The Glazer family did not take dividend payments from Manchester United for the first time in six years partly due to the club’s huge transfer spend this summer.
The Glazers, who bought Man United for £790million back in 2005, put the Old Trafford club on the market last month. Mirror Football understands the family is looking for as much as £8billion to sell - a fee that eclipses the £2.5bn Todd Boehly paid for Chelsea.
United invested £225.4million in signings in the last transfer window including the arrivals of midfielder Casemiro from Real Madrid, Ajax duo Lisandro Martinez and Anthony, and Tyrell Malacia from Feyenoord. Major investment was required after a glut of summer exits from the squad.
The club’s first quarter financial results saw revenues increase by 13.6 percent, putting the club within the range of £590million-610m for the entire year. However, the board of director did not approve semi-annual dividend payments to the Glazers and other shareholders.
The dividend payments to the family have proven hugely controversial not only due to the club’s lack of success on the pitch under their ownership, but the stagnating standards of their Old Trafford stadium and club facilities – underpinned by a lack of investment across the club.
The decision not to take the payments for this quarter is indicative of the position the American ownership have now found themselves in, with a nod to the transfer outlay over summer. With the exit of the club’s highest earning player Cristiano Ronaldo, movement in the January transfer window cannot be ruled out.
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United legend Gary Neville has been a vocal critic of the Glazers and earlier this year called for a halt to their dividend payments. Speaking in June, he said: "The Glazer Family should NOT be taking £11m in dividends this Friday. It isn't right with the investment needed in the team, stadium and training ground.
"The clubs cash position is low compared to previous years. An announcement is needed to halt it for the next 3 years minimum."
United CEO Richard Arnold justified the payments earlier this year: "Dividends are a mechanism for providing a return to investors, including pension funds and thousands of small investors and fan shareholders, based on long-term profitability.
"While the pandemic has impacted recent financial performance, we were consistently profitable in the years beforehand and we expect to be again in future.
"Our five-year average dividend yield of 1.1%, compares with average of 1.7% for S&P 500 and 3.9% for FTSE 100 companies. Our dividend policy is subject to annual review by the Board of Directors."
