It seems Manchester United’s financial situation might not be as bad as first feared.
When Sir Jim Ratcliffe said Manchester United were running out of cash by the end of the year, it fired off alarm bells for the fanbase.
Reports suggested that United were close to their PSR limit after suffering heavy losses over the last three years.
Defeat in the Europa League final also meant United missed out on £100m from the Champions League, leading to fears that the summer window could be eerily quiet.
However, United have already signed Matheus Cunha and are already working towards signing Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford. It seems United do have money to spend, and Ineos are wasting no time.
Jim Ratcliffe, co-owner of Manchester United FC, looks on
Photo by Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images
Man United avoided £48m PSR blow from Ineos takeover
As per the latest account figures, United have just £73m in cash reserves which is why the club are so reliant on player sales this summer.
Ratcliffe’s £90m injection gave United a PSR boost, and it has now been revealed that the cost of the Ineos takeover was written off by the Premier League.
Journalist Laurie Whitwell explained via Stretford Paddock how United received a PSR boost.
More United News
“United lost £300m over the last three years up to the 23/24 PSR period. People are thinking, well you can only lose £100m before facing a points deduction so how is that possible?” Whitwell said.
“Well, Red Football Limited, the company actually filed, the losses were only £200m – around £111m difference basically.
“Part of that is to do with things that they can write off, such as the cost of the takeover. There was around £47.8m that kind of went up in the air to lawyers, financiers through the course of the Glazers selling to Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
“That isn’t to do with the football activity of the club so the Premier League agree that shouldn’t come into the calculations of United’s operating functions.”
Man United revenue is growing under Ineos
Ratcliffe has been heavily criticised by fans for his controversial cost-cutting decisions at United, but it does seem to be making an impact.
The latest financial results have shown that United’s revenue grew 17.4% off the back of the run to the Europa League final.
United’s commercial deals remain intact despite missing out on European football, although the value of the Adidas deal has dropped due to the failure to qualify for the Champions League.
READ MORE: How Sir Jim Ratcliffe ‘angered’ takeover bidders well before his £1.25bn Man United deal
United continue to have the highest matchday revenue in the Premier League and Ineos will hope to grow that figure even higher with plans to build a new 100,000-seater stadium by 2030.
Spending this summer will heavily rely on sales, but Ineos are slowly but surely making sure United are running sustainably.