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Premier League: How Much Money Can Manchester United Spend

By Keith Lisenbee

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 28: A general view outside Old Trafford prior to the FA Youth Cup: Sixth Round match between Manchester United and Wigan Athletic at Old Trafford on February 28, 2020 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 28: A general view outside Old Trafford prior to the FA Youth Cup: Sixth Round match between Manchester United and Wigan Athletic at Old Trafford on February 28, 2020 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images) /
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Manchester United is a publically traded company on the New York Stock Exchange, and they provide quarterly earnings reports to their investors and the general public.

On May 21, club Chief Financial Officer, Cliff Baty, provided the details of United’s third-quarter financial figures in a conference call. United also offered a press release that also outlined its level of current financial health.

The report indicated that MUFC lost 22.8 million pounds in revenue during the third quarter. In the same period in 2019, the club had gained 7.7 million pounds.

The team’s total revenue for the quarter was 123.7 million pounds, which was a drop of 18.7% from the previous period last year. For the fiscal year to date, United has seen its revenue drop by 13.8% from the last fiscal year.

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The biggest impact on revenue for the Red Devils in the third quarter was, as feared, in broadcasting revenue. The club advised that cash flow from this stream had fallen 51.7% (53.8 million to 26.0 million pounds) in the most recent quarter from the prior year.

Man U’s game day revenues also dropped in the last quarter. They brought in 29.1 million pounds through Old Trafford, compared to 31.7 million for the year prior, an 8.2% drop. The team also reported losses through other commercial avenues as their stadium tours, shops, and cafe all had to close in mid-March.

The franchise also indicated two key figures that are important for the club moving forward.

First, United is still carrying massive debt dating back to when the Glazers leveraged the club to obtain the loans needed to take over the club in 2005. The figure stands at 429.1 million pounds, a 42.2% increase from last year.

Second, the club reported they have 90.3 million pounds in cash in the bank and have access to an additional 150 million in revolving credit. The good news is the club has 240 million pounds available to spend, however, the bad news is the third quarter ended on March 31st.

The impact of the shutdown will have a harsher effect on the current quarter. How will this affect their summer transfer business moving forward?

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