Ratcliffe said that Manchester United is in dire financial status.
Image credit: Frank (fan)
Jim Ratcliffe, co-owner of Manchester United and founder of Ineos, has opened up about the club’s dire financial state, describing it as having “gone off the rails.”
Speaking to The Times, Ratcliffe highlighted the club’s financial mismanagement, which has led to mass redundancies, increased ticket prices, and fan protests.
“If you think about Manchester United as a business, it’s gone off the rails. It’s gone off the rails a long way, really,” he admitted. “If you look at the numbers, the numbers were fairly scary, really. Because they’d sort of lost control, I think, of where the ship was headed. And the costs had got out of control.”
“If you think of it in really simple terms, you’ve got the operating costs, which are all the staff and the fixed costs of running the business. And then you’ve got all the squad costs, player salaries and player purchases.
“In super-simple terms, the club has been spending more money than it’s been earning now for the last seven years, and it ends in a very difficult place.
“And for Manchester United, that place ended at the end of this year, the end of 2025, with the club running out of cash.”
Despite injecting £300 million into the club, Ratcliffe confirmed that “there’s no money left.”
United’s financial woes come at a time when the team is struggling on the pitch, sitting 14th in the Premier League table with just nine wins.
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A Difficult Rebuilding Phase
With United’s last league title dating back to 2012/13 under Sir Alex Ferguson, the club is undergoing a major transition.
Ratcliffe remains committed to “Mission 21”—winning a 21st league title—but acknowledges that drastic changes are necessary.
One such change was removing Ferguson from his consultancy role to save £2 million a year.
“He came back three days later, after talking to his son, and said: ‘Fine, I’m going to step away from it. My decision,’” Ratcliffe revealed, praising Ferguson for putting the club first.
In addition to financial restructuring, United faces substantial transfer obligations.
“This summer we will ‘buy’ Antony, [Jadon] Sancho, Casemiro, [Lisandro] Martinez, [Rasmus] Hojlund and [Andre] Onana, and they’re all about £17 million each,” Ratcliffe stated, referring to outstanding payments for past transfers.
Backing Ruben Amorim Despite Challenges
Amid the club’s struggles, Ruben Amorim has been tasked with turning things around after replacing Erik ten Hag mid-season.
Despite the team’s inconsistency, Ratcliffe believes Amorim is the right man for the job.
“I think he’s done a great job in the circumstances, frankly, with the squad that he’s had available… Everybody expects miracles overnight,” he said.
He also pointed out the difficulties Amorim has faced, with several key players injured or unavailable.
“If you look at the top eight players in terms of salaries in Manchester United, 50% of those are not available to Ruben. You’ve got Mason Mount, you’ve got Luke Shaw, Marcus Rashford has gone, and Jadon Sancho.”
Ratcliffe urged fans to be patient with the Portuguese coach. “You know, you’re a young guy, you’ve come into the Premier League for the first time in your life, you’ve come in mid-season, it’s not your natural language. You have to give the guy a bit of a break.”
A Crucial Europa League Campaign
United’s only hope for silverware this season lies in the UEFA Europa League, where they face Real Sociedad in the round of 16.
With Champions League qualification in jeopardy, success in Europe has become even more critical.