Man Utd Chief Ignores Unwanted Record Set By Latest Financial Accounts

Manchester United have been implementing cost-cutting measures since 2024.

The club is confident that streamlining is working. / Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar/Getty Images

Manchester United chief executive Omar Berrada has hailed a “robust” set of financial results for the first three months of 2025–26, even though the latest accounts have shown the club’s net debt to spiral past $1 billion (£749 million) for the first time ever after an extravagant summer transfer window.

United splashed more than £200 million in the off-season, rejuvenating Ruben Amorim’s frontline with the likes of Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Šeško.

In order to finance the instalments required for these transfers—as well as the outstanding payments owed for other deals—United borrowed £105 million. When coupled with the historic debt the club have been building throughout the Glazers’ ownership and further borrowings, the Red Devils boast a net debt of £749 million.

FREE NEWSLETTER. New SI FC Newsletter Global Embed. Sign Up to Get Informed With SI FC. dark

Berrada ignored this historic low watermark to instead focus on the positives he could take from the short-term results in Q1.

With the official start date of the campaign on July 1, revenue for the three months ending Sept. 30, 2025 came in at £140.3 million ($187.9 million).

That was a slight drop on £143.1 million made over the same period in 2024–25, with each strand—commercial, broadcasting, matchday—dropping between 1.1–4.5%. The single biggest reduction (4.5%) was in broadcasting, explained by the absence of European football this season.

United posted a £13 million operating profit, but a £6.6 million net loss. Over the same period a year prior, the club had made an operating loss, so this marks an improvement.

---

Man Utd Revenue: 2025–26 Quarter 1

Bryan Mbeumo arrived from Brentford for a guaranteed £65 million. / James Gill/Danehouse/Getty Images

Category	2024–25	2025–26	Change
Commercial	£85.3 million	£84.2 million	-1.3%
Broadcasting	£31.3 million	£29.9 million	-4.5%
Matchday	£26.5 million	£26.2 million	-1.1%
Total	£143.1 million	£140.3 million	-2%

---

“These robust financial results reflect the resilience of Manchester United as we make strong progress in our transformation of the club,” Berrada said.

“The difficult decisions we have made in the past year have resulted in a sustainably lower cost base and a more streamlined, effective organisation equipped to drive the club towards improved sporting and commercial performance over the long-term.

“That has helped us to invest in our men’s and women’s teams, sitting in sixth and third places in the Premier League and Women’s Super League respectively.”

---

How Much Money Have Man Utd Saved Through Staff Redundancies?

(L-R) Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Omar Berrada, Jason Wilcox are overseeing Man Utd’s attempt to restore past glory days. / Catherine Ivill/AMA/Getty Images

The “difficult decisions” Berrada referenced are linked to cost-cutting measures that have been applied since co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe took control of sporting matters and day-to-day operations.

A first wave of redundancies in 2024 saw around 250 employees lose their jobs, before a second round took place earlier this year. Up to 200 staff were expected to be let go then, meaning that the club’s overall workforce had fallen by almost 40% from over 1,100 since Ratcliffe’s partial takeover.

Comparing the first quarter of 2025–26 to 2024–25, United have managed to cut operating costs by £13.2 million for the three-month period. Half of that amount—£6.6 million—has come from the further cuts to staffing, a drop of almost 10% in employee benefit expenses “primarily due to the impact of headcount reduction programs implemented in the prior year.”

---

READ THE LATEST MAN UTD NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MORE

feed