Glazers Cited For Positives And Negatives Since Buying ManU

Bryan Glazer (l), Sir Alex Ferguson In China To Spread ManU Footprint

Since the Glazer family took control of Manchester United on May 17, they have “removed 23 non-playing staff, including senior executives,” according to Nick Harris of the London INDEPENDENT. Two people “volunteered to go, one took early retirement and 20 were forced into redundancy.” It is “also believed that the Glazers have held no board meetings since taking over, certainly not face-to-face with” ManU CEO David Gill and Finance Dir Nick Humby. Ticket prices “are expected to rise [9%] overall next season and 54[%] over five years.” One of ManU’s reserve teams “was scrapped in the summer,” and two fan groups, Independent Manchester United Supporters Association and Shareholders United, “have been booted off the Fans’ Forum.” Meanwhile, ManU has brought in three players since May that will cost them US$12M in transfer fees and US$6.9M in salaries, but has loaned 23 players to other clubs in exchange for those teams paying a portion of their salaries, saving the club over US$10.3M in fees and US$13.7M in salaries. Harris writes there have “been some positive developments under the Glazers, including the sealing of a deal with Air Asia,” which earns the club US$3.4M annually. Traffic to the ManU Web site from South Korea “has increased 12-fold since signing” MF Park Ji Sung. ManU this summer said that Internet earnings, which were US$3.4M in ’04, “are on the up, quickly,” and “are expected to rocket when the estimated 20 million [ManU] fans in China ... start spending on subscription fees, e-commerce and gambling” via ManU’s dedicated Chinese Web site (London INDEPENDENT, 11/17).