Manchester United have dropped four places in the Deloitte Football Money League, falling below Liverpool and Arsenal in the process
Sir Jim Ratcliffe will have been concerned after seeing the latest Deloitte Football Money League figures(Image: Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
If you were in the Manchester United boardroom this morning, you would be forgiven for not wanting to talk money after the latest Deloitte Football Money League was published. In the 2023/24 season, the Reds sat fourth in the rankings despite the club enduring a tough season.
United finished outside of the Champions League spots that year having been knocked out in the group stages of that competition, finishing bottom behind Galatasaray, FC Copenhagen and Bayern Munich. In the Premier League, the Reds finished eighth and looked destined to miss out on European football entirely until they beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final.
That victory secured Europa League football for the 2024/25 season and softened the financial blow which was to come. However, the latest Deloitte findings for last season paint a different picture. United have dropped to eighth in the rankings, thanks in part to their broadcast revenue taking a significant hit.
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With the Champions League, United banked £225.43m in broadcast revenue. This dropped significantly to £180m in 2024/25 despite a run to the Europa League final. The Reds also missed out on further money from television rights due, in part, to their 15th-placed finish in the Premier League resulting in fewer games being picked by rights holders.
It means United lost £45.43m which would have otherwise put them on a par with the likes of Arsenal who generated £717m of total revenue compared to the Reds’ £692m, according to Deloitte. It is a worrying drop for United which will likely only get worse when the 2025/26 figures are published.
This season, United may be doing better in the Premier League table but they are facing one of their shortest seasons ever after being knocked out of the Carabao Cup and FA Cup at the first hurdles. They are also without any form of European football which means not only will matchday revenue be impacted but so will broadcast revenue.
It shows exactly what is at stake and how important the second half of this season is for United. If the Reds do not qualify for the Champions League this year, their revenue in 2026/27 will be drop. That’s why it is essential Michael Carrick leads United back to the Champions League come May. The increased revenue on offer for the Reds makes it so lucrative and, without other distractions over the coming weeks, it should be attainable.
These figures will sharpen minds across the club to ensure that minimum expectation is reached.
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