Manchester United might soon have far more limited obligations to shareholders who invested in the club via the New York Stock Exchange as US president Donald Trump calls for major regulatory reform.
When Malcolm Glazer bought Man United outright in 2005, he removed the club from the London Stock Exchange, where investors like J.P. McManus, John Magnier and BSkyB originally bought their shares.
Seven years later, the Glazer family publicly re-listed the club, this time on the New York Stock Exchange.
As well as raising about £75m for the owners six time zones away in Florida, the initial public offering had an immediate and profound effect on how the club was run day-to-day.
Manchester United Executives Ring Opening Bell At New York Stock Exchange
Photo Ben Hider/Getty Images via NYSE Euronext
That has continued into the 2020s, with the club’s publicly listed status playing a major role in the process that saw Sir Jim Ratcliffe become United’s single largest individual shareholder in February last year.
Just under a quarter of the club’s equity is owned by private investors, although they have a different class of shares (‘Class A Ordinary Shares’) which control just a fraction of the voting rights.
United remain the only actively publicly listed Premier League club.
There are only a handful of teams worldwide – such as Celtic, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund and Ajax – whose stock can be bought by private and institutional investors.
Diagram showing the ownership and voting structure of Manchester United, broken down between Ineos and Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the Glazers, and the NYSE shareholders
Manchester United ownership diagram Credit: Adam Williams / United in Focus / GRV Media
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Among the requirements for NYSE-listed businesses like United is filing financial statements four times per year. That is unlike every other English club, who are legally required to report just once annually.
United’s statements are also close to real-time, which makes it easier to understand their position under the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) and the wider health of the business.
Tomorrow, Manchester United PLC will release their fourth and final quarterly report for the 2024-25 financial year.
And while that might sound trivial in the context of the club’s travails under Ruben Amorim, the Q4 results will reveal how financially resilient the club was in a historically poor season.
However, this window into the business side of the club could soon be partially closed. If Trump gets his way, that is.
Donald Trump wants businesses like Man United to reduce reports to shareholders
As well as reporting four times as frequently as their Premier League peers, United also have a fiduciary duty to break down their finances in far, far more detail.
That gives the likes of Lindsell Train, Ariel Investments and Omega Advisors – who collectively own around 30 per cent of United’s publicly-traded stock – a clear and timely window into the club’s business.
Shareholder Class A Shares % Value
James Ratcliffe 15,204,733 27.64% $271M
Ariel Investments LLC 9,024,434 16.40% $161M
Lindsell Train Ltd. 4,810,000 8.74% $86M
Omega Advisors, Inc. 2,839,737 5.16% $51M
Joel M. Glazer Irrevocable Exempt Trust 1,260,093 2.29% $22M
Man United’s biggest shareholders on the New York Stock Exchange
However, Trump has used a post on his Truth Social platform to call for companies to be required to report just twice annually. “This will save money, and allow managers to focus on properly running their companies,” the president said.
Paul Watkins, chairman of the Securities and Exchanges Commission, the agency which regulates publicly-listed companies in the US, says his organisation is now prioritising Trump’s proposal.
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Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images
United’s last annual financial report showed a payment of almost £1m to PricewaterhouseCoopers for auditing services.
However, independent estimates of the total cost of filing statements four times per year seen by UIF put the true cost to the club closer to £5m annually.
Follow GRV Media’s Head of Football Finance and Governance Content Adam Williams on X for all the latest Man United business news and analysis.
What MUFC stock tells us about the club over the last 13 years
The peaks and troughs of Man United’s share price since they were listed in New York in 2012 are a neat summary of the club’s recent history.
Chart showing Manchester United's share price on the New York Stock Exchange for United in Focus
Man United NYSE share price Credit: Adam Williams/United in Focus/GRV Media
After United’s Initial Public Offering, the club’s shares were trading at around $14. Inflation in that time means that same $14 would be worth almost $20 today. United shares, however, are currently trading for just less than $16. That means, in real terms, the shares are worth less now than they were 13 years ago.
There have been spikes in that time, such as in 2018 when the share price surpassed $25 for the first and only time. That was in response to soaring commercial income despite on-pitch struggles.
The Glazers’ decision to join the European Super League saw prices soar too, with a corresponding crash after the club was forced to abandon the proposal.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s re-arrival in 2021 also inspired optimism among investors.
News that Ratcliffe’s Ineos was investing in the club saw a boom too, as prospectors bought into the club in the hope of a full takeover, with a share price of $33 or more being offered to all classes of investor.