The three-team tournament will also feature top South African club sides Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates and will take place from July 19-26.
The Reds last participated in the event in 2006, when they lost in the final to the Chiefs on a penalty shoot-out.
United will face each side, before a 'Soweto derby' between the Chiefs and the Pirates for the right to face the Barclays Premier League champions again in the final.
"The 2008 Vodacom Challenge will mark Manchester United's third visit to South Africa and will create a platform for many a rising star to elevate their level of play in order to strive to become a regular member of the Manchester United starting line-up for the new English Premiership season," said United boss Sir Alex Ferguson.
The announcement of this pre-season tournament comes after the Premier League announced they were looking at a proposal to play one 'international round' of competitive fixtures in five cities across the globe from January 2011 onwards.
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Johnniejohn, Tunbridge Wells (12/02/2008 at 14:34)
Deepaw, MD, USA (12/02/2008 at 16:48)
First it's a trip to Saudi Arabia not Dubai, Since then we've beaten Spurs 3-1, and Portsmouth 2-0 in an entertaining fixture.
There is a business side of United, part of it is SAF going to SA for the tour preparations. It's part of the calendar either we won on Sunday or Not. Mind you he is only away for 24hrs and believe that should bring calamity. Stop blaming the Glazers for everything.
The season is on for 5 months now and Rooney miss two months out of it due to injury. So in three months he has incurred 5 yellow cards and he is only a striker. May be if your buddy here is a bit more discipline who knows may be his presence that day would have change the outcome.
CITY1SCUM0, SCUM1CITY2, IMPECCABLE, MANCHESTER (12/02/2008 at 17:12)
Johnniejohn, Tunbridge Wells (12/02/2008 at 17:22)
Rooney is injury prone and suspension prone. All the more reason to have another striker at the club. Stop being a glazer apologist, our loathing of them is nothing to do with ther nationality or religion
ted knott, droylsden (12/02/2008 at 17:28)
john blue (12/02/2008 at 18:01)
RANDYRED (12/02/2008 at 18:21)
If any 1 is to play in this tournament then send the young lads over and the new signings as they deserve this and just them and carlos.
Red Dawn (12/02/2008 at 18:47)
More attention needs to be paid to on the pitch/footballing matters than galavanting around the world like Phileas Fog.
You don't see Arsenal at this kind of caper. Their pre-season matches are low key and competitive, like they should be. They prepare in the right way.
United currently remind me of the movie Rocky 3, where Rocky trains for the first fight against Clubber Lang in a hotel with all the trimmings, lights, cameras etc...when he should have been at the local gym with Mickey knuckling down preparing in the right way.
Jetting off to Saudi Arabia mid-season really made me raise my eyes to heaven and wonder what the hell is going on.
I've followed United for a very long time, but I'm disgusted with the nonsense that's going on these days. We're becoming a bloody joke and it's about time someone said it.
bernie, manchester (12/02/2008 at 19:55)
bernie, manchester (12/02/2008 at 19:58)
tooth&claw, manchester (12/02/2008 at 22:51)
Kevin From Hulme (13/02/2008 at 10:34)
Johnniejohn, Tunbridge Wells (13/02/2008 at 12:17)
PS did you do geography at school, or are you American yourself?
Fred Knott, manchester (13/02/2008 at 19:38)
cjh, Portland (13/02/2008 at 20:11)
As for for complaints about the club being too interested in money, get over yourselves. Would you rather have Rio and Vidic at the heart of our defense, or Phil Bardsley and Paul McShane? Anderson in central midfield, or David Jones? Ronaldo running down the wing, or Kieran Richardson? Tevez in attack, or Daniel Nardiello?
Good players cost...(wait for it)...money. This looks to me like a well-planned trip. Earn some cash, provide some competitive games to get ready for the season, gain a few new fans - but without interfering with our ability to compete in the games that matter.
Unlike Saudi Arabia. That was crap.
cjh, Portland (13/02/2008 at 20:35)
As for United, we did a nearly identical tour of South Africa in 2006: three matches against Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, staged July 15-22. And when the season kicked off in August, we had a great start, which propelled us to our first title in four years.
Call the Saudi trip a circus if you wish, it was very poorly timed. But there's nothing wrong with this pre-season trip that I can see, so the Rocky analogy just doesn't hold water in this instance.
tooth&claw, manchester (14/02/2008 at 10:35)
Johnniejohn, Tunbridge Wells (14/02/2008 at 12:32)
tooth&claw, manchester (14/02/2008 at 13:05)
Johnniejohn, Tunbridge Wells (14/02/2008 at 16:36)
Ask the glazers for a rise, so you can buy a bigger facecloth to wipe away your foam
cjh, Portland (15/02/2008 at 11:15)
This racism/American/geography thing is a misunderstanding. T&C wasn't referring to your address in Tunbridge Wells with the "Merseyside Hovels" remark. It was his way of saying that the "Glazers out, sack Fergie, sell Giggs" crowd were just a pack of illiterate scousers. You know, because it's mainly scouse. Who live on Merseyside. Eh?
But sorry Jj, not too many folks outside of England have heard of Tunbridge Wells. And while it's true that we Yanks are known for being the world's #1 most inwardly focused, self-obsessed country, I'm afraid the English are also in the top three. Our delusions are also yours, my brother. Cheers.
Johnniejohn, Tunbridge Wells (15/02/2008 at 13:48)
Why do you think I would worry who knows where I live is geographically located? Could not care less, except when ignoramuses launch into the 'not a manc' tyrade, when I was born and raised within sight of the (old) OT floodlights.
I have lived in America, and like the country, but do object to american money obsessed business practices, leveraged buyouts etc being imported into Europe. So let's leave racism, and accusations of racism out of it. The delusions seem to be all yours. (and your alter ego)
cjh, Portland (18/02/2008 at 08:24)
Because I know sarcasm when I see it, you oaf. I'm slow to spot a nutter, but I think I've just learned a valuable lesson in that department.