Though he owns just a quarter of the club, the Ineos<\/a> CEO has become Man United\u2019s all-seeing eye and is hell-bent on rebuilding it from the ground up.<\/p>\n So far, that has meant wholesale changes to personnel across the business and sporting department, an uber-ambitious plan to build Europe\u2019s biggest stadium<\/a>, and an aggressive approach to recruitment.<\/p>\n Though his \u00a31.25bn deal to invest in United<\/a> almost certainly included a non-disparagement clause, Ratcliffe hasn\u2019t exactly been diplomatic in his assessment of the mess the Glazers<\/a> have left for him to clean up. <\/p>\n Talk of United going \u201cbust by Christmas\u201d without external investment from the 72-year-old has been roundly dismissed by football finance<\/a> experts, but it was emblematic of the malaise that had set in at M16.<\/p>\n Man United aren\u2019t a revenue superpower without European football<\/p>\n United\u2019s profligate spending in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill era has been one of the causes of the demise which hit a nadir last season, when Ruben Amorim\u2019s side finished 17th in the Premier League and, thanks to defeat in the Europa League final, failed to deliver European football for only the second time in 35 years.<\/p>\n But the fact that United have had that much cash to burn in the first place is thanks to their brand, which until recently delivered outsized commercial income<\/a> each and every season.<\/p>\n Credit: Adam Williams\/United in Focus\/GRV Media<\/p>\n In the 20 years of the Deloitte Football Money League, which has ranked European clubs by annual revenue since 1997, United claimed top spot 10 times and fell out of the top three on just two occasions.<\/p>\n They have been between 4th and 5th since 2020 and, when the 2024-25 list is released, could fall as low as 10th, surpassed by Liverpool, Arsenal, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich. With no European revenue whatsoever in 2025-26, they will drop out of the top 10 altogether.<\/p>\n 1996\u201397 \u2013 1st2006\u201307 \u2013 2nd2016\u201317 \u2013 1st1997\u201398 \u2013 1st2007\u201308 \u2013 2nd2017\u201318 \u2013 3rd1998\u201399 \u2013 1st2008\u201309 \u2013 3rd2018\u201319 \u2013 3rd1999\u201300 \u2013 1st2009\u201310 \u2013 3rd2019\u201320 \u2013 4th2000\u201301 \u2013 1st2010\u201311 \u2013 3rd2020\u201321 \u2013 5th2001\u201302 \u2013 1st2011\u201312 \u2013 3rd2021\u201322 \u2013 4th2002\u201303 \u2013 1st2012\u201313 \u2013 4th2022\u201323 \u2013 5th2003\u201304 \u2013 1st2013\u201314 \u2013 2nd2023\u201324 \u2013 4th2004\u201305 \u2013 2nd2014\u201315 \u2013 3rd2005\u201306 \u2013 4th2015\u201316 \u2013 1stManchester United position in Deloitte Football Money League over the years<\/p>\n Historically, the United brand would have insulated them against peaks and troughs in performances on the pitch from season to season. But, as football finance academic Kieran Maguire tells UIF: \u201cThey can\u2019t rely on the brand forever.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a competitive market and if their growth is modest. Real Madrid and Liverpool\u2019s is far faster. Without an upturn on the pitch, that gap will grow at an unmanageable rate.<\/p>\n \u201cUltimately, brands want to be associated with success, and that success is seen at the elite level \u2013 the big trophies, the Premier League and the Champions League. The Carabao Cup or Europa League don\u2019t wash as far as the premium brands and the global partners are concerned.<\/p>\n \u201cThe stickiness of the brand \u2013 i.e., how loyal fans are \u2013 is greater than any other industry. Think about in other industries. Blackberry were going to take over the world, then the iPhone destroyed them. That can\u2019t happen to Manchester United because, as a legacy fan, you sign a lifelong contract. That said, some of the new generation of fans are more transient.\u201d<\/p>\n Exclusive: Manchester United valued at \u00a33.2bn in new analysis as brand value falls \u00a3172m<\/p>\n Sir Jim Ratcliffe\u2019s deal to buy into Man United valued the club at around \u00a34bn<\/a>, significantly lower than the \u00a36bn the Glazers reportedly wanted for a full sale.<\/p>\n Now, however, new analysis from the leading brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance suggests United\u2019s enterprise value is actually closer to \u20ac3.7bn (\u00a33.2bn).<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the club\u2019s brand value \u2013 which Brand Finance defines as the price a club is likely to receive if they licensed their brand on the open market \u2013 has fallen by approximately \u00a3172m to around \u00a31.2bn from last year.<\/p>\n \u201cSporting performance definitely has an effect,\u201d says Hugo Hensley, Brand Finance\u2019s Head of Sports Services, said in exclusive conversation with UIF.<\/p>\n Credit: Brand Finance<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re not Real Madrid. They used to challenge right at the top of our ranking for that top spot, and they were unequivocally the global club brand. That\u2019s not the case anymore, but our research still shows them incredibly strong \u2013 the strongest brand in the UK.\u201d<\/p>\n While the overall value of the club\u2019s brand fell, their \u2018brand strength\u2019 \u2013 i.e., their resilience \u2013 received a score of 93.2 and an AAA+ rating. Only Barcelona and Real Madrid could boast higher scores.<\/p>\n \u201cThey perform very well when benchmarked against competition, both domestically and internationally,\u201d explains Hensley.<\/p>\n \u201cWe collect data about thousands of clubs and look at how they\u2019re perceived and followed. Manchester United seems to prevail no matter what.<\/p>\n Credit: Brand Finance<\/p>\n \u201cBy their standards of coming first or second every season, their recent record on the pitch has damaged them. But they\u2019re still an amazing commercial machine, one of the first properly sophisticated organised football brands.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ve still got a blue-chip technology front-of-shirt partner. That reflects that they\u2019re actually still a very strong brand. They can continue to ride on that heritage. Whereas it\u2019s not as forgiving the other way. You can get to a Champions League final like, say, Spurs have, but it doesn\u2019t cement in the same way.\u201d<\/p>\n New stadium can \u2018build a moat\u2019 around Manchester United\u2019s brand<\/p>\n Among a dizzying array of metrics, Brand Finance\u2019s research looks at physical infrastructure \u2013 the stadium, the training ground etc \u2013 as part of its appraisal of a club\u2019s brand value.<\/p>\n With Manchester United having announced plans for a 100,000-seater stadium to replace Old Trafford, how might that affect the club\u2019s commercial pulling power?<\/p>\n \u201cIt insulates and builds a moat for the club,\u201d says Hensley.<\/p>\n \u201cIt shows they\u2019re still progressing, still ambitious, still have that desire to always be at the top. It also secures revenue streams and maintains Manchester as a destination sporting location. It continues to bring revenue and excitement, new fans, old fans back to the city to drive strong positive engagement.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve seen how an amazing flagship stadium like the Allianz in Munich gets attention just because it\u2019s flashy and different. That\u2019s what they\u2019ve said they have to go for to remain at that very top part.<\/p>\n Credit: Adam Williams\/United in Focus\/GRV Media<\/p>\n \u201cBut in terms of maintaining the idea of a great brand, Manchester United still scores top 10 out of 10 for a club that has a great stadium in our research.\u201d<\/p>\n The value of United\u2019s stadium naming rights<\/p>\n Naming rights deals \u2013 like those in place at Manchester City\u2019s Etihad Stadium or Arsenal\u2019s agreement with Etihad \u2013 are a growing revenue stream for commercially-minded clubs.<\/p>\n The idea of naming rights for Old Trafford has been mooted on several occasions, while a branding agreement for \u2018New Trafford\u2019 could be extraordinarily lucrative, according to Hensley.<\/p>\n \u201cTheir benchmarks for stadium naming rights look more like NFL or NBA naming rights where the big ticket is the stadium, as opposed to front-of-shirt. I\u2019d expect if they\u2019re setting a number, it\u2019ll look like that \u00a340-50m, potentially more.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere are two ways clubs have approached it. The Everton approach: get a name on there that won\u2019t upset fans and bring a negative tinge to an exciting new stadium. Then, show a financial return, amazing exposure, positive activation with the partner and bring in more money or a larger partner next time. In this example, the first deal becomes an investment in showing off what the stadium naming asset can do.<\/p>\n The other option is Spurs, who said \u2018we\u2019re going to hold out for a really top partner.\u2019 I expect United will take the latter approach, but I expect they\u2019ll find it easier to get that partner.<\/p>\n The equation relies on what you think it\u2019s worth when that bigger partner comes in. Do you wait three years and miss out on \u00a320m-a-season because you want \u00a350m? The showing-off approach \u2013 getting proof points, exposure, activations would be more powerful.<\/p>\n In 2017, United\u2019s commercial revenue stood at \u00a3276m. In the last full published financial year, it was \u00a3303m. A huge number in isolation but one represents barely two per cent growth year-on-year, which has been far outstripped by United\u2019s peer group.<\/p>\n One of the historic narratives around United\u2019s supposed commercial inertia was that they have placed too great an emphasis on the number of deals they strike, as opposed to quality, long-term deals.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019re a commercial director, you\u2019re being pulled in different directions,\u201d when asked whether United are now approaching their sponsorship portfolio differently, having struck a 10-year extension with Adidas<\/a> in 2023 and committed themselves to front-of-shirt partner Snapdragon until 2028-29.<\/p>\n \u201cYou need revenue now, get the best deal. But brand teams say it should align. Clubs like Man United, Liverpool, Arsenal are in a luxury position with very strong brands and huge exposure.<\/p>\n In short-term partnerships, it\u2019s more of an exposure play \u2013 media value equivalency and advertising value of reaching eyeballs. In longer-term sponsorship, you see attributes really start to be imparted. Is this brand ambitious? Innovative? Global? Community engaged?<\/p>\n That\u2019s what a top club with a very strong brand can impart to a partner with a longer-term partnership versus exposure-focused sponsorship.\u201d<\/p>\n Training kit and Carrington sponsorship<\/p>\n United have two notable vacancies in the sponsorship stable at present: training kit and training ground naming rights. Previously, United were partnered with Tezos in a \u00a320m-a-year deal, while Carrington \u2013 which has newly reopened<\/a> following a \u00a350m refurb \u2013 has gone unbranded since Aon\u2019s deal ended in 2020.<\/p>\n \u201cThe training kit sponsor is now a second-tier partnership for many clubs,\u201d says Hensley.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s got huge exposure, but it\u2019s very personal \u2013 you get behind the scenes, watch the team hang out in the facility, pitch-side interviews. That complex engagement comes from feeling close to personalities.\u201d<\/p>\n This week, reports have suggested that United CEO Omar Berrada recently told staff that the club had secured \u00a370m worth of sponsorship deals in the last few months.<\/p>\n Technology and new revenue opportunities for Man United<\/p>\n In conversations about the next big revenue panacea for clubs like United, the subject of technology is invariably raised by industry experts. <\/p>\n Some evangelise about immersive or share reality platforms that could bring United close to its sprawling global audience, while others suggest that a direct-to-consumer streaming service \u2013 sometimes hypothetically referred to as \u2018Premflix\u2019 \u2013 could be the breakthrough that allows clubs to finally ensure that income outstrips costs from season to season.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s maintaining engagement is the key thing and being able to sell that engagement to sponsors,\u201d Hensley tells UIF.<\/p>\n \u201cThese new technologies and experiences get people in and keep them in. Something spectacular that makes someone go: \u2018I\u2019m a Man United fan now, and I\u2019m going to seek them out.\u2019<\/p>\n A new matchday experience is coming to Old Trafford, with our very first Pop-Up Pub! \ud83c\udfdf\ufe0f\ud83d\udd34<\/p>\n![\"Jim](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-2216873118-1-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Nicol\u00f2 Campo\/LightRocket via Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Chart](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Man-United-commercial-income-vs-Big-Six-graph.png\")
Man United commercial income vs Big Six graph<\/p>\n![\"Graphic](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1755375609_61_Brand-finance-graphic-2-1024x1024.png\")
Manchester United brand value<\/p>\n![\"Graphic](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1755375610_281_Brand-Finance-graphic-1024x1024.png\")
Manchester United brand strength<\/p>\n![\"Chart](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Man-United-stadium-capacity-and-matchday-income.png\")
Man United stadium capacity and matchday income<\/p>\n![\"Manchester](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-2228494836-1024x682.jpg\")
Photo by Daniel Chesterton\/Offside\/Offside via Getty Images<\/p>\n
![\"Joel](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-111928419-1024x703.jpg\")
Photo by Michael Regan\/Getty Images<\/p>\n