Glazernomics strike again: Man Utd’s debt makes alarming jump

26 Sept 2022 11:51 BST
3 min read

Manchester United’s debt has seen an alarming jump following the collapse of the pound.

The UK’s currency it a record low against the dollar on 26 September – and that spells bad news for the Old Trafford side, whose debt is tied into American banks.

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As explained by football finance expert Kieran Maguire on Twitter, Man Utd’s accounts on Friday showed that they have borrowed $650 million from US sources. The accounts show a figure of £530m based on the exchange rate on 30 June, but its collapse now means that this figure has inflated to a staggering £612m – a rise of close to 15%.

The implications are clearly significant for the Premier League giants. It means that any interest payments they had budgeted will also have taken a significant jump, which is a problem in the long term. It also means that it will be more difficult to borrow in future, and any loans they do get are likely to be at less favourable prices.

The net result of this is that the feeling of anger that fans have shown towards the owners is only likely to intensify.

Perhaps the only silver lining for Man Utd and their Premier League rivals is that the cause of this shock is not just from the recent announcement to scrap the top rate of tax in the UK but also because investors worldwide have been spooked, causing a downturn in several major currencies. In these circumstances, the dollar is seen as a ‘safe’ bet and hence investors put their money there causing falls in value elsewhere.

Among the currencies to suffer has been the euro, albeit not as significantly as the pound. The Premier League’s main competitors, such as Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and PSG, are all in this zone. This is significant because if the euro had remained stable, it would give these clubs a slightly better footing to compete with the Premier League giants.

With the pound forecast to fall further with respect to the dollar, though, Man Utd’s debt can be expected to take another big hit in the weeks and months ahead.

Read more about: Premier League, Man Utd