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Ask any United supporter from an earlier generation about the meaning of that fateful day in May 1999, and they will tell you that the date left an indelible mark. It was the night when injury-time goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjær secured an incredible late turnaround in the showpiece event against Bayern Munich at the Camp Nou. That same night, the life of one devoted supporter in Eastern Europe, who recently died at the age of 62, took a new direction.

A Dream Born in Communist Bulgaria

This individual was born Marin Zdravkov Levidzhov in his hometown, a settlement with a population of 22,000. Living in communist Bulgaria with a love of football, he dreamed of adopting a new name to… the Red Devils. However, to adopt the name of a sports team from the capitalist west was a futile endeavor. If he had attempted to do so before the fall of the regime, he would undoubtedly have ended up in jail.

A Promise Forged in Drama

Ten years after the end of communism in Bulgaria – on the unforgettable final – Marin's personal goal came one step closer to fulfillment. Viewing the match from his simple residence in Svishtov and with the score against them, Marin vowed to himself: if United somehow turned the game around, he would do anything to become known as that of the object of his devotion. Then, a miracle occurred.

Marin fulfils his dream of visiting Old Trafford.

Years of Judicial Challenges

The following morning, Marin sought legal counsel to state his extraordinary desire, thus initiating a difficult fight. His dad, from whom he had inherited his love of United, was no longer alive, and the man in his thirties was caring for his parent, employed in miscellaneous roles, including as a builder on a meager daily wage. He was hardly making ends meet, yet his dream became an obsession. He soon became the subject of gossip, then was featured globally, but a decade and a half full of legal battles and setbacks in litigation awaited him.

Legal Obstacles and Small Wins

His request was rejected initially for copyright reasons: he was barred from using the title of a world-famous brand. Then a presiding magistrate granted a limited approval, saying Marin could change his first name to Manchester but that he was prohibited from using the second part as his official surname. “However, I desire to be identified with an urban area in Britain, I want to wear the name of my favourite football club,” Marin informed the judge. The struggle continued.

A Life with Feline Friends

When not in court, he was often caring for his feline friends. He had plenty of them in his garden in Svishtov and held them in the same esteem as the his team. He christened them after United players: from Rio to Rooney, they were the celebrity pets in town. Who was his preferred pet of the name they used? One named after David Beckham.

Marin bedecked in United gear.

Breakthroughs and Principles

He achieved a further success in court: he was allowed to add the club name as an recognized alias on his ID card. But this did not satisfy him. “I won’t stop until my entire name is as I desire,” he declared. His story soon led to commercial propositions – a chance to have supporters' goods produced under his new name – but despite his financial struggles, he declined the proposal because he did not want to profit from his adored institution. The club's identity was sacred to him.

Dreams Realized and Lasting Tributes

His story was captured in 2011. The filmmakers turned Marin’s dream of visiting Old Trafford and there he even had the chance to see his compatriot, the forward on the team's roster at the time.

Marin tattooed the club badge on his forehead three years later as a protest against the legal rulings and in his last few years it became ever tougher for him to keep up the struggle. Employment was hard to find and he lost his mother to the pandemic. But somehow, he found a way. Originally of Catholic faith, he got baptised in an orthodox church under the name Manchester United Zdravkov Levidzhov. “Ultimately, my true name is recognized with my chosen name,” he used to say.

This Monday, 13 October, his life came to an end. Perhaps now Manchester United’s restless soul could finally find peace.