Manchester United’s debts have rocketed to a record £1.29billion, the club’s latest financial figures have revealed.
Although chief executive Omar Berrada spoke of ‘robust financial results’ after the cost-cutting instigated by minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe contributed to an operating profit of £13.3m, United’s debt and the price of servicing it continue to rise.
Daily Mail Sport takes a closer look at United’s first quarter results to explain why there is good and bad news in the figures.
The debt mountain
United’s debt can be split into two parts; the financial debt stemming largely from the Glazer family’s leveraged takeover in 2005, and the trade debt which has been built up mainly by transfer fees owing on players.
The financial debt has risen to all-time high of £749.2million – or $1billion if you want a more eye-catching statistic – from £714m a year ago.
The increase is partly due to United drawing an additional £105m from a revolving credit facility to help cover the cost of signing Benjamin Sesko, Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Senne Lammens last summer.
The club have now used up £268m of the £350m available from the facility. Thursday’s results also show that cash and cash equivalents have dropped to £80.5m from £149.6m 12 months ago.
The net debt from the Glazer takeover remains unchanged at £481m, but the figures once again underline the price United have to pay to service it with £22.6m spent on finance costs.
Meanwhile, the club’s trade debt can be sub-divided into two further parts; the current payables which are due on transfer instalments and other liabilities within the next year, and the non-current payables due after that.
In March, Ratcliffe bemoaned the fact that United still owe a substantial amount of money on players he inherited following Ineos’ minority takeover.
‘If you look at the players we are buying this summer, that we didn’t buy, we’re buying Antony, we’re buying Casemiro, we’re buying (Andre) Onana, we’re buying (Rasmus) Hojlund, we’re buying (Jadon) Sancho,’ said Ratcliffe.
‘These are all things from the past, whether we like it or not, we’ve inherited those things and have to sort that out.
‘For Sancho, who now plays for Chelsea and we pay half his wages, we’re paying £17m to buy him in the summer.’
The current payables have risen to £323.4m from £309.5m, and the non-current to £216.3m from £210.6m. It means the overall rise in United’s total debt is £54.8m, taking it to the record £1.29bn mark.
The silver lining
Berrada acknowledged the ‘difficult decisions’ United have made over the last year to stop the club from haemorrhaging money, with two rounds of savage redundancies slashing the workforce by 450 from 1,150 to 700 employees.
Ratcliffe has also put a squeeze on staff perks, such as ending free lunches, to cut costs across the club, and it has paid off with a £13.3m operating profit as the wage bill has dropped £6.6m to £73.6m.
It now makes up 52.5 per cent of the club’s overall revenue, down from 56 per cent last year, with overall expenses down 7.1 per cent. United reiterated that the club are still on course for full-year revenues of £640m-£660m.
‘These robust financial results reflect the resilience of Manchester United as we make strong progress in our transformation of the club,’ said Berrada. ‘The difficult decisions we have made in the past year have resulted in a sustainably lower cost base and a more streamlined, effective organisation equipped to drive the club towards improved sporting and commercial performance over the long-term.’
The players are the biggest earners by some distance, and United will continue to drive down the wage bill by offloading some of their highest-paid stars and trying to negotiate lower terms with others.
Marcus Rashford, Sancho, Hojlund and Onana are all out on loan, with Barcelona, Aston Villa, Napoli and Trabzonspor covering the lion’s share of their wages.
Top earner Casemiro will be out of contract on June 30 and United have yet to trigger the 12-month extension in his £375,000-a-week deal with just three weeks to go until he can open talks with foreign clubs.
Harry Maguire is in a similar situation with United yet to offer the England defender new terms as he enters the final six months of his £180,000-a-week contract.
The small print
Although United announced that operating profit was up to £13.3m compared to a loss of £6.9m last year, on closer inspection the news isn’t all positive.
As well as slashing the wage bill, the £45m generated by selling Alejandro Garnacho and Antony moved to Chelsea and Real Betis respectively was another key factor in making a profit.
However, when the £22.6m United spent on finance costs largely related to the debt is factored in, the £13.3m profit actually becomes a loss of £8.4m compared to a profit of £1.6m last year.
United’s failure to qualify for Europe for only the second time in 35 years after finishing 15th in the Premier League and losing the Europa League final to Tottenham has also had an adverse effect on their finances.
Revenue dropped from £143.1m to £140.3m after commercial, matchday and broadcasting income dipped. Sponsorship revenue was down £4.8m due largely to the end of United’s training kit deal with Tezos, but sources say ‘positive talks’ with new partners are ongoing.
