Manchester United are not the financial superpower that they once were and this has now led to serious concern with Ineos.
Last month, Manchester United hit new lows in the Deloitte Football Money League, which is a ranking of the richest clubs in the world, dropping out of the top five.
United’s turnover for the prior financial year of £667m was a club record, but is guaranteed to be lower than all the big clubs in Europe.
Since taking charge at Old Trafford, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s personal wealth has been slashed which should send alarm bells for him and the Glazer family at the club.
One big reason is United are currently without multiple valuable sponsorships, which could easily turn this around.
Including one area in which United are getting very concerned behind the scenes.
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
The revenue problems are likely influenced by United’s failure to qualify for Europe, which highlights why Michael Carrick is tasked with getting Champions League.
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However, the other factor is likely related to the struggles United have had in securing sponsorships with the new training ground naming rights a valuable asset, as well as sleeve sponsorships.
Flags in the Stretford End
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
However, a third source of frustration is United’s lack of training kit sponsorship which saw the Tezos deal come to an end last summer and has yet to be replaced.
Now, according to the Talk of the Devils podcast and journalist Mark Critchley, this is now an area for concern at Carrington after the deal with the crypto chain ended.
“And this is something that through speaking to people with familiar with the situation and our sources, we’re aware that this is a point of concern now.
Continuing, Critchley explained that United’s board are meeting about the situation with concern.
“And this is something that has been brought up and remarked upon at the executive committee meetings, the big meetings where Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the Glazers, and the club’s leadership get together and discuss going on within the club in every, every month.”
United should get this sorted, with the club’s on pitch performances much improved which makes it a more attractive proposal for the Red Devils.
What price, if any, would you accept to sell the naming rights for Old Trafford?
Heritage Vs. Revenue
Old Trafford aerial view
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
United’s finances should improve on their own with on field displays sure to claim a return to European football.
Now, United in Focus‘ finance expert Adam Williams has explained exactly how important it is to sort this sponsorship issue.
“United need to get this situation sorted out.
“Commercially, they grew last season after years of flatlining. But when you adjust for inflation and look at how much other clubs have grown their revenue from retail, sponsorship and events in the last five years, the picture is a lot more bleak.
“The Deloitte Football Money League, which ranks clubs based on revenue, came out at the end of January and United fell to their lowest ever place: 8th. With no European football this season and a potential drop-off in sponsorship revenue after the Tezos deal was terminated, there is a real danger that they could drop out of the top 10 when the 2025-26 edition is published. For a club of United’s stature, that should be unthinkable.
“Your revenue dictates your spending power, so while they have been able to carry on investing in talent and the wage bill up until now, repeated failures on the pitch are catching up with them. They are getting to a point where, unless they stop the rot on the pitch, they won’t be able to corner their rivals in the transfer market through brute spending power alone.
“Addressing these sponsorship gaps is going to be key, therefore. The training kit deal is an increasingly lucrative category. Sponsors like it because they get to have their logo on the behind-the-scenes content. These days, sponsorship isn’t just a matter of how many eyeballs you get on your logo. Rather, it’s increasingly about the kind of engagement and brand association that the deal delivers, and the training kit category is the kind of intimate engagement that brands are looking for.
“The Tezos deal was worth £24m annually, but I think there was probably a bit of a crypto premium there. Realistically, given where United are at, I think they’ll be happy with £20m from the next deal.
“But as well as that, you have the shirt sleeve deal up for grabs. Again, this is increasingly valuable real estate. However, because of the front-of-shirt gambling ban that comes into force from next season, it’s probably going to be a buyer’s market for sleeve deals, which could impact the price. The DXC Technology deal was worth £20m annually and, again, I think United would be happy to get another deal at that price, potentially with scope to increase the value depending on whether or not they are in Europe next season.
“Then, you’ve also got the naming rights for the training ground, which aren’t being talked about as much. With the buzz around the upgrades to Carrington, they could probably get a £15m-a-year deal there too, if they want. You could also potentially combine two or more of those sponsorship deals and get a bigger package.
“So there’s nearly £60m in revenue available here. That’s nearly 10 per cent of what United earned in total last season, so this is high-stakes stuff. It potentially pays the wages of three superstar signings and reduces the number of player sales that they will inevitably have to make in the summer in order to refresh their squad.”
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