A Manchester United supporter has missed out on the chance for a first haircut in 500 days after the team spurned the chance to seal a fifth consecutive victory.
Frank Illett, 29, vowed in October 2024 that he would not cut his hair until the club won five games in a row but United’s struggles last season led to a longer wait than he anticipated, and resulted in a comically overgrown barnet.
His daily video updates on ‘The United Strand’ have accumulated millions of views – while Ilett planned to donate his hair to The Princess Trust, a charity that provides wigs to young cancer patients dealing with hair loss as a result of their treatment.
United were managed by Erik ten Hag when Ilett began his challenge and when the Dutchman was sacked, successor Ruben Amorim could only muster a run of three consecutive wins during a troubled campaign last season.
After Amorim’s departure, Michael Carrick led United to four consecutive wins against Manchester City, Arsenal, Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur, setting up the chance of a fifth in Tuesday’s trip to West Ham United.
But against an in-form Hammers side, United could only manage a 1-1 draw at the London Stadium, with Benjamin Sesko’s 96th-minute leveller cancelling out Tomas Soucek’s opener after Casemiro saw a goal disallowed.
For Ilett, it means the opportunity to finally shed his huge mop of hair, a moment he planned to share with his now enormous following of millions on social media, has now gone up in smoke.
Former United midfielder Carrick, who replaced the sacked Amorim in early January, said he had been told by his children of the added significance of beating West Ham and revealed Ilett’s challenge had made him smile.
“My kids have made me aware of it but it certainly won’t go into the team talk from a professional level,” Carrick said. “I can understand what’s going on with it and it does make me smile but it won’t have an impact ultimately in the end.”
