Manchester United are starting off this season by separating themselves from their Premier League rivals, and United in Focus takes you on a deep dive into the financial reality of that decision.
While most of their Premier League rivals are doing what Man Utd usually do, which is travel the world for commercial opportunities, Ineos are doing things differently.
Ahead of a pivotal season for Michael Carrick and Co., United have opted to stay and play all their games in Europe this year.
Here’s what that means for their finances, the big picture, and a breakdown of the essence of these tours.
Reality of Man Utd’s pre-season tour explained
United will start their pre-season against Wrexham on July 18, before traveling across Scandinavia, Poland, and Ireland to play six games.
It’s packed with much less travel than the likes of Liverpool, Spurs, or Chelsea, for example, but that comes at a cost.
United in Focus spoke to GRV Media’s Head of Football Finance and Governance, Adam Williams, who broke down the club’s decision to stay in Europe this year.
He explained: “Typically, United will be looking for about £8-10m in revenue from a pre-season tour. That income is sourced from fees paid by the businesses promoting friendly matches, potentially a small cut of gate receipts, tour sponsors, direct merchandise sales and so on.
“I suspect that the final amount might be a little lower this summer because United are staying in Europe rather than going to the US or Asia, where teams tend to make the most money.
“However, the beneficial calculation is in fact a bit more nuanced than a simple revenue comparison. For one, costs will be a lot lower in terms of accommodation, travel, insurance, administration fees and so on.
“When you have to cover a team of say, 70 or 80 people traveling for a fortnight to America, those things really start to add up. It’s routine for them to run well into the seven-figure bracket, which reduces your margin.”
Why Man Utd’s decision is a long-term ploy
Williams goes on to explain that traveling the world is undoubtedly lucrative, but United are uniquely positioned to be able to avoid that and still make bank.
That is because these tours are less about “cold, hard cash” and more about reaching a demographic who can eventually be converted into a paying fan.
He said: “Pre-season programmes are less about how much cold, hard cash a club makes from the events in isolation and more about nurturing your fanbase. In theory, United could play four matches at Old Trafford, get 50,000 fans in at least, and make, say, £20m in revenue. But instead, they choose to go abroad because they are engaging a demographic who otherwise might feel isolated from the club.
“United will probably earn a little less than their peer group who are going to America this year, but it’s less about immediate revenue and more about long-term engagement. United claim to have a billion followers worldwide.
“If you can get a few thousand of those to have a direct commercial relationship with the club as a direct result of the tour, it helps swell your commercial income sustainably and for the long term. United were one of the first clubs to really realise how to monetise that effectively.”
Clearly, the trade-off that a club concedes in sporting advantage due to long travels is not worth it for a club of United’s size, since they have already penetrated the casual demographic.
The post-season tour under Amorim was also necessary because of United’s financial difficulties, which aren’t as chronic with UCL football at Old Trafford next season.
Carrick has earned the right to prioritise sporting excellence over marketing opportunities in pre-season, and as explained above, the trade-off makes it worth it, uniquely so in United’s case.
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