Scott 5Manchester United in financial ruin!!!!!
January 20th 2010 06:48
For those who are followers of the English Premier League, the crisis faced by Manchester United is the most laughable one ever (for opposition fans) but for United fans, we curse long and hard. Yet, this is a crisis that never actually had to happen.
It was 2004/05. Manchester United were going through a ridiculously rough patch and there was a battle between Sir Alex Ferguson and the Irish duo of John Magnier and JP McManus. While this was all going on, Malcolm Glazer was quietly building up his shareholding and no-one was completely sure of the intentions of anyone. Suddeny Glazer started buying big and it looked horribly like that he was going to succeed in taking over at Old Trafford and delisting us from the stock exchange. The question was whether the Irish duo would sell. Sadly for all United fans they did, and the time of being a PLC (Public Limited Company) was over.
Fans didn't react well and there were lots of protests and anger. Fans weren't happy at the prospect of some huge ticket price rises. Some fans even went to the ultimate and divorced themselves from United forming a new club called FC United of Manchester. See, there was an interesting situation in that the Glazers hadn't actually paid for the club with all their money. A lot of the money they used was in fact bank loans with tough interest rates etc.
Anyway things progressed along. United won 3 English Premier League titles and a Champions Leage and everything was looking well and rosy.
How wrong could one person be.
It has blown up on the Glazers and it has blown up on Manchester United quite dramatically. The scale of the debt has become clear. United are £700m in debt (translates to $1.3B AUD) and are struggling under the crippling interest payments that fans feared. Essentially, we are now a wreck because of the Glazers.
So what tough and bizarre action has been proposed to solve this issue???
They're looking to raise £500m in bonds in order to pay off some of the debt. Rumours are surfacing that this could allow the Glazers themselves to receive a dividend. How the hell does this works when their stupid irresponsibility brought United to this pass? I have no issue with this as long as they could get the money.
There's even talk that Manchester United are willing to sell their biggest assets and then lease them back. This seems to be less costly but they're talking of selling Old Trafford and the Carrington Training Complex.
It is however the latest proposal that in my eyes has gone way too far and cannot be allowed under any circumstance. The Glazers have released a prospectus which is related to the bonds and gives anyone the opportunity to invest in the club. Ordinarily there'd be no issue but they went to the players to ask them to invest in the club. The club pays the wages and now they want some back to pay off this debt. I cannot believe the cheek and the audacity of the Glazers and in my mind this is the last straw.
Governments, the English FA and the banks have a fair bit of explaining to do as to how they could allow this sort of takeover to occur. Of course, the GFC was unprecedented but a take over with loans at record interest levels (14.25% for example) is absolutely ludicrous. The Glazers have really stuffed up Manchester United now and there could be the possibility of the likes of Nemanja Vidic and Wayne Rooney leaving the club with the money being eaten away paying this bastard debt off.
I am a proud United fan. They were the first soccer team I ever heard of and they have an unbelievable history with some of the best players in the word. What is happening at the present moment is simply unforgivable and something has to give.
As a United fan, I know what has to give and it's plain and simple
THE GLAZERS MUST GO FROM UNITED AND ASAP.
It was 2004/05. Manchester United were going through a ridiculously rough patch and there was a battle between Sir Alex Ferguson and the Irish duo of John Magnier and JP McManus. While this was all going on, Malcolm Glazer was quietly building up his shareholding and no-one was completely sure of the intentions of anyone. Suddeny Glazer started buying big and it looked horribly like that he was going to succeed in taking over at Old Trafford and delisting us from the stock exchange. The question was whether the Irish duo would sell. Sadly for all United fans they did, and the time of being a PLC (Public Limited Company) was over.
Fans didn't react well and there were lots of protests and anger. Fans weren't happy at the prospect of some huge ticket price rises. Some fans even went to the ultimate and divorced themselves from United forming a new club called FC United of Manchester. See, there was an interesting situation in that the Glazers hadn't actually paid for the club with all their money. A lot of the money they used was in fact bank loans with tough interest rates etc.
Anyway things progressed along. United won 3 English Premier League titles and a Champions Leage and everything was looking well and rosy.
How wrong could one person be.
It has blown up on the Glazers and it has blown up on Manchester United quite dramatically. The scale of the debt has become clear. United are £700m in debt (translates to $1.3B AUD) and are struggling under the crippling interest payments that fans feared. Essentially, we are now a wreck because of the Glazers.
So what tough and bizarre action has been proposed to solve this issue???
They're looking to raise £500m in bonds in order to pay off some of the debt. Rumours are surfacing that this could allow the Glazers themselves to receive a dividend. How the hell does this works when their stupid irresponsibility brought United to this pass? I have no issue with this as long as they could get the money.
There's even talk that Manchester United are willing to sell their biggest assets and then lease them back. This seems to be less costly but they're talking of selling Old Trafford and the Carrington Training Complex.
It is however the latest proposal that in my eyes has gone way too far and cannot be allowed under any circumstance. The Glazers have released a prospectus which is related to the bonds and gives anyone the opportunity to invest in the club. Ordinarily there'd be no issue but they went to the players to ask them to invest in the club. The club pays the wages and now they want some back to pay off this debt. I cannot believe the cheek and the audacity of the Glazers and in my mind this is the last straw.
Governments, the English FA and the banks have a fair bit of explaining to do as to how they could allow this sort of takeover to occur. Of course, the GFC was unprecedented but a take over with loans at record interest levels (14.25% for example) is absolutely ludicrous. The Glazers have really stuffed up Manchester United now and there could be the possibility of the likes of Nemanja Vidic and Wayne Rooney leaving the club with the money being eaten away paying this bastard debt off.
I am a proud United fan. They were the first soccer team I ever heard of and they have an unbelievable history with some of the best players in the word. What is happening at the present moment is simply unforgivable and something has to give.
As a United fan, I know what has to give and it's plain and simple
THE GLAZERS MUST GO FROM UNITED AND ASAP.
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