An architectural industry expert has shared how Manchester United's new stadium plans could possibly impact the club's co-owners
Manchester United co-owners Joel and Avram Glazer
The Glazers have been Manchester United's majority owners since 2005(Image: ANDREW YATES, AFP via Getty Images)
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Manchester United's ambitious plans to construct a new stadium could potentially create future complications for the club's co-owners. Conceptual designs of a new 100,000-capacity ground were unveiled last year.
The stadium has been valued at £2billion as part of a broader regeneration scheme in the surrounding area. United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe had previously indicated that the work could be finished by the 2030/31 season, although the stadium is expected to require five years of construction once building commences.
United announced that the stadium will be funded privately but the required land surrounding the proposed site must be acquired before construction can get underway. In February, financial records revealed that the club's debt stood at nearly £1.3bn.
An industry expert has suggested that United are unlikely to finance the stadium project through traditional debt or shared equity arrangements. However, an alternative approach could prove troublesome should United's co-owners, the Glazers or Ratcliffe, choose to sell their stakes in the club at some stage in the future.
An architectural industry source told the Manchester Evening News: "[The club] are kind of up to their ears in various forms of conventional debt, some of which is due or has covenants due next year. It's unlikely they do it with shared equity, because that would dilute the value of the Glazers' share or Sir Jim Ratcliffe's share.
"Some sort of subsidiary stadium company could be the answer. Then that's partly owned by the club and partly owned by external investors. That external investment then pays for the project.
"The problem with that is, when you subsequently sell the club, assuming that's what the Glazers and Ratcliffe want to do when the value of it goes up, then you're not selling the club plus 100% of Old Trafford. You're selling the club, plus whatever percentage of Old Trafford the club owns."
The Glazer family took over as United's majority shareholders via a leveraged buyout in 2005 and have been the subject of various fans protests throughout their ownership. Ratcliffe secured a 27.7 per cent stake in United in early 2024.
Should a stadium company be established, the Glazers or Ratcliffe could potentially offload their United stakes while holding onto a partial stake in the new ground. However, there remain several significant obstacles United must navigate in their pursuit of a brand new home stadium.
An architectural industry expert told the Manchester Evening News: "[The club are] clearly trying to work on the funding and until they get that, nothing's happening really. There is speculation within the industry that the figure quoted for the whole project is optimistic. So it may end up being considerably more than that."
Designs of a new Manchester Unted stadium
What Manchester United's new stadium could look like(Image: Manchester United)
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Securing all the required land for the proposed site remains a top priority, including a plot owned by Freightliner. United appointed Collette Roche as their new stadium development chief executive back in January and she gave an update on proceedings last month.
"We've made a lot of progress in the last 12 months," Roche said. "But to be fair, a lot of it has been behind the scenes. So people might not have seen that, but some of the examples of progress we've made are first and foremost in land assembly.
"We want to make sure we get the best possible position for this stadium, one which has got plenty of land around it to put the right facilities in place, one that's connected and offers a great match day experience.
"So I've been spending a lot of time talking to all the local landowners to understand where that needs to be, and we're progressing that really, really well, and I'm hoping to be able to share some positive news on that front in the next few months."
She added: "I think the second area that we've done a lot in is around investment, and I'm delighted to say we've had a lot of interest. There's a lot of people and organisations that want to invest, not just in the stadium, but also in the wider stadium district. And so those conversations are naturally going to be behind closed doors."
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