Manchester United are off to the USA on Tour this summer, and now the true financial impact of this has been unveiled.
As Erik ten Hag and his 29-man Manchester United squad jet off to Los Angeles, it’s worth delving into the impact this tour could have for the club financially.
It’s no secret that pre-season is not only to prepare for the coming season but is also in a bid to grow global appeal for the club which ultimately drives revenue and makes the club bigger.
Manchester United are already among, if not the biggest club in world football, and so a pre-season tour is likely to be even more impactful for the Red Devils.
In order to understand this further United in Focus has spoken with TBR’s Football Finance expert Adam Williams who has shed light on the club’s incentives to go on tour.
Tour impact on Manchester United financially
United are in line for a significant cash influx thanks to this summer’s trip to the USA, here’s how much the club will be expecting to make.
“Man United are one of if not the biggest biggest brands in world football”, Adam Williams began explaining.
“A report from Brand Finance recently estimated that the value of their brand value, what you might call the intangible commercial benefits of a club to an investor, is £1.2bn.
“That is thanks in part to their non-domestic appeal. Their popularity in the US is immense.
“Many owners think that elite Premier League clubs are undervalued at present and that America is the golden ticket in terms of unlocking huge new revenue.
“A separate report from another group, CLV Group, has projected that £850m of revenue is on offer to European clubs in the US before the 2026 World Cup. I think that illustrates how much value we’re talking about here.”
To conclude, he then explained that this summer alone, United will earn at the minimum £10m, for the next week and a half.
“The key is unlocking that revenue. Pre-season tours themselves are extremely lucrative. United will earn, at the very least, £10m in the US this summer. That’s derived from promoter fees, a cut of ticket sales, sponsor tie-ins etc – boots-on-the-ground stuff.”
This will be much to Ineos‘ delight and could be £10m put to use on the training ground development or toward the new stadium, with the new tunnel developments already being impressive.
The fact a revenue stream of £850m is available in the US before the 2026 World Cup also suggests that United could be heading back once again next season.
Why United opt for US Tour
Continuing, Adam explained why touring in America, and building a fanbase there can be such a lucrative thing to do.
“But I think the broader purpose of these trips is to grow and nurture their US fanbase in the hope that they will continue to engage with the club all year round.
“If you can get even 10 per cent of your US fanbase to buy a shirt, you probably double that £10m figure.
“If you can get them to subscribe to MUTV, you might get a couple of extra million too. But what’s more, you’ll be able to collect data, which you can use to prove your value proposition to sponsors.
“It might seem clinical to talk about it in these terms and I can absolutely see why fans object to this language, but United directors will be looking at ‘customer acquisition cost’.
“It takes far less to win over a new fan in the US or other territories likes East Asia than it does in the UK, or indeed throughout Europe.
“Ultimately, for a club like United, the sky is the limit in the US.”
This perfectly explains why United are always going on pre-season tours around the world, but right now it seems that the USA particularly is where the money is at.
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