Man United humiliated in penalty shootout loss to 4th-division team Grimsby Town in League Cup

GRIMSBY, England (AP) — Manchester United sank to a new low under Ruben Amorim by getting eliminated by fourth-tier Grimsby Town after a marathon penalty shootout in the second round of the English League Cup on Wednesday.

Grimsby won 12-11 on spot-kicks at 9,000-capacity Blundell Park on England's east coast, with Bryan Mbeumo missing the decisive penalty. United needed late goals by Mbeumo and Harry Maguire just to salvage a 2-2 draw in regulation, having trailed 2-0 at halftime.

It will go down as one of the most embarrassing results in United’s history and leaves the team winless in three games so far this campaign, after a woeful 15th-place finish in the Premier League last season.

Grimsby’s jubilant fans stormed onto the field to celebrate with the players after Mbeumo’s spot kick rebounded off the crossbar to seal United’s fate.

“It's an amazing feeling, one that will live on forever,” said Grimsby's Charles Vernam, who scored one of the team's goals.

Grimsby is currently fourth in League Two, and finished the match with a lineup containing several academy graduates and a Faeroe Islands international.

United, meanwhile, had 200 million pounds ($270 million) worth of new signings just in its attack in Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko. Cunha also failed in the shootout by having his weak attempt saved and Sesko took United's 10th penalty — only ahead of goalkeeper Andre Onana.

After Onana and Grimsby goalkeeper Christy Pym converted their penalties, the shootout reverted to the outfield players once again. Bruno Fernandes scored his for United, but Mbeumo couldn't.

“Going into the penalty shootout, the gaffer (manager) said to us, ‘Lads, all the pressure is on them,’ and it was really," Grimsby midfielder Kieran Green said.

It was a bittersweet moment for Pym, who said: “I’m a Man United fan so I’m half-fuming a little bit."

The result piles more pressure on Amorim, who came into the game with 16 wins from his 44 matches in charge of United after being hired in November. He sat in the dugout during the shootout, not even watching the kicks.

A 1-0 loss to Arsenal in the opening round of the Premier League featured an encouraging performance by a new-look United team, but some worrying old habits returned when fading to a 1-1 draw at Fulham on Sunday.

The exit at Grimsby quickly brought back the gloom of last season.

“The way we started the game without any intensity, we were completely lost,” said Amorim, who apologized to United's fans.

United was only playing in the second round — for the first time since 2014 — after failing to qualify for European competition last season. That year, the team lost 4-0 at third-tier MK Dons in the second round.

In other results Wednesday, Brighton won 6-0 at second-tier Oxford, Everton beat third-tier Mansfield 2-0 and Fulham won 2-0 against second-tier Bristol City.

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Grimsby Town's Tyrell Warren, center, celebrates scoring their side's second goal during an English League Cup second round soccer match against Manchester United, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, at Hill Blundell Park in Grimsby, England. (Nigel French/PA via AP)

Grimsby Town's Tyrell Warren celebrates scoring their side's second goal during an English League Cup second round soccer match against Manchester United, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, at Hill Blundell Park in Grimsby, England. (Nigel French/PA via AP)

Grimsby Town's Tyrell Warren, left, scoring their side's second goal during an English League Cup second round soccer match against Manchester United, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, at Hill Blundell Park in Grimsby, England. (Nigel French/PA via AP)

Manchester United's Harry Maguire reacts during an English League Cup second round soccer match against Grimsby Town, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, at Hill Blundell Park in Grimsby, England. (Nigel French/PA via AP)

Grimsby Town's Tyrell Warren, center, celebrates scoring their side's second goal during an English League Cup second round soccer match against Manchester United, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, at Hill Blundell Park in Grimsby, England. (Nigel French/PA via AP)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison Friday in the first verdict from eight criminal trials over the martial law debacle that forced him out of office and other allegations.

Yoon was impeached, arrested and dismissed as president after his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024 triggered huge public protests calling for his ouster.

The most significant criminal charge against him alleges that his martial law enforcement amounted to a rebellion, and the independent counsel has requested the death sentence in the case that is to be decided in a ruling next month.

In Friday's case, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced Yoon for defying attempts to detain him, fabricating the martial law proclamation and sidestepping a legally mandated full Cabinet meeting.

Yoon has maintained he didn’t intend to place the country under military rule for an extended period, saying his decree was only meant to inform the people about the danger of the liberal-controlled parliament obstructing his agenda. But investigators have viewed Yoon’s decree as an attempt to bolster and prolong his rule, charging him with rebellion, abuse of power and other criminal offenses.

Judge Baek Dae-hyun said in the televised ruling that imposing “a grave punishment” was necessary because Yoon hasn’t shown remorse and has only repeated “hard-to-comprehend excuses.” The judge also restoring legal systems damaged by Yoon’s action was necessary.

Yoon, who can appeal the ruling, hasn’t immediately publicly responded to the ruling. But when the independent counsel demanded a 10-year prison term in the case, Yoon’s defense team accused them of being politically driven and lacking legal grounds to demand such “an excessive” sentence.

Prison sentences in the multiple, smaller trials Yoon faces would matter if he is spared the death penalty or life imprisonment at the rebellion trial.

Park SungBae, a lawyer who specializes in criminal law, said there is little chance the court would decide Yoon should face the death penalty in the rebellion case. He said the court will likely issue a life sentence or a sentence of 30 years or more in prison.

South Korea has maintained a de facto moratorium on executions since 1997 and courts rarely hand down death sentences. Park said the court would take into account that Yoon’s decree didn’t cause casualties and didn’t last long, although Yoon hasn’t shown genuine remorse for his action.

A supporter of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shouts slogans outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs and flags outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A supporter of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol waits for a bus carrying former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs as police officers stand guard outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs and flags outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A picture of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is placed on a board as supporters gather outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)