Sofia, Bulgaria
A Bulgarian construction worker has won the right to change his name officially to Manchester United, which also happens to be the name of a popular British soccer club. The former Zdravkov Levichov started a lawsuit two years ago to force the government to allow the change. “I’ve always been a Manchester United fan, and I wanted to change my name since I was a schoolboy,” United, 39, told the Edinburgh Scotsman. “But under communism it was not possible.” Bulgaria became democratic in 1990, and its laws have been changing slowly since then. United’s fight isn’t over, though. The court has ruled that his legal name is now Manchester Zdravkov Levichov United, and United says he won’t be satisfied until the two middle names are removed.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Political cartoons for December 12Cartoons Friday's political cartoons include presidential piracy, emissions capping, and the Argentina bailout
-
The Week Unwrapped: what’s scuppering Bulgaria’s Euro dream?Podcast Plus has Syria changed, a year on from its revolution? And why are humans (mostly) monogamous?
-
Will there be peace before Christmas in Ukraine?Today's Big Question Discussions over the weekend could see a unified set of proposals from EU, UK and US to present to Moscow
