Group No- 2

A Case Study on Manchester United:

The Glazer Takeover.
 Course: Strategic Management (Mgt-489)
Section-09
Prepared for:
Bobby Hajjaj
Lecturer, Department of Management
North South University.
Prepared by:
Name ID
Showmik Hyder Chowdhury 1330105630
Mohammad Imran Uddin 1310148030
Kamrul Hasan 1310781030
Mahdiya Momtaz 1320239030
Shariar Istiaque 1321128030
Md. Ashiqur Rahaman 1320205030
Md. Kamrul Hossain 1320232030
Md. Asad-Uz-Zaman 1411166030
 Platform of the Case
The case scenario states that Manchester United had faced a buyout in 2005 by a US Businessman
Malcom Glazer which resulted in an immersion of huge debt for the first time in the history of the
club. Glazer took over 90% of the club’s ownership and for that he borrowed 540 million pounds. This
buyout not only increased the opportunity of making the club private but also infuriate its loyal fan
base. Fans and some shareholders opposed the idea of a single businessman owning the club.

Vision
What- Manchester United is one of the top listed professional football clubs in Europe.

Why- To remain consistent in terms of being the champion of the English Premiere League as well as
being consistent in acquiring one of the top positions among the European with a stable, revenue
generating financial base.

Goals
Malcom Glazer, the new owner of Manchester United PLC, with his previous business experience and
Alex Ferguson with his management style will regain the club’s leading position as well as retrieve the
trust of the fan base with a strong financial structure within a four to five years’ time span.

Key Issues
 Accrued debt of 540 million pounds
 Loss of ever supporting fan base
 Strengths Weaknesses
1. Strong brand name.
1. Inconsistent performance.
2. Superior distribution channel.
2. Loss of origin as football club after
(Retail Stores)
the takeover.
3. Strong team performance.
3. The huge burden of debt.
4. Upstanding foundation by
4. Has never enjoyed being the most
Ferguson
dominating club in Europe.
SWOT 5. Huge fan base.
6. Intellectual marketing campaign
5. Not spending enough in the
transfer market.
7. Entitled to be the most
6. Conflict of interest between
commercially focused club
Analysis 8. Global brand presence
9. High quality merchandise.
players and management
7. Inexperience of the current owner
in running a football club.
10. Most successful English football
8. Struggle of maintaining staff costs
club with strong brand loyalty.
to turnover ratio
11. One of the richest sports teams
across the globe.
12. Stable and effective
management team.
13. Training academy with good
facilities.
14. An excellent youth academy.
15. A strong scouting team.
Opportunities Opportunities-Strengths Strategies Opportunities-Weaknesses Strategies
Mitigate the accrued
1. Increasing popularity
Expand TV Channel debt through
of football in America
Subscription outside maximizing existing
and Asia.
Europe for higher revenue streams that
2. Massive media
broadcast revenue may help to elevate
coverage of English
generation operating income from
Premiere League
(O1+O2+O6+S4+S7) which interest expenses
3. Increasing demand
Further development of can be covered.
for football
retail, merchandising, (O2+O3+W3)
merchandises among
apparel & product
supporters.
licensing business for Maintaining a strict
4. Popularity of English
optimization of revenue wage to match day
Premiere league in
(O1+O4+S2+S6) revenue earnings ratio
Asia
Use the recent (O6+W8)
5. Technological
technological
advancements can
advancements to get Growing revenues from
help to get more fans.
more fans throughout the different sectors
6. Growing broadcast
world. (O5+S11) could increase the
revenue of club
Arranging exclusive media profitability hence the
games
interaction with players wage to performance
7. Demand for exclusive
(O6+O7+S14) elevation may be
video footages
increased. .
(O6+O7+W1+W6)
 Threats
1. Intense rivalry among
English clubs.
2. Unprofitability of the
football industry in
Europe.
3. Overvaluation of
players in the transfer
market.
4. Other leagues
dominating over
English teams in
European
competition.
5. Competition to get
sponsorship deals is
immense.
6. High chances of
incurring loss in
transfer deals of
players.
Threats-Strengths Strategies
Using their youth
academy to produce
quality players which can
help them to overpay for
players in transfer
market.
(T3+S14)
Their excellent training
facility and strong team
performance can help
them to get better results
in UEFA Champions
League.
(T4+S3+S13)
Use their strong brand
name and global brand
presence to get lucrative
sponsors. (T5+S1+S8)
Using their strong
scouting team to mitigate
the loss that might incur
during transfer
deals.(T6+S14)
Threats-Weaknesses Strategies
Trying to minimize the
huge burden of debt
and avoid the weakness
of the unprofitability of
the European football
industry. (T2+W3)
Trying to minimize their
inconsistent performance in
and trying to avoid the fate
of English clubs in European
competition. (T4+W1)
Trying to minimize the
conflict between
management and players.
Also trying to avoid the
rivalry among clubs.
(T1+W6)
Minimize their reputation of
not spending enough in
transfer market and trying to
avoid overpaying for players
in the transfer market.
(O6+O7+S14)

End Results
Recovering debt: The following strategies can be followed by Manchester United to recover their
debt:

- They can use their strong management team of the Glazer family who are famously known
for their businesses in America and they can use that to their advantage.
- Setting a budget for the overall spending of the club can help them to generate more net
operating income and might help them to pay-off their debts. Global expansion can also help
to explore more commercial opportunities.
- They can use their strong brand name and global brand presence to get more lucrative
sponsorship deals which will surely help in paying off their debts.

Regaining the fan base: The following strategies can be followed by Manchester United to
regain their fan base:

- A strong and stable team can help them to regain their fan base. They can have a strong and
stable team by investing in young players in their academy. Fans always like homegrown
players.
- Expand the subscription of MU TV across the globe to capture more fans from different parts
of the world.
- Signing star players can attract more attention of the fans and might help to regain the trust
of the fan. Might also help in getting new fans.

(Word Count- 945)