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Ask any Man United devotee who is older about the significance of 26 May 1999, and they'll recount that the occasion left an indelible mark. It was the evening when dramatic late goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjær sealed an stunning 2-1 comeback in the showpiece event against the German giants at the Camp Nou. That same night, the life of one United fan in Bulgaria, who passed away at the age of 62, was transformed.

Hopes in a Bygone Era

The fan in question was born Marin Zdravkov Levidzhov in Svishtov, a community with a tight-knit community. Living in the former Eastern Bloc with a passion for football, he dreamed of adopting a new name to… the Red Devils. But, to take the name of a sports team from the other side of the Iron Curtain was mission impossible. Any effort to do so during the socialist era, he would almost certainly have ended up in jail.

A Promise Forged in Drama

Many seasons after the fall of the regime in Bulgaria – on the historic evening – Marin's idiosyncratic dream edged closer to reality. Watching the final from his modest home in Svishtov and with United trailing, Marin made a promise to himself: if United somehow turned the game around, he would spare no effort to become known as that of the object of his devotion. Then, the impossible happened.

He realized his ambition to see the Theatre of Dreams.

The Long Legal Battle

The following morning, Marin visited a lawyer to express his unusual request, thus beginning a long, hard battle. Marin’s father, from whom he had inherited his love of United, was deceased, and the man in his thirties was caring for his parent, employed in miscellaneous roles, including as a builder on minimal earnings. He was hardly making ends meet, yet his goal turned into a fixation. He soon became the local celebrity, then gained worldwide attention, but a decade and a half full of legal battles and setbacks in litigation lay ahead.

Trademark Issues and Limited Success

Marin’s wish was denied early on for copyright reasons: he was not permitted to adopt the name of a trademark known around the globe. Then a court official ruled partially in his favour, saying Marin could modify his forename to the city name but that he was not to use the second part as his legal last name. “However, I desire to be named after a city in the UK, I want to carry the title of my cherished club,” Marin told the court. The struggle continued.

His Beloved Cats

During breaks from litigation, he was often looking after his cats. He had many animals in his outdoor space in Svishtov and held them in the same esteem as the his team. He named them all after team stars: including Ferdinand and Rooney, they were the best-known felines in town. Which was the favourite cat of his close friends' nickname for him? A kitty called Beckham.

His attire consistently showed his allegiance.

Progress and Integrity

He achieved a further success in court: he was permitted to include United as an official nickname on his personal papers. But this did not satisfy him. “I will continue until my entire name is Manchester United,” he declared. His narrative resulted in business offers – an offer to have fan merchandise made using his identity – but although he was in need, he turned down the offer because he did not want to profit from his favourite club. The Manchester United name was sacred to him.

Aspirations Fulfilled and Final Acts

His story was captured in that year. The crew made his aspiration come true of experiencing the Theatre of Dreams and there he even had the chance to see Dimitar Berbatov, the forward playing for United at the time.

Permanently marked the club badge on his face three years later as a demonstration against the judicial outcomes and in his last few years it became more and more difficult for him to keep up the struggle. Work was limited and he suffered the death of his mother to Covid-19. But he managed to continue. By birth a Catholic, he got baptised in an orthodox church under the name the identity he sought. “At least God will know me with my true identity,” he would frequently remark.

On a recent Monday, his life came to an end. Maybe at last Manchester United’s persistent fan could at last be at rest.