionsgate to Dramatize Legendary Soccer Club’s Rise in New TV Series

Manchester United wants to turn its history into a TV drama series. The football club has reached an agreement with a production company called Lionsgate to make this happen. The idea is to make a show similar to The Crown on Netflix, but about a football team instead of the Royal Family.

This project is still in the very early stages. The scripts have not been written yet, and no TV channel or streaming service has bought the show. However, sources who know about the deal told the media that an agreement is in place.

These people spoke anonymously to protect their jobs. They said that United will get a guaranteed payment in the low multi-millions of pounds just for signing the deal. If the show gets made and does well, the club will share the profits and royalties with Lionsgate.

Jed Mercurio is involved in the talks. He created popular UK shows like Line of Duty and Bodyguard. He is also a fan of Manchester United.

The show could cover many dramatic moments from the past. It might tell the sad story of the Munich Air Disaster in 1958. This was when a plane crash killed 23 people, including eight players. It could also show how the manager, Sir Matt Busby, recovered from his injuries to build a new team that won the European Cup ten years later.

Another huge part of the story would be the years under Sir Alex Ferguson. He managed the team for a long time and won many trophies, including the Premier League 13 times. The show would likely feature characters based on famous stars like George Best, David Beckham, Eric Cantona, and Cristiano Ronaldo. It could also look at the owners, such as the Glazer family and Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

This news comes after United decided not to make a different kind of show. In July, The Athletic reported that the club stopped talking to Amazon Prime about a documentary. Amazon wanted to film the team behind the scenes for a show called All or Nothing. They offered more than 10 million pounds.

However, United said no. The main reason was that their coach, Ruben Amorim, did not want cameras following the players around. He thought it would be a distraction. The club also previously talked to Disney+ about making a documentary focused on Sir Alex Ferguson, but that deal never happened either.

Now, instead of a real-life documentary, United is focusing on this scripted drama with Lionsgate.

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