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ROBIN PARKER/FOTOSPORTS INTERNATIONAL

By Mark Hyman

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If an American tycoon buying their most beloved soccer team in 2005 wasn’t enough of a slap, imagine how fans of Britain’s storied Manchester United would feel if its main sponsor’s new owner—that would be the U.S. Treasury—slapped its seal on players’ shirts. In 2006, ManU’s owner, Malcolm Glazer, struck a deal with AIG to display the insurer’s logo on team jerseys for a cool $25 million a year. AIG says its sponsorship status is “unchanged” following its rescue by the Fed. But on the Web, fans are waggishly offering scenarios. At RedCafe.net, a popular ManU supporter site, users are posting fake team shirts sporting the U.S. flag or the face of President George W. Bush. Newsburglar.com has ManU players wearing “USA.” ManU isn’t talking. The Treasury Dept. declined to comment.