CrimeMan given football banning order for tragedy chanting

Man given football banning order for tragedy chanting

A Liverpool man has pleaded guilty to tragedy chanting during the Manchester United v Everton fixture in March.

Mark Finnigan (24) of llchester Road, appeared at Manchester and Salford Magistrates Court.

He pleaded guilty to the tragedy chanting offence but opposed a football banning order.

Following a short hearing, the court sentenced Finnigan to a conditional discharge of six months and a three-year football banning order was made.

Inspector Gregg Anderton, of GMP’s Specialist Operational Planning Unit, said: “Finnigan was witnessed by an officer to turn towards the home crowd and make a hand gesture which he later accepted could be interpreted as being related to the Munich air disaster.

“Finnigan was removed from the ground and arrested on suspicion of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour with intent to cause harassment, alarm, or distress under the Public Order Act.

“We are reiterating the message that any kind of gesture or comments from any supporters to other clubs in relation to tragedy chanting will not be tolerated and is completely unacceptable.

“I would also like this to be a strong warning for any supporters attending future fixtures in Greater Manchester that if you engage in this behaviour, GMP officers will do everything possible to bring you in front of the courts.”

Helen Greaney
Helen Greaney
I'm a journalist with more than 18 years' experience on local, regional and national newspapers, as well as PR and digital marketing. Crime and the courts is my specialist area but I'm also keen to hear your stories concerning Manchester and the greater North West region.
Latest

Rare Mbappé, Messi and Ronaldo Cards Could Surface During Live 2018 National Treasures Break on eBay

ANDOVER, UK, July 15, 2026 - Football card collectors could witness the discovery of some of the hobby's biggest modern treasures this Sunday when...

Why Manchester’s New Office Developments Are Prioritising Access Control from Day One

Greater Manchester’s development pipeline shows no sign of slowing, with the region’s Good Growth Fund backing more than 30 major projects across all ten...

Why Manchester Has Become the UK’s Go-To City for Corporate Events

Greater Manchester’s meeting, conference and events sector has quietly become one of the region’s genuine economic success stories. New research puts the sector’s economic...

Why Demand for Home Stairlifts Is Rising Across Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester’s population is ageing at a pace that’s starting to show up well beyond healthcare statistics. Nationally, the number of people aged 80...
Subscribe to our newsletter
Business Manchester will use the information you provide on this form to be in touch with you and to provide updates and marketing.
Don't miss

Manchester Businesses Are Losing Millions to Crime — Is Your Premises Secure?

Manchester's business scene has been on a genuine upward run — new retail developments, a booming hospitality sector, and industrial and logistics space expanding...

Why your business marketing needs to be paracetamol, not vitamins

By business mentor Faye Mac (pictured), founder of Faye Mac Consultancy. There's a question I ask every business owner I work with when we start...

Why Demand for Home Stairlifts Is Rising Across Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester’s population is ageing at a pace that’s starting to show up well beyond healthcare statistics. Nationally, the number of people aged 80...

Critical Cloud and Tarian Labs introduce continuous runtime security assurance for fintech organisations

CARDIFF, UK, July 14, 2026 – Critical Cloud has formed a strategic partnership with Tarian Labs to provide fintech organisations with Continuous Runtime Security...

More News

How to make sure your business bounces back after a cybersecurity attack

You’ll rarely see a cyber breach coming. In a matter of moments, everything you've built could be put at risk, leaving you to pick up...

Teenager arrested after proactive drug dealing operation in Chorlton

A teenage boy was arrested by South Manchester police following a proactive plain clothes operation to combat drug dealing in the area. Officers headed to...

Fake ‘luxury’ goods worth £3 million found in trading standards raid

More than 5,000 fake luxury goods worth £3.1 million have been uncovered in Bury by trading standards officers. The huge haul was discovered in raids...