Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s minority takeover of Manchester United was completed in 2023 and it is hard to argue that the football club has improved since that deal.
In the two years since Ratcliffe’s takeover, Manchester United have finished eighth and 15th in the Premier League table.
Ineos have made sweeping changes behind the scenes, including a £50m Carrington renovation, mass job cuts and an entirely new leadership team for the footballing department.
Ineos need to sort this out at Man Utd immediately – there is no direction
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Ratcliffe’s personal wealth has taken a beating, and United are still yet to find funding for their 100,000-seater stadium plans.
Ineos launched ‘Project 90’ to try and balance the club’s finances, and that is because the Red Devils are quickly falling behind their biggest European rivals.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe looks on during the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and Chelsea FC at Old Trafford on November 3, 2024 in Manchester, United Kingdom.
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Missing out on European qualification last season was costly, but United still made a club-record £667m in revenue.
However, in Deloitte’s annual Football Money League, it means that United have dropped down to eighth in the globe in terms of revenue generation.
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As per The Athletic, it is the first time in history that no Premier League club is present in the top four. Liverpool ranked fifth, Manchester City sixth, Arsenal seventh and United eighth.
Man United’s rivals are overtaking them in the financial stakes
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Real Madrid topped the list after generating £975 million in 2024/25, over £300 million more than United under Ineos.
In the year before Ratcliffe’s takeover, the 2023 Deloitte Football Money League had United ranked fourth in the globe with revenue of £600 million.
Man United’s revenue is about to take another hit
The £667 million generated by United was a new club record, and things have only gotten worse in the 2025/26 campaign.
United are set to play just 40 games all season. Defeat in the Europa League final last season means there is no European football, and the Red Devils were knocked out of the Carabao Cup and FA Cup at the first hurdle.
That will take a huge hit on the £160 million matchday revenue generated last season. The figures for this campaign will be much lower.
READ MORE: Sir Jim Ratcliffe has big problem to fix as £667m ‘record’ figures lead to 30-year low
United are on track for a much-improved Premier League finish, but having no competition money flow in from Uefa will also take a significant chunk out of the revenue.
Ineos have already seen United sink to eighth in the standings, but it is about to get much worse.
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