In Conversation With:
‘United We Stand’ Editor
Andy Mitten
Journalist, author, United We Stand and FourFour Two Magazine Editor, GQ contributor, proud Mancunian and loyal Reds supporter, Andy Mitten has interviewed over 500 of football’s greats pitch side from Messi to Mourinho. Fresh from the United v Liverpool pre-season friendly in Bangkok, Andy chats to PWVC to reflect on his legendary career, heroic charity ride and his beloved hometown Manchester.
In conversation with: ‘United We Stand’ Editor Andy Mitten
Journalist, author, United We Stand and FourFour Two Magazine Editor, GQ contributor, proud Mancunian and loyal Reds supporter, Andy Mitten has interviewed over 500 of football’s greats pitch side from Messi to Mourinho. Fresh from the United v Liverpool pre-season friendly in Bangkok, Andy chats to PWVC to reflect on his legendary career, heroic charity ride and his beloved hometown Manchester.
Andy, Can you tell us about yourself, your upbringing, family and interest in football?
I’m from a big football family in Manchester. My Uncle Charlie was a star in Sir Matt Busby’s first great United side, the 1948 FA Cup winners and my grandad played football professionally, as did his other brother. My dad, his brothers, his cousins, my brothers – they all received money to play football. One cousin, John, played first-class cricket for Leicestershire and football for Leicester City in the same year. I’m the odd one out, I pay to play. Since 2000 I’ve divided my time between Manchester and Barcelona, where I’m married with two girls.
Did you play as a child?
Yes, and I still play. I was often the worst player in very good sides. I marked Ryan Giggs several times as a teenager. Well, I tried to but I don’t think I saw it past half time in any of the games I played against him.
What made you go into sports journalism?
I started the United We Stand fanzine aged 15 when I was at school.
What are your interests outside of football?
Travel, though that often combines with football. I’ve visited around 120 countries.
You’ve cycled from Barcelona to Manchester for charity and from Land’s End to John O’Groats too. How has the money been used?
My dad died of cancer aged 69 in 2018 and we wanted to do something positive in his name. Along with my brothers and some friends, we spent 15 days cycling from Camp Nou to Old Trafford. With other help from sponsors, we raised enough money to buy two ambulances for the Salford hospice where he spent his last days surrounded by family.
The second ride, in 2021, was part journalism as I wrote about it for GQ, part to raise money. It was hard, 180 kilometres per day and lots of climbing, but it raised almost £40,000 for Manchester United’s Foundation. United were very generous in their support and the money was used to help train kids in Manchester to do CPR and use defibrillators, inspired by a young footballer who collapsed and died on the pitch.
You’re born and bred in Manchester, how have you found the transition moving from Urmston to Barcelona?
I love where I’m from and I love Barcelona, Catalonia and Spain too. Most of my family are in Manchester, but my wife and kids are in Spain. Manchester has improved so much in the last 30 years, while Barcelona is probably my favourite city in the world. It has everything. I also cover Barça and go to around 20 games per season at Camp Nou.
How interested are you in fashion?
Clothes are important in Manchester and they’re important at football matches too. There are whole terrace fashions that seep into the mainstream, most notably the 80s football casuals. For a long time we had a column touching on fashion in United We Stand called House of Style. The writer is a United fan, but is equally passionate about clothes and into all his style magazines from Japan and the US.
You’re one of the most respected independent football journalists on the field, what’s been the most amazing game you’ve seen and why?
Juventus 2 Manchester United 3. The semi-final of the 1999 Champions League. The Italians were perceived to be the best team in the world and raced into a 2-0 lead inside 11 minutes. Then a magnificent Manchester United got in their groove, came back, won the tie, reached the final and won that with two dramatic late goals against Bayern Munich to win the treble.
Who’s your favourite United player of all time?
That’s hard to choose between Roy Keane, Ryan Giggs, Bryan Robson or Eric Cantona.
What was it like writing Patrice Evra’s book? What is he like off the field?
He was brutally honest and told me stuff about his life which I knew would make headlines – and it did. He’s full of personality and can seem like a joker based on his social media presence where he dresses up as a panda or impersonates Bob Marley, but he’s got a serious brain (he speaks four languages) and huge determination which saw him rise from a very difficult childhood to become captain of Manchester United and France.
What kind of clothes do footballers wear? Now they’re getting richer, are they getting classier?
For a stage in writing Patrice’s book, I’d visit him in the best suite in Marseille’s best hotel overlooking the city. He had a footwear collection to rival Imelda Marcos and he was right into his fashion. Most players are. I write for GQ among others and that’s the magazine more footballers want to be in than any football-related publications. Are they getting classier? I’m 48, who am I to judge what a 21-year-old wears? A lot of it is not for me and too bling bling Balenciaga (I went to the hometown of Cristobal Balenciaga recently to interview Lee Sharpe, a former United player and doubt many buying their brand know he even existed), but then I know footballers who wear their labels on the inside and are understated and definitely classy. I was with one – Nemanja Vidic – recently.
Andy, Can you tell us about yourself, your upbringing, family and interest in football?
I’m from a big football family in Manchester. My Uncle Charlie was a star in Sir Matt Busby’s first great United side, the 1948 FA Cup winners and my grandad played football professionally, as did his other brother. My dad, his brothers, his cousins, my brothers – they all received money to play football. One cousin, John, played first-class cricket for Leicestershire and football for Leicester City in the same year. I’m the odd one out, I pay to play. Since 2000 I’ve divided my time between Manchester and Barcelona, where I’m married with two girls.
Did you play as a child?
Yes, and I still play. I was often the worst player in very good sides. I marked Ryan Giggs several times as a teenager. Well, I tried to but I don’t think I saw it past half time in any of the games I played against him.
What made you go into sports journalism?
I started the United We Stand fanzine aged 15 when I was at school.
What are your interests outside of football?
Travel, though that often combines with football. I’ve visited around 120 countries.
You’ve cycled from Barcelona to Manchester for charity and from Land’s End to John O’Groats too. How has the money been used?
My dad died of cancer aged 69 in 2018 and we wanted to do something positive in his name. Along with my brothers and some friends, we spent 15 days cycling from Camp Nou to Old Trafford. With other help from sponsors, we raised enough money to buy two ambulances for the Salford hospice where he spent his last days surrounded by family.
The second ride, in 2021, was part journalism as I wrote about it for GQ, part to raise money. It was hard, 180 kilometres per day and lots of climbing, but it raised almost £40,000 for Manchester United’s Foundation. United were very generous in their support and the money was used to help train kids in Manchester to do CPR and use defibrillators, inspired by a young footballer who collapsed and died on the pitch.
You’re born and bred in Manchester, how have you found the transition moving from Urmston to Barcelona?
I love where I’m from and I love Barcelona, Catalonia and Spain too. Most of my family are in Manchester, but my wife and kids are in Spain. Manchester has improved so much in the last 30 years, while Barcelona is probably my favourite city in the world. It has everything. I also cover Barça and go to around 20 games per season at Camp Nou.
How interested are you in fashion?
Clothes are important in Manchester and they’re important at football matches too. There are whole terrace fashions that seep into the mainstream, most notably the 80s football casuals. For a long time we had a column touching on fashion in United We Stand called House of Style. The writer is a United fan, but is equally passionate about clothes and into all his style magazines from Japan and the US.
You’re one of the most respected independent football journalists on the field, what’s been the most amazing game you’ve seen and why?
Juventus 2 Manchester United 3. The semi-final of the 1999 Champions League. The Italians were perceived to be the best team in the world and raced into a 2-0 lead inside 11 minutes. Then a magnificent Manchester United got in their groove, came back, won the tie, reached the final and won that with two dramatic late goals against Bayern Munich to win the treble.
Who’s your favourite United player of all time?
That’s hard to choose between Roy Keane, Ryan Giggs, Bryan Robson or Eric Cantona.
What was it like writing Patrice Evra’s book? What is he like off the field?
He was brutally honest and told me stuff about his life which I knew would make headlines – and it did. He’s full of personality and can seem like a joker based on his social media presence where he dresses up as a panda or impersonates Bob Marley, but he’s got a serious brain (he speaks four languages) and huge determination which saw him rise from a very difficult childhood to become captain of Manchester United and France.
What kind of clothes do footballers wear? Now they’re getting richer, are they getting classier?
For a stage in writing Patrice’s book, I’d visit him in the best suite in Marseille’s best hotel overlooking the city. He had a footwear collection to rival Imelda Marcos and he was right into his fashion. Most players are. I write for GQ among others and that’s the magazine more footballers want to be in than any football-related publications. Are they getting classier? I’m 48, who am I to judge what a 21-year-old wears? A lot of it is not for me and too bling bling Balenciaga (I went to the hometown of Cristobal Balenciaga recently to interview Lee Sharpe, a former United player and doubt many buying their brand know he even existed), but then I know footballers who wear their labels on the inside and are understated and definitely classy. I was with one – Nemanja Vidic – recently.
How did UWS come about?
I was 15 and felt the British government were taking the piss out of football fans. They thought we were all hooligans with no brains and wanted to bring in ID cards on our behalf after Hillsborough. I felt strongly about that, as I did about rip-off ticket prices and poor facilities at stadiums. We put some words down, I borrowed £20 off my mum to photocopy a fanzine – which was terrible content-wise looking back – but within a year we were selling thousands and it started to take off.
What’s been your career highlight/most interesting person you’ve interviewed past and present?
Maradona in Sinaloa, Socrates in Sao Paulo, Veron in La Plata, Lucas Radebe in Soweto, Carlos Queiroz in Tehran, Lionel Messi in Barcelona, Roy Keane in Philadelphia, travelling around Asia with Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Phil Neville. I work very hard, but I’ve been fortunate too.
What’s in store for you & UWS this season?
We’ll work our backsides off to make the mag worth buying with that thing called hard-earned money. We do have a downloadable version of UWS, but central to what we do is the print version of our mag in an increasingly digital world. We try to provide content that you can’t get online, stuff that can be consumed over time and doesn’t need to provoke an instant angry reaction stoked by social media algorithms.
Is there a cultural difference in football culture and atmosphere in England compared to Europe and the rest of the world?
Lots. And I’ve written a lot on it including a book on derby games around the world. The atmosphere at games is more raucous in several South American countries, plus the big games in Italy, Turkey. But nowhere, in my opinion, does football matter more than in the north of England and Glasgow.
What do you like about this collaboration?
Mike and I spoke about doing something for years. Mike is a football fan, a United fan and proud Mancunian. We wanted to do something discreet and understated when most football merchandise is garish and loud. Our readers go to games and are happy with who they are, they don’t need to dress like a Christmas tree to show their support.
I like PWVC, their clothes, standards, values and being Mancunian – yet having a global outlook and employing staff from 21 countries.
So, we agreed on a simple, smart, understated t-shirt.
Where will you be wearing it this summer?
All over the place. At 9am in Copenhagen airport after three hours sleep ahead of covering the Tour de France (pictured). I’m wearing it now on a plane from Bangkok to Australia to cover Man United’s pre-season tour. Most miss it, some take a closer look and ask what it is. That’s how I like it. It’s the opposite of a team shirt carrying multiple logos of multinationals.
What do you like about PWVC?
Where the clothes are made, how they are made, the diversity of the workforce and the conditions the staff work under. I like the back story to PWVC, the fact that the company stood firm and refused to close when Margaret Thatcher wanted to kill industry in the north of England. Manchester was Cottonopolis and proudly so.
And the style and quality of the clothes is superb, they last for years. Mike Stoll’s passion for fabrics, obsession with quality and his steadfast determination to only ever make in Manchester over 50 years and counting is so inspiring.
What can we look forward to in the future with this partnership?
Let’s see how this one goes. Maybe we can do a couple of events and bring together some music, fashion and football in Manchester. Watch this space...
The PWVC x United We Stand Tee is available now while stocks last. Shop Now.
To subscribe to United We Stand click here.
How did UWS come about?
I was 15 and felt the British government were taking the piss out of football fans. They thought we were all hooligans with no brains and wanted to bring in ID cards on our behalf after Hillsborough. I felt strongly about that, as I did about rip-off ticket prices and poor facilities at stadiums. We put some words down, I borrowed £20 off my mum to photocopy a fanzine – which was terrible content-wise looking back – but within a year we were selling thousands and it started to take off.
What’s been your career highlight/most interesting person you’ve interviewed past and present?
Maradona in Sinaloa, Socrates in Sao Paulo, Veron in La Plata, Lucas Radebe in Soweto, Carlos Queiroz in Tehran, Lionel Messi in Barcelona, Roy Keane in Philadelphia, travelling around Asia with Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Phil Neville. I work very hard, but I’ve been fortunate too.
What’s in store for you & UWS this season?
We’ll work our backsides off to make the mag worth buying with that thing called hard-earned money. We do have a downloadable version of UWS, but central to what we do is the print version of our mag in an increasingly digital world. We try to provide content that you can’t get online, stuff that can be consumed over time and doesn’t need to provoke an instant angry reaction stoked by social media algorithms.
Is there a cultural difference in football culture and atmosphere in England compared to Europe and the rest of the world?
Lots. And I’ve written a lot on it including a book on derby games around the world. The atmosphere at games is more raucous in several South American countries, plus the big games in Italy, Turkey. But nowhere, in my opinion, does football matter more than in the north of England and Glasgow.
What do you like about this collaboration?
Mike and I spoke about doing something for years. Mike is a football fan, a United fan and proud Mancunian. We wanted to do something discreet and understated when most football merchandise is garish and loud. Our readers go to games and are happy with who they are, they don’t need to dress like a Christmas tree to show their support.
I like PWVC, their clothes, standards, values and being Mancunian – yet having a global outlook and employing staff from 21 countries.
So, we agreed on a simple, smart, understated t-shirt.
Where will you be wearing it this summer?
All over the place. At 9am in Copenhagen airport after three hours sleep ahead of covering the Tour de France (pictured). I’m wearing it now on a plane from Bangkok to Australia to cover Man United’s pre-season tour. Most miss it, some take a closer look and ask what it is. That’s how I like it. It’s the opposite of a team shirt carrying multiple logos of multinationals.
What do you like about PWVC?
Where the clothes are made, how they are made, the diversity of the workforce and the conditions the staff work under. I like the back story to PWVC, the fact that the company stood firm and refused to close when Margaret Thatcher wanted to kill industry in the north of England. Manchester was Cottonopolis and proudly so.
And the style and quality of the clothes is superb, they last for years. Mike Stoll’s passion for fabrics, obsession with quality and his steadfast determination to only ever make in Manchester over 50 years and counting is so inspiring.
What can we look forward to in the future with this partnership?
Let’s see how this one goes. Maybe we can do a couple of events and bring together some music, fashion and football in Manchester. Watch this space...
The PWVC x United We Stand Tee is available now while stocks last. Shop Now.
To subscribe to United We Stand click here.
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