Manchester United struggles on pitch, but posts record revenue

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Manchester United earned a record £666.5 million last year, while finishing 15th in the Premier League, their worst outcome in the English top flight since being relegated in 1973-74. (Reuters)

When a sporting entity becomes a globally-recognised brand, it doesn’t necessarily have to succeed in its chosen field to be viable financially. This has been the case with Manchester United, who have posted record revenue despite being a mere shadow of the team it was during its glory years.

The Old Trafford club earned a record £666.5 million last year, while finishing 15th in the Premier League, their worst outcome in the English top flight since being relegated in 1973-74.

“To have generated record revenues during such a challenging year for the club demonstrates the resilience which is a hallmark of Manchester United,” chief executive Omar Berrada said. “As we settle into the 2025-26 season, we are working hard to improve the club in all areas.”

The big financial returns were largely due to the start of the five-year front-of-shirt sponsorship deal with Snapdragon, which resulted in record commercial revenue of £333.3 million, while match-day revenue during the year ending June 30, 2025 was also at a record £160.3 million.

The overall loss of £33m is down by 70.8 percent from the previous year, when the figure was £113.2m.

However, United’s performance at the start of the current season hardly shows any sign of a turnaround as they have lost two of their first four league fixtures, sitting with four points from as many games. They were also knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Grimsby Town, plying their trade in the fourth level of English club football. They have not qualified for any European competition this season.

According to a Deloitte study in January, Manchester United remain the fourth-highest revenue earning club in world football, based on their earnings of £651m from the previous year. They are behind Spanish giants Real Madrid (£883m), cross-town rivals Manchester City (£708m) and reigning European champions Paris St-Germain (£681m).

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The club has made some cost-cutting decisions, making several non-playing positions redundant, as the number of total employees has gone down from 1,000 to 700 over the past two years, the BBC said. Wages were cut by £51.5 million to £313.2 million. The club has argued that this would free up funds to invest in the underperforming playing squad as well as comply with the financial rules of the Premier League and European football’s governing body UEFA.

The club believes it will post a turnover of between £640m and £660m in the year ending June 2026.

“As we start to feel the benefits of our cost reduction programme, there is significant potential for improved financial performance, which will, in turn, support our overriding priority: success on the pitch,” said Berrada.

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