Excuse me for a moment. I hope you won’t mind a little shameless self-promotion. In amongst all the grot and gloom of Manchester United’s seemingly never-ending doom loop — the defeats, the false dawns, the latest crisis and the inevitable next one lurking just around the corner — I thought readers of Republik of Mancunia might appreciate a little light relief. A reminder, perhaps, of a time when wearing the red shirt meant something rather more than providing fresh material for the post-match inquest.
And, as it happens, I’ve written a book about one particular shirt. Seven: Manchester United’s Iconic Shirt is published by Pitch Publishing on 18 January 2027. It explores the history, mythology and occasional madness surrounding arguably the most famous shirt number in English football.
But how far back does the legend of Manchester United’s number seven actually go? Apparently, to before there even was a number seven. United historian Wayne Barton recently pointed out a wonderfully anoraky detail. In the club’s first-ever game after becoming Manchester United, debutant Charlie Richards scored the winning goal in the closing minutes. Richards was playing at outside-right — the position which, once shirt numbers came along, would traditionally become number seven.
Now, as Wayne readily admits, this might be the most gloriously contrived and tenuous attempt yet to trace the heritage of United’s most celebrated shirt. But I’m having it. Before Best, Robson, Cantona, Beckham or Ronaldo. Before the number was even stitched onto a Manchester United shirt. There was Charlie Richards, popping up with a late winner from the position that would one day become synonymous with some of the greatest players ever to grace Old Trafford.
And there’s something rather lovely about that. Because that’s really what Seven is about. Not just the extraordinary footballers who’ve worn the shirt, but how a simple squad number accumulated layer upon layer of history, expectation, personality and mythology until it became something much bigger than the number itself.
It’s a story of brilliance and swagger, of heroes and heartbreak, of players who embraced the weight of the shirt and others who found it rather more difficult to carry. And, inevitably, of Manchester United — a club that has always been rather good at making its supporters feel absolutely everything.
The book is out on 18 January 2027, and I’ll be sharing more stories, anecdotes and details about launch events over the coming weeks. In the meantime, thanks for indulging the shameless plug. Normal service — complaining about the football — will doubtless resume shortly. And a special thank you to Wayne Barton for the Charlie Richards nugget. It’s a magnificently tenuous connection, and I love it.
Seven: Manchester United’s Iconic Shirt is published by Pitch Publishing on 18 January 2027 and is available to pre-order now from Waterstones. (Note that on the Waterstones link the old title for the book, Magnificent Sevens, is still showing. This is to be updated to the new title, Seven, shortly.)