Manchester United says goodbye to Kath Phipps, who was their receptionist for 55 years. The friendly face who welcomed and said goodbye to legendary footballers such as David Beckham, who today pay her an emotional tribute. At the age of 85, the club has made public the sad news of her death with 454 words that have been only the beginning of a multitude of messages.
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She was the heart of Manchester United, everyone knew who Kath was and everyone adored her…
The heart of Manchester United
To understand the affection and respect that many of the footballers who have passed through Phipps’ life have for her, you only have to look at the messages that have come from many of them. Among them were the words of a visibly affected David Beckham: “Forever in our hearts… The first and last face I always saw was Kath’s sitting at reception at Old Trafford waiting to give me my tickets for the game,” he wrote on Instagram with a photo of him holding the hand of the eternal receptionist.
A respected, revered and beloved figure that even David Beckham himself gave her a place in his own Netflix documentary: “She was the heart of Manchester United, everybody knew who Kath was and everybody loved her…“, he said of the woman who has died at the age of 85 before going on to tell how close his relationship was with the woman who was always there to look after them and help them in their careers.
“I moved to Manchester when I was 15 years old and Kath made a promise to my mum and dad: ‘I will look after your son for you, don’t worry’, and from that first day to the last day I spent with her that’s exactly what she did,” Beckham himself says, hinting at what Phipps did for him. “Old Trafford will never be the same without your smile when we walk through those doors… We love you,” he concludes.
A life as a Red Devil
Kath Phipps began working at Manchester United as the club’s first telephone operator in 1968, during Sir Matt Busby’s reign, and in May 2022, after more than five decades of service as a Red Devil, she was honoured with the Football Service Award. Beckham admitted that the “incredible” receptionist “really deserved” the honour for her services to football and to United in general.
Their contribution went beyond any particular job title
Manchester United said in a statement: “We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our beloved colleague Kath Phipps at the age of 85,” it began. A career in which she became a key member of the club to ensure that any visitor to Carrington was greeted with the warmest of welcomes: “An omnipresent figure at Manchester United since the late 1960s, Kath worked for the club for more than 55 years in a variety of roles, but her contribution went beyond any particular job title.”
For the multitude of footballers who wore the red jersey alongside Kath Phipps, these words, gestures and details are now part of Manchester United’s history and will be remembered forever: “For regulars, that greeting extended to warm hugs and friendly chats as Kath came to embody the family atmosphere that underpinned the club’s culture,” the club’s statement concludes.
