£800m in, £800m out – Why Man City scandal shines light on Man Utd finances

The Premier League panel’s report laid it out in black and white.

“The club’s income was hugely overstated by over £830 million.”

In other words, Manchester City’s owners circumvented the league’s financial regulations over a number of years by pumping money into the club that should not have been recorded as sponsorship income.

The damning judgement landed less than five days after Manchester United’s extended filing to the New York Stock Exchange, which detailed their end-of-year accounts to 30 June 2026.

Contained within it was an interest payment of £37m, an increase from £34m the previous year.

And respected football finance blogger Swiss Ramble now estimates that United’s net interest payments since the leveraged Glazer takeover of the club in 2005 have risen to a total of £852m.

Without excusing City’s owners in any way, it has not escaped the attention of many fans from both Manchester clubs that while the arrival of one ownership group in the city resulted in money being ploughed in, it meant a similar significant sum being paid out in interest for the other.

Maintaining financial discipline

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Image caption: Carlos Baleba is yet to make his first team debut for Manchester United

United’s latest accounts included this comment from chief executive Omar Berrada: “While these results confirm that we are on the right trajectory, we will continue to take a disciplined approach to ensure our finances remain sustainable.”

This came after a third-place finish in the Premier League, which confirmed a return to the Champions League after a two-year absence.

Record revenues of £677.6m, projected to go as high as £760m in 2026-27, are something to celebrate.

Yet Berrada’s cautious stance underlined a few home truths.

In confirming they had spent £191.7m on new players- notably Carlos Baleba, Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans- and costs associated with them, plus academy players such as England youth international Tynan Thompson, since 30 June, with payments due ‘in the next five years’. United also revealed they had borrowed an additional £90m. It took their overall debt to £1.15bn.

To put that into context, in accounts to June 2021, the comparable sum was £667m.

Prior to 30 June, United’s transfer debt was £375m. Of that, £218m must be paid before 30 June 2027. United have also said in addition to Baleba, Santos and Tielemans, they are liable for another £122.8m in potential contract payments if players they have already signed hit pre-agreed targets – although presumably the club would be happy if they ended up paying this.

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Image caption: Radek Vitek’s move to Middlesbrough could eventually net Manchester United £14m

When they restructured their debt in June, United added $125m (£94.36m) to their main debt. On 23 September, they said £63.5m had been spent on land for their proposed new stadium, the precise funding model for which is still to be determined.

Many fans, particularly those who do not want a new stadium, feel that money would have been better invested in Michael Carrick’s squad.

Yet, as Berrada said, United are taking a ‘disciplined approach’ on that.

In 2025, United had the fifth-highest wage bill in the Premier League, at £313m. The absence of European football means that sum dropped to £302m in 2025-26. No other clubs have released their figures yet, but it would be a major surprise if United climbed any higher, meaning Carrick over-achieved by finishing third. United’s wages to turnover ratio is 45%. No club had a better figure than that last season.

While there are variables and also notable exceptions, including the Old Trafford outfit themselves who over the past decade, have topped the annual salary cost table but not the actual Premier League, and in 2024-25 finished 15th despite those fifth highest wage costs, there is a general correlation between salaries and performance.

Yet, while United were relatively restrained on the transfer front in terms of spending this summer – their £148m outlay was below that of newly-promoted Ipswich and Hull among others – their recent net spend has been high. The reason for this is clear.

When the most recent transfer window closed on 1 September, they had generated £47m from sales. It put them 11th in the Premier League. Only Liverpool of their ‘big six’ rivals brought in less.

Since they sold striker Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan for £74m in 2019, United have only generated more than £25m for a player on four occasions – for Mason Greenwood, Scott McTominay, Rasmus Hojlund and Alejandro Garnacho.

It was instructive this summer that a series of young players were sold, either for a lower fee than anticipated in the cases of Radek Vitek and Toby Collyer, who joined Middlesbrough and West Brom respectively, or none, like defenders Tyler Fredricson and James Overy. In all cases though, the transfers included significant sell-on and buy-back clauses, which is part of a strategy by United to generate more revenue from player sales.

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Image caption: Manchester United fans held their latest protest against the club’s ownership before the home defeat by Manchester City on 13 September

In June 2023, Premier League clubs voted to cap future leveraged buyouts at around 65% of a club’s value. The move seemed to be in response to ALK Capital’s takeover of Burnley in December 2020.

Many United fans feel the move was 18 years too late.

The negativity around Manchester City’s scandal has indirectly shone a light on the situation at Old Trafford.

Given there is little realistic chance of the substantive debt being paid off, Berrada and his colleagues must navigate the tricky balance of keeping costs under control, trimming the outstanding transfer fees, not extending the revolving credit limit and funding a new stadium – all while spending enough to deliver on the pitch.

In 2017-18, United made £80m in prize money from their run to the Champions League quarter-finals. In 2024-25, they got £31m for reaching the Europa League final. In their recently negotiated shirt deal with Adidas, a £10m annual reduction is applied if the club miss out on reaching the Champions League.

When Carrick sends his team out against bottom-club Tottenham at Old Trafford on 10 October, they will be attempting to drag themselves up from 12th place in the table.

The overall target is undefined, but it is pretty clear Champions League qualification will be a significant part of it.