On this day (1 September) in 1958 a really distasteful moment in League football saw Manchester United prevented from taking a special place that had been awarded to them in the European Cup. It was the Football League that effectively banned United from competing. THe background is that UEFA had offered United a place in the European Cup as a mark of sympathy following the Munich Air Crash – fans of all clubs supported the move – and the FA had approved the decision but then discussions within the League proved problematic, leading to the Football League banning the move.
This cutting even quotes an unnamed official who basically said the European Cup is for champions and United ‘are not the English champions.’ It was all a mess and distasteful.
To understand the full story/impact of the Munich Air Disaster and how it affected all of Manchester then have a read of this:
Gary James' Football Archive 