Mark Clattenburg lifts the lid on his notorious FA Cup Final tunnel clash with Sir Alex Ferguson – and reveals it nearly drove him to quit refereeing for good

Mark Clattenburg, a well-known football referee, recently opened up about a tunnel encounter with Sir Alex Ferguson that became infamous in his career for all the wrong reasons. The incident took place before the 2016 FA Cup Final at Wembley, a match where Manchester United, managed by Louis van Gaal, triumphed 2-1 over Crystal Palace, led by Alan Pardew.

Clattenburg was the match official that day. As he prepared for kick-off, he met Sir Alex Ferguson, the legendary former United manager attending as a club guest, and Alan Pardew in the tunnel. “It was the FA Cup Final in 2016… about 15 or 20 minutes before kick-off, there in the tunnel was Sir Alex Ferguson. Pardew was also there. I shook hands with both of them and told Alan that I wished him the best,” Clattenburg recalled.

The mood was light-hearted, with Ferguson in high spirits. “Ferguson was in his usual jokey mood. He goes into his pocket and tries to pull out an envelope to give to me. I am like, you can’t do that – the BBC cameras were right on us. I knew what people were going to do – start making accusations,” Clattenburg explained. Pardew quickly joined in, quipping, “You’ve been doing that for years, so why would it make any difference now?” The group shared a laugh, but the moment was captured on camera.

Social media soon erupted with speculation, suggesting that Clattenburg’s friendly exchange with Ferguson was why Crystal Palace lost. “It was a joke, everybody started to laugh, and the cameras picked up on it. Everyone on social media started saying: ‘He was having a laugh with Alex, that’s why Palace got beat. It was one of my most memorable moments – how something so innocent could just be blown out of all proportion,” Clattenburg said.

The match itself was not without controversy. Clattenburg disallowed a goal from Palace’s Connor Wickham, ruling that an initial foul by Chris Smalling had occurred before playing advantage. This decision drew criticism and added to the scrutiny on Clattenburg’s performance that day.

Reflecting on the aftermath, Clattenburg admitted the incident made him question his future as a referee. He told the Whistleblowers podcast that the negative attention affected his outlook: “If you can’t be human, then that’s me out,” he told co-host Ian Ladyman. “I didn’t want to be a referee anymore – if you can’t have a laugh or sense of humour… my best times as a referee was I happy and enjoying it.”

Clattenburg went on to emphasize the importance of maintaining good relationships with players and managers. “Personally, if I could bring down barriers with players and managers by having a joke with them, it really helped the game. If I am worrying about the cameras all the time, the players would be edgy too and I wouldn’t get the results,” he said.

Ultimately, the episode played a part in Clattenburg’s decision to leave the Premier League in 2017 and take a new role with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation. His experience highlights how the intense scrutiny at football’s highest levels can sap the enjoyment from the game and make officials reconsider their place within it.