Kieran Maguire: Man United in line for stunning £110m windfall
Ed Woodward deserves praise for successfully steering “cunning” Manchester United through the pandemic — and they are in line for a £110million boost when fans return.
That is according to finance guru and new Football Insider columnist Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively as United ready the release of their second quarterly report of the 2021 financial year.
In their first-quarter report, released in early November, Woodward was optimistic that the end was in sight for United in difficult economic times.
He wrote: “While the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause significant disruption, we are optimistic that the recovery and normalisation phase is gradually coming into view.”
Maguire thinks that United’s diverse revenue streams have ensured they are able to successfully navigate the economic downturn, and that’s thanks to Woodward.
“I think Manchester United’s status is as good as you could have hoped for,” he told Football Insider correspondent Adam Williams.
“While Ed Woodward has been teased to a certain extent about the way the commercial department can dictate things on the football side, the ability of the club to utilise their global fanbase and sign up sponsors all over the glove really is cunning.
“You’ve got your three tiers of income: matchday, broadcasting and commercial. Manchester United year after year knock it out of the park in terms of commercial income and that’s what I think he’s talking about in his statement.”
“They’ve now got a sleeve sponsor deal, they’ve done work with Chevrolet to extend the front of shirt sponsorship for six months to assist the commercial partner there. They’ve supported their partners and their partners have supported them.”
“They are looking towards the return of supporters to Old Trafford which is worth up to £110m a year for them.
“While Covid has hit them in terms of numbers, they do have the insurance policy of not being wholely reliant on TV income.”
On the pitch, Manchester United are enjoying a relatively successful season so far.
They are currently in 2nd place in the Premier League, trailing Manchester City by five points.
In other news, a top pundit has said questions need to be asked of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after Jesse Lingard’s lightning start to his West Ham career.