True cost of Manchester United redundancies revealed as revenue drops

The first quarter figures illustrate the impact of no Champions League football and cost-cutting measures under Ineos, though the financial impact of sacking Erik ten Hag and replacing him with Ruben Amorim is not included

Manchester United spent £8.6m restructuring and paying off the 250 members of staff who were sacked as Sir Jim Ratcliffe culled the number of employees at Old Trafford.

The costs – described in their first-quarter accounts as “restructuring of the group’s operations, including a redundancy scheme” – contributed to United making a £6.9m operating loss for the first three months of the financial year, though the club had a net profit of £1.4m.

United’s revenue was down £14m on the equivalent period last year, though the wage bill was also £10m lower.

Both reflect the fact United are playing in the Europa League this season, rather than the more lucrative Champions League, as they count the cost of their underachievement in the Premier League under Erik ten Hag last season.

United’s broadcast revenue dropped 20.4 percent to £31.3m for the three-month period, while their commercial revenue was also down 5.6 percent, or £5.1m.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has cut costs at Manchester United under Ineos (PA Wire)

The cost of sacking Ten Hag and his backroom staff will appear in United’s second-quarter results, covering the last three months of 2024, along with compensation fee paid to Sporting CP to take new head coach Ruben Amorim.

United’s debt remains at $650m (£481m) while their borrowing with a revolving credit facility stands at £232m, meaning they owe more than £700m. They believe their revenue for the financial year will be between £650m and £670m.