Preview: United v West Ham

Manchester United kick off the Stateside leg of our pre-season tour against West Ham United in New Jersey at midnight BST on Sunday 27 July.

Our meeting at the MetLife Stadium comes as the first of three Premier League Summer Series games we’ll play in the US, following a friendly against rivals Leeds United in Sweden the week prior as we warm up for the season ahead.

After that curtain-raiser, we take on Bournemouth and Everton in Chicago and Atlanta respectively to decide who brings the pre-season crown back to England.

Keep scrolling for all the information you need about our clash with the Hammers…

HOW TO WATCH LIVE

As is the case with all of our Summer Series matches, MUTV subscribers will be able to watch the action live on our dedicated TV channel, ManUtd.com or in the United App, with the exception of fans based in the US.

Subscribe now to ensure you don’t miss a minute of our pre-season activity. You can sign up for just £7.99 a month, or save money with our £29.99 annual plan.

We’ll be over in the States bringing you exclusive content before, during and after the game, along with every second of the on-pitch action. Get involved!

OPPOSITION WATCH

Last term didn’t pan out quite as the Hammers would have hoped at the beginning of the season.

They began the campaign with Julen Lopetegui in the dugout, before opting to swap the Basque coach with Graham Potter in January. The latter is heading into his first full season as West Ham’s boss, so will want to make the best possible start to his preparations against us in New Jersey.

But there’s plenty on the line for the Reds, too. The Hammers proved thorny opposition in 2024/25, administering defeat in Erik ten Hag’s final game in charge, before repeating the trick in May against Ruben Amorim’s side.

The MetLife Stadium therefore provides the perfect stage to exact some early revenge as we prepare for the dawn of the new season.

ANY NEW FACES TO LOOK OUT FOR?

As things stand, West Ham are yet to make any new moves in the transfer market.

Their only business so far has been to make Jean-Clair Todibo’s loan move from French side Nice permanent, after the centre-back made 27 Premier League appearances for the club last term.

The Reds have, of course, announced our first signing of the summer in former Wolverhampton Wanderers man Matheus Cunha. Should he turn out in Sweden, our clash with the Hammers will provide a second look at the Brazilian in action for Amorim’s side.

However, as ever in the transfer market, more additions may have been made by the time the first whistle sounds in New Jersey.

RETURN TO THE METLIFE

The MetLife Stadium, home to the New York Giants and the New York Jets, is now familiar turf for the Reds.

We last turned out at the venue in 2023, when it hosted the Reds’ third game of our pre-season tour that year, facing Arsenal in a 2-0 win.

Bruno Fernandes had only recently been assigned captain when that meeting with the Gunners occurred and he marked the occasion with a goal, before being joined on the scoresheet by Jadon Sancho.

The stadium has been one of the venues for this summer’s Club World Cup and is set to host the 2026 World Cup final next year.

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HOW THE PREMIER LEAGUE SUMMER SERIES WORKS

The Reds are one of four clubs competing in the competition along with our first opponents, West Ham, plus Everton and Bournemouth.

Each team will play each other once, the games scheduled as double headers on the same day in the same venue, beginning at the MetLife before moving on to Soldier Field in Chicago and closing at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

As with the regular Premier League season, each team will be awarded three points for a win and one point for a draw. The side with the most points at the end of the three games will win the series.

There is to be no extra time or penalty shootouts in the games. If two or more sides end on the same points, the competition winner will be decided by goal difference, then goals scored and, if they still cannot be separated at that stage, it will come down to head-to-head performance.

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