When will The United Strand get his hair cut and how to watch live stream | OneFootball

Manchester United fan Frank Ilett’s viral near 500-day wait for a trip to the barbers was almost at an end

Social media star ‘The United Strand’ - AKA Frank Ilett - was praying for a Manchester United victory against West Ham on Tuesday night.

If the Red Devils won at the London Stadium, he would have finally been able to get a haircut if his beloved Red Devils continued their impressive recent resurgence.

Ilett had long since become famous online for his previous pledge not to have his hair cut again until the team win five games in a row.

United so far look a different team under the tutelage of interim head coach Michael Carrick, earning four successive Premier League wins since he was chosen ahead of fellow club legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to temporarily succeed the sacked Ruben Amorim last month - with title-contending Arsenal and Manchester City both brushed aside, along with Fulham and Tottenham.

Such an unexpected renaissance has brought a renewed confidence and feelgood factor to Old Trafford, which is surging through the players and fanbase alike.

It is a feat they had not achieved since the reign of Erik ten Hag between January and February 2024, when fourth-tier Newport were dispatched in the FA Cup fourth round before successive Premier League victories over Wolves, West Ham, Aston Villa and Luton.

Ilett made the vow not to cut his hair on October 5, 2024, meaning he has now gone 493 days without having a haircut - including a whole calendar year in 2025, which only goes to emphasise United’s struggles under Ten Hag and then during the short-lived reign of Amorim.

‘The United Strand’, AKA Frank Ilett

theunitedstrand/Instagram

He was hoping that Tuesday was indeed the night, but West Ham had other ideas, holding the Red Devils to a 1-1 draw in east London.

Tomas Soucek looked as though he would condemn Carrick to his first defeat across his two interim spells, but Benjamin Sesko notched a late equaliser to salvage a draw for the visitors.

That, however, was not enough for Ilett, who will see his run of five games restart from United’s game against Everton next week.

Ilett, who now lives in Spain, revealed that he had been invited over to watch the game at the London Stadium, however instead he hosted a watchalong on streaming platform Kick from 8pm GMT ahead of the 8:15pm kick-off.

“I mean, to start with, it needs to be kind of cut off in bunches,” Ilett said in an interview with Sky Sports News ahead of the game. “But then, yeah, I think probably buzz cut all over and start again, start fresh.”

His challenge has not gone unnoticed at United, with Carrick even asked about it during his pre-match press conference ahead of the trip to West Ham.

"I can say I'm aware of it, yeah," he said. "My kids have made me aware of it, if anything, but it certainly won't go into the team talk from a professional level.

“I can understand what's going on with it and it does make me smile but it won't have an impact ultimately in the end.”

Asked if llett would be able to book an appointment at last, United captain Bruno Fernandes said: “No, no, I need to book for myself.

“I don't really look at other people if they need to go to the hairdresser. That's not important for me.”