United face £45m hit for Euro failure
GOING out of Europe after coming bottom of their group in the Champions League could cost Manchester United £45million.
Erik ten Hag’s side endured a nightmare campaign, even missing out on a Europa League spot.
And club officials have had to adjust their outlook for the financial year accordingly, lowering expected revenues to between £635-665million from previous guidance of £650-680m.
The latest financial figures, released yesterday, show a loss of £25.8m and will be of interest to incoming 25 per cent owner Jim Ratcliffe, whose investor proposal is expected to be ratified in the middle of next month.
He will be buoyed by the fact that first quarter revenue is up nine per cent year on year to £157.1m, which the club says ‘reflects strong economic foundations’.
An indication of the underperformance of the first team squad, who are seventh in the Premier League, comes via employee expenses, which were up £90.3m thanks to higher wages and investment in players.
The club’s historic debt, which dates back to the Glazer family’s leveraged takeover and is viewed by many as a major stain, stands at £528.8m.
Latest interest payments on that loan, of £34m, take the total spent on servicing it to a staggering £941m.
‘It further underlines the scale of the Glazers’ profiteering,’ said football finance expert Kieran Maguire. ‘That money could have been spent on the pitch or on infrastructure and made a huge difference.’
Following the release of the figures, Ratcliffe’s tender offer was officially submitted to the market.
Documents lodged with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission showed the offer would represent a 27.69 per cent ownership interest and 28.71 per cent voting interest in United.
The papers also went into detail over the bidding process, which saw Ratcliffe go up against Qatari Sheik Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani in what was effectively a twohorse race, despite 10 initial expressions of interest.
They stated that the Qatari group failed to provide proof of funding and were told in May by Raine, the American merchant bank handling the process, to come back with an offer of £5.8billion, which failed to materialise before they pulled out in October.
At that stage those involved were told that the preference of United’s board was ‘a full sale’.
The terms of the agreement also include a clause which prevents the Glazer family from selling further shares for the next 12 months, and the document also discloses that Raine were paid £24.9m to facilitate the deal. That fee will be paid by United and not the Glazers.