Katie, 39, from Urmston, says her six-year-old son Ruairi — a former Manchester United mascot — has had his season ticket restricted under the club's anti-touting crackdown. Ruairi has held a ticket since birth and attended home, away and European matches. The restriction blocks him from applying for the Premier League opener against Hull.

The club emailed Katie saying repeated access to Ruairi's account, alongside an "extremely high" number of others, indicated central control. Katie insists she only helped 19 family members and friends manage accounts and apply for away tickets using shared devices, with no tickets sold for profit or bots used. Her appeal was rejected within four hours, which she believes was an AI-automated decision.

Manchester United said its wider operation had recovered more than 14,000 tickets worth over £1m last season, returning them via official channels. The club acknowledged some innocent fans might be affected but said it was confident the "vast majority" of flagged accounts were correctly identified. Katie has lodged a further appeal, but Ruairi's account remains restricted.