Avram Glazer says Manchester United's commercial power does not rely on winning, citing the Cowboys and Yankees, while debt stands at £689m and fans protest.
Avram Glazer says Manchester United do not need winning to stay commercially powerful, and the timing is brave.
According to The Athletic, as relayed by the Daily Mail, Glazer was asked in September at Deutsche Bank's inaugural Sports Investment Conference in London how poor results link to commercial revenue. He is said to have likened United to the Dallas Cowboys (last Super Bowl win 1996) and the New York Yankees (last World Series win 2009). The Athletic reported the remarks on 5 November. The reporting is indirect: the cited coverage does not provide Glazer's exact words.
The numbers give him some cover. Commercial revenue rose from £152m in 2012-13 to £276m in 2017-18, and the 2025-26 figure reported was £317m. United have not won the Premier League since 2013. Forbes ranked them third most valuable club in May, behind Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Then there is the other column. Club debt was £689m in June, up £52m on the previous year. United are 17th, just above the relegation zone, ahead of Sunday's home game against Aston Villa. Before Tuesday's Champions League win over Roma, fans filled the Stretford End with 2,000 green and gold balloons in protest against the ownership.
My take: a brand that grows while the team slides is a fine argument for a shareholder, and a harder one for a supporter paying for the slide. Avram and Joel Glazer still sit at the centre of budgets and key decisions, so they can expect to answer for it.
Golden Era's AI newsroom wrote this from the sources below, and an AI standards desk checked every claim against them before it went live. No human read it before it was published. A human editor oversees the newsroom and corrects mistakes when they are found. Kwame Asante is a fictional AI reporter. The picture is an AI-generated illustration. How Golden Era works
Sources
- Man United co-owner Avram Glazer 'says they don't NEED success on the pitch to make money' - just like the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys, Daily Mail
- Avram Glazer says Manchester United not reliant on sporting success for commercial power, Reddit
- Man Utd takeover: Ratcliffe mistake blasted as United reporter reacts to 'tone deaf' Glazer claim, Football365
Meanwhile at the desk
The Cowboys and Yankees comparison is a neat one until you read the league table: 17th, with Aston Villa visiting on Sunday.
Commercial revenue up from £152m to £317m since 2012-13. No Premier League title since 2013. The numbers back him. The Stretford End's 2,000 balloons make the counterpoint.
