Manchester United are preparing to open a war chest in the summer transfer window, but they must minimise the £32m hidden cost of the last calendar year.
With the amount of work to be done in the coming transfer window, Man Utd are set for a transformative summer of activity.
A potential return to the Champions League will only serve to heighten the expectations, because Ineos have delivered in two summers without it.
However, they must minimise the £32m hidden cost that has only just come to the fore. Ineos are already addressing it.
Manchester United v Aston Villa - Premier League
Photo by Lee Parker – CameraSport via Getty Images
Are you happy with Ineos and Sir Jim Ratcliffe?
Man Utd paid £31.77m to agents last year
Some don’t like them, others consider them a necessary evil, and others yet swear by them.
The reality is that agents are an unavoidable part of modern football, and the transfer market simply can’t function without them.
This was proven recently as the FA’s website released the amount paid to agents from February 2025 to Feb 2026 by PL clubs.
More United News
A total of £460m was spent on agent commission alone last year, and Man Utd were sixth on the list of clubs that paid the most.
United paid £31.77m to agents, less than half of Chelsea’s £65m outlay, which was far and away the highest in the league.
Aston Villa, Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal rounded out the top five, with United coming in sixth.
Burnley paid the least (around £7m), while Wolves came out surprisingly high at nearly £26m for a squad that is doomed for relegation.
As much as agents are woven into the fabric of football transfers, Wolves’ case is a cautionary tale of how too much interference by them can cause turmoil at a club.
Ineos are working to minimise agent cost
Having good relationships with agents can often swing a deal in your favour, something United are no strangers to doing.
Manchester United’s ALARMING transfer debt
Who's to blame here? 🤔
Chart depicting Manchester United's transfer debt
Manchester United transfer debt table Credit: Adam Williams/United in Focus/GRV Media
Manuel Ugarte was signed to grease the wheels of the deal for Leny Yoro as United tried to appease Jorge Mendes, who manages both players.
However, agent commission is a cost that most responsible clubs keep a check on, because it’s not a spending you’ll ever get a concrete and tangible return on.
The best way to minimise this is to turn the player’s head and end bidding wars, or walk away when the player is undecided.
That’s exactly what Ineos have done, and it takes away the agent’s power to influence their client for their own financial gain over the player’s sporting success.
Player wages are the biggest indicator of sporting success, as they provide the most tangible return, good or bad. Everything else needs to be minimised as much as possible.
Ineos have cracked that code, because being sixth in spend on agent commissions for a season out of Europe, and sitting third in the league is a great financial decision.
Join Our Newsletter
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox