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Watch Football At A Drive-In Cinema In Manchester!

Published: 8th July 2020 13:45

Here’s the situation for all fans of English football at the moment. The good news is that football is back in the country’s top two divisions. Every remaining fixture is going to be played, and therefore the small matters of league championships, European qualification, promotion, relegation, and the Championship play-offs are going to be resolved on sporting terms. The longest season in English professional football history is finally going to come to an end. The bad news is that fans can’t get into the grounds to watch the games. All the action is still happening, but it’s happening in stadiums that are almost silent. 

The ban on fans makes sense given the current global situation, but it’s a little frustrating for regular attendees and season ticket holders, for whom going to the game is part and parcel of their weekly lives. Television stations and the FA have done as much as they can thus far to make the games inclusive. Every single Premier League game is being televised, and some of them are even free to watch. The BBC has even got in on the action, televising its first top-flight matches in three decades to entertain audiences at home. It’s better than nothing, but it doesn’t compare to the feeling of being in a crowd, shoulder to shoulder with your fellow fans, singing your team on to victory (or perhaps a draw or a brave defeat). 

It might be a while until we're allowed back into stadiums again, and it certainly won't happen this season. One company is trying to provide supporters with the next best thing, though. Starting at the end of June, they'll be touring the country with enormous screens and projectors to provide an American-style "Drive-In Cinema" experience - but one that's aimed at football fans rather than movie enthusiasts. As Manchester has two Premier League football clubs, it's no surprise that the city is a major focus for the company, which goes by the name of '4TheFans.' They'll have equipment stationed in the city on a semi-permanent basis and will show as many games as possible, starting with Manchester United versus Brighton on June 30^th. 

Although fans won't be allowed to get out of their cars or roll their windows down while they're at the drive-in cinema, the experience is the closest that fans will be able to get to watching football surrounded by hundreds of fellow supporters for quite some time - and even with the windows rolled down, it should still be possible to hear the roar of the crowd when a goal is scored, or alternatively when a decision doesn't go your team's way! It will even be possible to order refreshments and have them delivered directly to your car, although alcohol will be banned for obvious reasons. The screen will be erected in the car park at Bowler's Exhibition Center in Trafford, and gates will open at 7 pm for the Manchester United versus Brighton game, which kicks off at 8.15 pm. Manchester City's first big-screen following will be two days later as the reigning champions take on Liverpool at home. Depending on how results go between now and then, the contest may present Liverpool with the opportunity to secure the league championship in City's back yard. The Citizens will be doing all they can to prevent that from happening. 

In terms of prospects for the rest of the season, Manchester City's season is almost over already. They cannot prevent Liverpool from winning the championship unless the Anfield-based team somehow conspires to lose every remaining fixture they have this term, and City wins all of theirs. They're also unlikely to drop from second place in the table, such is the gap between the top two and the teams below them. That means Champions League football is secure for next season, and their best chance of picking up a major honor this year might be this season's Champions League, which will be resolved in August as a World Cup-style elimination tournament held over a few days. 

For Manchester United, the situation is a little more complicated, not least because we can never be sure which Manchester United is going to show up. The team and their form are as unpredictable as an online slots game, and they're as likely to steamroller their opposition as they are to be steamrollered themselves. We can extend that online slots metaphor a little further in relation to the team's balance as well. If you want to win money in casino games like Cat slots, you have to hope that all of the highest-paying symbols line up in the right sequence for you. Too many times this season, Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has seemed to be unsure of who the 'high paying symbols' in his team are. Right now, he's hoping that he can get a jackpot out of playing Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes together in the middle of the park - an option that injuries have prevented him from trying out until now - and crossing his fingers that Pogba stays healthy and motivated. If it all works out, United should finish the season in a much stronger fashion than they started it, and qualification for next year's Champions League isn't out of the question. 

We appreciate that not all of our readers will be supporters of Manchester United or Manchester City, but that doesn't mean that you can't enjoy the drive-in football experience. Games other than those involving Manchester sides will also be broadcast at the cinema, and as of the time of writing, we're told to expect that FA Cup games, including the final, will be broadcast there too, as will Champions League games. It's an opportunity for football fans everywhere to get out of the house, forget about everything else for a while, and take part in an experience that most people won't have had the opportunity to enjoy before. If all of this sounds like fun to you, why not give it a try? Tickets are priced at ten pounds per person, with an upper limit of three people per vehicle. A proportion of all the monies raised by the events will be donated to charities that support the National Health Service. 

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