A Yank’s Take on Glazer’s Dynasty of Debt
Forbes Magazine has estimated the worth of the Manchester United to be about £1.8 billion, the most valuable Football Club in the world for a consecutive 6th year.
So how could a club so wealthy and so famous possibly be facing any financial strain?
Financial analyst Andy Green has been researching the perceived increasingly grim pecuniary situation at Old Trafford for a BBC Panorama expose set to broadcast Tuesday night and estimates the Glazer’s debt now totals upwards of £1.1 billion (700 million of which are tied to Manchester United).
According to Green, “They (the Glazers) borrowed more money at inflated valuations right at the top of the cycle. These are people who tell us not to worry about Manchester United debt because they are great businessmen. In their core business in the US they got it absolutely wrong. At the time when they had to present a huge amount of cash over here in the UK they borrowed a huge amount of extra money in the US and publicly they didn’t buy anything else that year.”
I slept through my finance course at university but a little bit of research into the subject has helped provide a bit of clarity:
FilterKaapi, 
Demon, 
elvido, and 1 other are discussing. 
FilterKaapi 16:56 on June 7, 2010 Permalink |
Much as we hate ‘em yanks and want ‘em out, they’ve become a necessary evil right now. There were murmurs of a far East consortium but I’d rather trust the known devil rather than the unknown angel. The Red Knights have almost always looked like paper dummies. Lots of talk but not much action. The green and gold campaign, though noble, has hardly made a dent on the ownership issue and although I support it to the hilt, I dont think it is going to get us anywhere. Maybe a middle East consortium will come into the picture but then what will the difference be between us and the Sheik boys uptown? The Glazer’s plans, however bleak it looks in the near future, will almost definitely ensure that, if all goes to plan, United will be debt free by 2017. I know that it’s a long way off to even look at 2017 and there are a lot of things that could go spectacularly wrong between now and then but quite realistically, there is not much hope other than ‘wait and hope’
Cheers
RFR 11:11 on June 8, 2010 Permalink |
Just to point out something:
The PIKs are currently 14.25% not 14.25%-16.25%. They are going to jump to 16.25% in August. Why? Because the Glazers failed to make required payments and meet certain targets and so the interest rate is going up.
This is important, because if the Glazers were brilliant at what they’re doing why would they let this happen? And by all accounts they tried to get in enough money in time, even asking AON for 45% of their 4-year 80mil sponsorship upfront.
But they failed, so they’re obviously not as capable as they would like us to believe.
Boycott them. They need to be pressured to sell their only cash cow!
elvido 12:55 on June 8, 2010 Permalink |
@FilterKaapi, I agree completely, the absence of any optimal solutions for the club means that the Glazers are our safest option right now. Have they made a killing with the way the loan was structured? Most definitely! But until it affects our position in the Domestic and European leagues, there is no point bleating about it. And FilterKaapi (Lol), would be S.Indian?
FilterKaapi 16:14 on June 22, 2010 Permalink |
Yes
very much … very very late reply but .. 
Demon 13:59 on June 11, 2010 Permalink |
what a fucking disgrace, makes me feel sick reading all this. how can a family be so sickeningly oblivious to how many peoples livelihoods this could ruin.