Man Utd and Rainbow Devils call for end to homophobic chanting at football matches

Lindsay added: “Education is key. We’ve got to think about our young fans as well. We want them to grow up in a world where we are all equal. And I think when we engage in offensive chants it makes some of our fan base who are here to cheer on the team, it makes them uncomfortable, and it makes them feel like they’re not part of it.

“The ‘rent boys’ chant makes people feel excluded, feel hurt and feel not welcome. And that is not just part of the United family, but that is fans from all around the world, at any club. Football is a game for all, and I want everybody to feel included.”

But Eric is seeing progress: “I’ve been to away games and United fans have actually come up to me and said, ‘look, I’m not going to sing this anymore, please explain to me the connotation of it’. And that’s fantastic to see and I am always happy to spend my time educating those fans who want to listen and change their behaviour.

“I was at Brighton only a couple of weeks ago at the game, a city that has a celebrated LGBTQ+ community, and a United fan aimed an offensive chant at one of the players that used to play for Chelsea and was hushed down by fellow United fans. United fans are so good at self-policing at the best of times, but this was a sign of real progress.”