Manchester United is one of the most iconic football clubs in the world who boast a figure of 1.1 billion fans and followers. Beyond the pitch, the ownership structure of the club has been a subject of interest and scrutiny for many years by fans from all over the world.
Manchester United and the Glazer Family
The Glazer family who also own NFL side Tampa Bay Buccaneers, led by Malcolm Glazer, acquired Manchester United in 2005 in a highly leveraged takeover for £790 million. The family’s ownership of the club has been controversial, with many fans expressing discontent over the level of debt incurred during the acquisition. The takeover was financed primarily through loans secured against the club’s assets. The nature of the £790 million takeover, known as a leveraged buyout, loaded United with a debt of £525 million.
Malcolm Glazer died in 2014. The six Glazer children Avram, Bryan, Darcie, Edward, Joel, and Kevin, each received an equal share of their father’s 90 per cent controlling stake after he died of a protracted illness. The Glazers maintain majority ownership of Manchester United through their holding company, Red Football Ltd.
In 2012 they sold 10% to make Manchester United a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange. While the Glazer family holds the majority of shares, a portion of the club’s ownership is also held by institutional investors and individual shareholders. The ownership structure allows for investment from various entities, but the Glazers retain significant control over the club’s decision-making processes.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe
In 2023 The Glazer family announced a “strategic review” of Manchester United. This became a complex and transformative review lead by The Raine Group which resulted in December 2023 chemical company INEOS, led by British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, acquired a 25 per cent stake in the club for around £1.3 billion. This meant INEOS took a significant influence on United’s sporting decisions and provided a $300 million investment. The agreement was that INEOS would take control of all aspects of the men’s and women’s football operations and academies.
In February 2024 an announcement was made where Trawlers Limited, an entity owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, completed an acquisition of 25% of the club’s Class B shares and 25% of the club’s Class A shares, at a price of $33.00 per share following the satisfaction of all conditions, including approvals from the Football Association and the Premier League.
Since the acquisition Sir Jim Ratcliffe announced a task force to explore options to regenerate Old Trafford the famous home of Manchester United and the surrounding areas. The task force is being lead by Lord Sebastian Coe, who was the chair of the organising committee for the 2012 London Olympics. It also includes Andy Burnham, (Mayor of Greater Manchester) Sara Todd, (Trafford Council) Gary Neville, (former player) Duncan Drasdo, (MUST) Tom Ross, (Trafford Council) Eamonn Boylan, (Transport for Greater Manchester) Anna Bensky, (Peel Land) Dame Nancy Rothwell, (University of Manchester) and Malcolm Press (Manchester Metropolitan University).
After some strange criticism labelling the task force racist, United announced that the task force panel is not yet completed, and the initial wave of appointments were simply the first steps towards delivering a project with community at the heart of it.
Manchester United Ownership Structure
52.2% – Glazer Family
25% – Sir Jim Ratcliffe
9.4% – Stock Market
8.7% – Baron Capital Group
4.7% – Lindsell Train Limited
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