In Days of Future Past superhero Kitty Pryde transfers her mind back to her younger self in a bid to change the course of history and avert an ominous future.
Evidently she failed. Because Manchester United’s latest act of corporate synergy with 20th Century Fox is a sure harbinger of the apocalypse – and not just in its bid to sell more tickets for the upcoming film.
After daubing their mascots in blue paint to celebrate the release of X-Men Apocalypse the powers that be at Old Trafford evidently seem so enamoured with the new film that they’ve worked up their own video to promote their star player’s mutant powers.
The video begins with Professor X, Hank McCoy and Mystique entering Mystique but as soon as James McAvoy’s character puts on his helmet something very strange indeed happens.
Whether it’s some form of mutant trickery is not immediately apparent but Professor X and Hank seem to have their voices stolen from them, to be replaced by bizarre mid-Atlantic accents.
The pair conduct an increasingly bizarre search for the right mutants with which to battle Apocalypse, the most powerful mutant of all, settling on Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney. For his “intensity and incredible focus”, they claim, and not his ability to ghost into the penalty area and sweep the ball into the net.