How the Glazers bought Manchester United and why they need to be removed
A deep dive into the history of Manchester United's owners and why they need to be removed.
Manchester United have been a club to be reckoned with, dominating The Premier League, Champions League and domestic cups in England.
Despite the numerous trophies the English giants have won, the past eight years for the club have been difficult, seeing top managers unable to win The Premier League.
Here are my reasons why the club should change its ownership.
Ownership
United was purchased by the American family the Glazers in 2005. Before the American family’s takeover, the club had no debt. Malcolm Glazer bought the club for £790m in a highly leveraged deal and loaded £500m debt onto the organisation.1
This was done by using a leverage buyout scheme to finance a large portion of the deal rather than using his funds. This entails burrowing funds against a future asset to purchase an item, in this instance interest payments of more than £60m annually.
Since their late father's stroke in April 2006, Joel and Avram have been in charge of overseeing the day-to-day operations of the club. While the other siblings each received an equal share of their father’s 90 per cent controlling stake after he died.2
Read more:
Potential buyers
In November 2022, the family shared their intentions to sell the club. Details around the sale have been murky, with multiple news outlets reporting a variety of different situations.
The two potential buyers for the club have been Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Ratcliffe, who is the CEO of the chemical company INEOS, made an offer to the six Glazer siblings to become a majority shareholder of the company. Sheikh Jassim, on the other hand, has made a series of bids for the club that culminated in the lodging of a fifth and final offer in June of no more than £6bn.3
However, some United fans believe the deal may not happen. According to the Mail on Sunday, the family had intentions of taking the club off the market. Planning to return it later in 2025 and get a fee of around £7bn-£10bn.4
Conclusion
The current situation at the club seems bleak. Criticism raised about the club’s training facilities and lack of transfers has been a common theme for the Red Devils. This season in The Premier League the club was unable to sign recent loanee Sofyan Amrabat from Italian side Fiorentina on a permanent deal.
I don’t believe just injecting large amounts of cash will help the club, as seen with Chelsea Football Club. Chelsea’s new owner Todd Boehly has spent $1.03bn on the team, and the Blues currently in The Premier League sit 14th in the league.5
United needs restructuring and an injection of cash to get rid of the debt. The current owners don’t want to spend their money on the team, so in my opinion, a sale is the best option for United’s future.
Stay in the game! Don’t miss out on the latest soccer news, insights, and updates. Subscribe to our newsletter today!
Who are the Glazer family and what is their net worth? Manchester United Shares Suffer Worst Day - https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/glazer-family-owners-manchester-united-net-worth-b1059986.html
Ibid 1
Sir Jim Ratcliffe restructures bid to buy Manchester United after concerns - https://www.theguardian.com/football/2023/sep/26/sir-jim-ratcliffe-to-restructure-his-bid-to-buy-manchester-united-after-concerns
Ibid 1
Updated list of Chelsea transfers under Todd Boehly: How much money new owners spent on new players since taking over the club - https://www.sportingnews.com/au/football/news/chelsea-transfers-todd-boehly-money-spent-new-players/ndkj2kmboyx76p2uobsqlsf1#:~:text=While%20the%20exact%20amount%20Boehly,%C2%A31.75%20billion%20initially%20committed.