Man United: ‘Mortified’ chief executive of club’s foundation apologises to Alessia Russo

The CEO of Manchester United’s charity arm has apologized, saying he is “mortified” after joking to Alessia Russo about not handing over her Women’s Player of the Year trophy because it was “too heavy”.

Russo accepted the award at the glitzy end-of-season awards ceremony on Monday night, following an outstanding season in which she scored 12 goals in all competitions as United narrowly missed out on their inaugural WSL title.

But there was an awkward moment when she was on stage with Manchester United Foundation CEO John Shiels.

In a video shared on social media, Shiels said, “I’m not going to give this trophy to Alessia because it’s so heavy.”

Sky Sports reporter Geoff Shreeves, who hosted the ceremony, quickly continued: “I’m sure you (Russo) can be very happy with it, can’t you?”

Shiels has been criticized on social media after joking to Russo that he wouldn’t hand over the award because he was ‘overweight’

When Shiels then presented the trophy to Russo, Shreeves continued, “John, I think you should start doing more weight training. It’s not that heavy.’

In a statement to Mail Sport, Shiels, who has held the position at the MU Foundation for 15 years, apologized to the England and Manchester United star for his comments.

“Last night I had the honor of presenting Alessia Russo with the Women’s Goal of the Season award at Manchester United’s end-of-season awards ceremony,” he said.

“I made a comment about the weight of the trophy that I know is offensive. I am mortified by this and would like to apologize to Alessia, her teammates and anyone who has been offended.

“I warned Alessia about the weight of the trophy because I was shocked by how heavy it felt, and I would have done the same if I presented it to a male player.

“I just didn’t want her to drop it. However, upon reflection I understand why the comment has been misinterpreted.

“Female empowerment is at the heart of the Manchester United Foundation’s work in our local community, with nearly 10,000 girls and young women participating in our programs each year.

“I am proud of this work and angry that my comments diverted attention from Alessia and the women’s team’s fantastic performance this season.”

Shiels’ comments sparked criticism on social media, as users said Russo looked “uncomfortable.”

Social media users said Russo looked “uncomfortable and embarrassed” following the comments

Conor Roberts tweeted, “Second hand shame on this. Alessia looks so uncomfortable and embarrassed.

‘Unfortunately, there are still people who treat female athletes differently. Such a superfluous comment.’

Matt Johnson wrote in response: ‘Casual sexism at a time when it should be celebrated. What a bad way to treat our own player.’

@Kazfootie commented: ‘These are our players… we should be protecting them and not adding to the misogyny and sexist comments they already have to live with.’

While another person tweeted, “Embarrassing. You can clearly see how uncomfortable Alessia is with his ‘joke.’

One user praised Russo for the way she handled the comment, saying, “Yikes. She handled it so well. But what a mess.’

Russo was named Manchester United’s Women’s Player of the Year on Monday evening

After a tenure as head of Manchester United Soccer Schools, Shiels assumed the role of CEO of Manchester United Foundation in 2008.

Shiels was awarded an MBE in the late Queen’s Birthday Honors List in 2021 after decades of service helping young people.

Manchester United’s stars are dressed to impress as they take to the red carpet for the club’s end-of-season awards ceremony.

A host of awards were handed out that evening as the Red Devils’ teams – men’s, women’s and academy – celebrated their 2022-23 campaigns.

Marcus Rashford won the Men’s Player of the Year and Player of the Year awards, while Antony’s goal at home against Barcelona won the Men’s Goal of the Season award.

Hannah Blundell claimed the Women’s Players’ Player of the Year, while Russo’s goal away at Arsenal was awarded as the best goal.

In the academy, Kobbie Mainoo won the Jimmy Murphy Award, Dan Gore won the Denzil Haroun Award, Holly Deering won Young Player of the Year, and Bella Reidford won Player of the Year.

The Red Devils also launched the inaugural Fan Award – named after the late Ian Stirling – and confirmed it will be a permanent part of their year-end awards.

Speaking at the ceremony, United men’s boss Erik ten Hag warned his stars still “need to do better” as they prepare for the next campaign.

‘For me they know, good is not good enough. We have to do better. But of course after the start [of the season], Brighton and Brentford… we are happy. We’re in the right direction. But satisfied? No, we are not.

Marcus Rashford won the Player of the Year and Player of the Year awards at Man United’s end-of-season awards ceremony

“If you show confidence and belief in the plan and your teammates, you win. We’ve done it in so many games. But we have also faced setbacks.

‘So it is a resilient team with character and personality. These are all qualities you need for a successful season and [to] win trophies.”

United will play Man City in the FA Cup final at Wembley on Saturday.

United’s women qualified for the Champions League next season, but were defeated by Chelsea in the FA Cup final.