Manchester United fans and staff can feel the pinch this Christmas after Sir Jim Ratcliffe introduced cost-cutting measures after buying a minority stake in the club and becoming co-owner.
Ineos warned they would have to make difficult decisions at Manchester United. It doesn’t help that United’s first-team are still underperforming on the pitch and sat 14th in the Premier League.
United sacked Erik ten Hag as manager earlier this season, but Sir Jim Ratcliffe also cut staff by announcing 250 redundancies and scrapped an agreement that earned Sir Alex Ferguson a well-paid ambassadorial role.
There was a ticket price hike mid-season as Sir Jim Ratcliffe risks criticism about outpricing loyal fans from the game. As someone born and raised in Manchester, the British billionaire should not need reminding that it’s a working-class city.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s latest mistake at Manchester United
Ratcliffe’s entire PR drive when he was bidding for United was that he was a local lad, boyhood fan, who grew successful from a working-class background.
Now we have a situation where non-playing staff are demoralised due to slashed jobs and poor working conditions.
The chemicals tycoon has been ruthless in his decision-making, even if we think he’s been guilty of a few mistakes.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s latest move has been to cut donations to a charity helping former players, The Sun first reported.
United previously gave £40,0000 a year to the Association of Former Manchester United Players which has over 300 members including Bryan Robson, Alex Stepney and Denis Law.
The Association of Former Manchester United Players was set up in 1985 to help footballers from previous eras who earned nothing like the stars of the modern game. They host four events each year where ex-players can socialise.
The charity contacted United after two quarterly payments of £10,000 failed to arrive only to learn that the donation has been cut. They learned that they had been dragged into Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s cost-cutting measures which creates uncertainty for the organisation’s future.
United fans react negatively to Sir Jim Ratcliffe decision
This follows a series of penny-pinching tactics introduced by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and it’s the latest kick in the teeth for fans.
It has unsurprisingly sparked a negative reaction from United fans.
Editor of United in Focus, Dan Coombs, described it as a “kick in the teeth” for many of United’s former greats.
He said: “After a summer where United spent £101million net and continue to pay incredibly high wages, the savings from this latest cut are a drop in the ocean, and a kick in the teeth for many of the club’s former greats, who were not paid the excesses today’s footballers receive.”
One United fan took to X, writing: “This is absolutely disgusting as the former players prepare to celebrate their 40th anniversary year.”
Another Red commented: “With the amount of money moving around at exec/player level, paying the AFMUP £40k annually shouldn’t be too hard… I really don’t recognise this club at the moment.”
There is a realisation that United need to save money, but some things just shouldn’t be cut.
A lot of past players benefit from this organisation but its future is now in serious doubt.
Ineos have made no shortage of mistakes in their first year at Old Trafford. Hopefully, they will learn from them and start putting the fans first.
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