Manchester United are treading water in an ocean of debt, with significant implications for Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s grand plan to build a new 100,000-seater stadium.
In the world of corporate finance, debt isn’t a dirty word. Borrowing money at respectable interest rates can fuel growth, funding infrastructure upgrades, investment in personnel and technology.
But for Manchester United, the vast majority of debt can be traced back to the Glazer family’s leveraged buyout in 2004, when Malcolm Glazer borrowed against the club to fund his £750m takeover.
In essence, the Red Devils are paying interest of £30m-plus every season not to build a new stadium, ramp up the wage bill or make glitzy new signings but for the luxury of having the Glazers as owners.
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Fans have had ENOUGH
A detailed view of a devil's fork featuring the faces Manchester United owners Avram Glazer, Jim Ratcliffe, Joel Glazer and Malcolm Glazer as fans protest outside the stadium prior to the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and Aston Villa FC at Old Trafford on May 25, 2025
Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images
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In return, the Tampa-based family have seen the value of their non-investment appreciate from £750m in 2005 to around £5bn in 2026, while shareholders have picked up nearly £200m in dividends.
United’s total debt meanwhile has risen to £1.3bn, including hundreds of millions in transfer instalment obligations under a roughshod recruitment strategy.
Despite Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s cost-cutting and programme to increase core revenue, United still have negative cash flow. In layman’s terms, they spend more than they earn and therefore have to rely on yet more debt or cash injections from Ineos or, in theory if not in practice, the Glazers.
Manchester United's co-owner Jim Ratcliffe looks from the directors box before kick off of the English Premier League football match between Manchester City and Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England, on September 14, 2025.
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United are enjoying a honeymoon period under the interim leadership of Michael Carrick, but it will take sustained success on the pitch – and, crucially, Champions League qualification year in, year out – before they are out of the red financially.
And with the ambition to replace a creaking Old Trafford with Europe’s biggest and best stadium likely to load £2bn in extra debt onto the club, the Glazers’ leveraged buyout is still casting a long shadow 20 years on.
This week, the recently established Independent Football Regulator has briefed that it is considering limiting investors using leveraged buyouts to take over clubs.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Football Regulator chief executive Richard Monk said: “We want clubs and owners to have ambitions and dreams. We’re not risk averse. That’s what makes English football so special and that’s what fans want. But at the same time, we don’t want the future of clubs to be gambled away. And I think because of that, we would look very, very closely at highly leveraged buyouts, for example.”
For Premier League clubs like United, leveraged buyouts have been capped at 65 per cent of the total value of a takeover since 2023. If the Glazers had tried to buy the club via the same method today, they would have been blocked.
Has English football failed Man United by allowing leveraged buyouts for so long?
The club is DROWNING in debt
Chart showing Manchester United's gross debt position since the Glazer family's leveraged buyout
Manchester United gross debt 2024-25 Credit: Adam Williams/United in Focus/GRV Media
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The club is the ultimate cautionary tale. Speaking exclusively to United in Focus, University of Liverpool football finance lecturer Kieran Maguire articulated where it all went – and continues – to go wrong, as well as the legacy of the leveraged buyout in the context of the plans to build Old Trafford 2.0.
“In terms of criticism of the club on the pitch, you’re looking for who to blame. The Glazers are one of the targets here, and you associate them with the leveraged buyout.
“The figures I have show that total interest payments since the Glazers acquired the club has just ticked over £1bn, based on the first-quarter accounts for 2025-26.
Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer attend the UEFA Champions League third round qualifying match between Manchester United and Debreceni at Old Trafford on August 9 2005 in Manchester, England.
Photo by John Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images
“If you go back to 2004, Manchester United were actually earning interest. They had so much cash that they were generating interest from their net position. Since then, the finances have very much reversed.
“There is nothing wrong with debt if you have it for the right reasons. But if you contrast United with Tottenham, Spurs have borrowed more money than Man United. But because Spurs are smart, they borrowed at lower rates. They are paying around £25m per year in interest but they are also getting another £70m per year in matchday income, plus another similar amount in terms of commercial income because of the events they host at the stadium. That has been a very successful debt-based transaction.
“On the other hand, a leveraged buyout means you’re simply using the debt as a means of facilitating the transaction itself. There is no investment in infrastructure or players.
“It has come off spectacularly for the Glazers. Their equity investment is worth a lot, lot more. There is a multiplier effect with leveraged buyouts.
“For the club itself, however, there is a lot of risk. They are going to take on a lot more debt when they come to build the stadium and that becomes a trickier calculation when you’re already paying huge interest.”
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United approaching crucial debt deadline
In the summer of 2027, nearly £350m of United’s debt is due for repayment.
Rather than repaying, however, it is overwhelmingly more likely that Ratcliffe and the Glazers will choose to refinance.
Because the existing debt deals were agreed at a time of lower interest rates, that means that the club will probably be paying significantly more interest after the renegotiation.
Man Utd’s new stadium plans, what we know right now
Set to be complete by 2030/31 season
Expected cost around £2 billion
Old Trafford set to be demolished
Expected to create 92,000 new jobs, 17,000 new homes and drive 1.8 million visitors annually
Capacity of 100,000 with steepest stands allowable in UK (35 degree angle)
Munich clock and other iconic club landmarks set to be included in new design
Manchester United v Luton Town - Premier League
Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images
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Some experts have suggested that annual repayments could nearly double, which would be a huge drain on cash flow, particularly if United add £30-40m in extra yearly repayments to build the new stadium.
Because Ratcliffe is personally low on cash and the Glazers are reluctant to wire in any more money from Florida, it’s unlikely that there will be a significant down payment from either party.
As a result, one theoretical option is seeking new investment, either in the club itself or the stadium as a separate business.
Personal seat licenses, local government support and stadium naming rights will probably all play a part in the funding for the new stadium, but there will still be a huge hole to plug.
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