City football rivals pledge £1 million for attack victims

Manchester’s two rival Premier League football clubs have joined together to pledge £1 million towards the fundraising effort for victims of the suicide bomb attack.

Manchester United and Manchester City will donate the sum to the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund, which has so far raised more than £2 million in combination with an effort from the Manchester Evening News (MEN).

It comes as police warned people to be aware of fraudulent fundraising websites in the wake of the Manchester Arena bombing.

Greater Manchester Police tweeted the alert and instead directed wellwishers to a JustGiving page through which to make donations.

It said: “Please be aware of fraudulent fundraising pages on the internet. If you wish to donate please use this page – www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/ westandtogethermanchester.”

Set up by the MEN, the site has raised more than £1.2 million since it was created on Tuesday. The money raised will be administered by British Red Cross and go to the victims’ families.

The Lord Mayor of Manchester, councillor Eddy Newman, said: “We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has generously supported the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund.

“The money raised through your donations will make a real difference to those who have been affected by this horrific attack.”