The potential effect Premier League relegation would have on Manchester United has been revealed by a financial expert – and it makes for grim reading for the Old Trafford faithful.
Ruben Amorim’s United side currently sit just seven points above Ipswich Town, who are in the relegation zone.
Amorim, 39, has seen his team lose five of his eight league games in charge, which is the worst managerial record in the club’s history.
However, given the fact the Portuguese has not been given a transfer window to recruit players, it could be argued he is suffering the consequences of years of mismanagement and poor recruitment at the club.
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Last summer, United, then managed by Erik ten Hag, spent £206.06m on five signings, as reported by the MEN’s Samuel Luckhurst.
Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui, Joshua Zirkzee, Manuel Ugarte and Leny Yoro all joined the club, but none of those mentioned have been able to improve the team’s fortunes as of yet.
And due to the huge summer spend, Amorim have to “sell to buy”, as per the MEN’s report. ‘Sources’ have claimed that United will have to adopt the ‘one in, one out’ policy to comply with the Premier League’s profit and sustainability and financial fair play regulations.
Amorim even admitted this could be the case when speaking after United’s 2-0 defeat against Newcastle on Monday.
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"We don't have that possibility [to make signing] in January if we don't take some players [out]," said Amorim [via BBC Sport].
"You know the situation better than me.
"It is not that I am arriving here and know I can spend money changing the team."
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However, from a financial perspective, things could get even worse if United were to be relegated. Mentioning United and relegation in the same sentence seems odd, but when you consider the current situation, this is a possibility, even if it seems unlikely.
The Red Devils have been ever-present in the top flight of English football since they gained promotion to Division One in 1974-75. And fans will be hoping this run continues.
How much relegation could cost Man Utd
Well, according to The Athletic, one revenue stream which would be hit is the TV money.
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The report claims that the club’s most recent accounts outlined that £222m was received in broadcast revenue. Around 72.9 percent came from the Premier League, and the rest through the Champions League.
Numbers would significantly drop if they were to suffer relegation to the Championship. United would then likely have to rely on parachute payments, given to clubs who drop down from the Premier League, which is usually around 55 percent of the top flight’s equal TV rights split. This would further reduce to 45% in the second if United failed to get promoted.
Commercially, United have earned around £300m in each of the past two campaigns, around 46 percent of their annual turnover. A potential reduction in commercial revenue would entirely depend on United's partners but this would likely take a significant hit as the likes of Aston Villa and Newcastle experienced when they sustained relegation.
The Red Devils' matchday revenue is said to be around £136m, which should not alter too much as long as fans continue to visit Old Trafford.
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“It would be the same situation that happens to any club in terms of a revenue hit,” Dr Dan Plumley, a senior lecturer in sport business management at Sheffield Hallam University explained to The Athletic.
“The net difference between what a team finishing bottom of the Premier League gets in TV money and one in receipt of first year parachute money, you’d be looking at a £60million reduction in revenue.
“If the unthinkable were to happen, that figure wouldn’t hurt United too much on the revenue line because their revenues were pushing towards £700million.
"But it’s everything else that comes with playing in the league below. What it would do to the brand, which is hard to measure, the commercial contracts and the impact of those.”
Topics: Manchester United, Premier League, Ruben Amorim
Luke Davies