Manchester United case
Strategic Management: Case Study.
Team 5.
Manchester United: Looking Beyond 2011-12 Season.
By the year of 2011 Sir Alex Ferguson was working hard to keep succeeding as he has been doing it since his arrival with Manchester United. Key acquisitions, new line-ups and strategic decisions had been made. In the other side of the “enterprise”, let’s say the commercial and financial side, Mr. David Gill; current CEO of Manchester United was as well making strategic decisions within the club.
For instance the headquarters needed to me relocated due to the large amount of staff that was working within the club by those years. David Gill was also in charge of the main 3 sources of the club’s revenue:
-Match-day revenues.
-Broadcasting revenues.
-And Sponsorship and commercial revenues.
Despite the fact that David Gill seemed to be at the top of the club, he wasn’t, family Glazer was. Let’s remember that, between 1991 and 2003, Manchester United was a public company listed on the London Stock Exchange Market. Later, in 2005 the company was acquired by Malcolm Glazer in what fans may call an outrage for the team, because not only he did not know anything about soccer, but also he managed to purchase the company mainly financed by debt.
Nevertheless and despite being financed by debt, Manchester United as a whole was considered as the most valuable European club by the year of 2011. Yet, not everything seemed to be in control, in fact David Gill was about to face the most challenging decision within the club in the past 25 years, a decision that would not just affect the commercial and financial part of Manchester United but the Club as a whole: the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson and the financial and strategic changes that come alongside with it. Which take us to our analysis.
Question nº 4: Assuming that Ferguson does retire at the end of the 2009‐10 season, what advice would you give to Gill and the Manchester United board as to how the club can
Team 5.
Manchester United: Looking Beyond 2011-12 Season.
By the year of 2011 Sir Alex Ferguson was working hard to keep succeeding as he has been doing it since his arrival with Manchester United. Key acquisitions, new line-ups and strategic decisions had been made. In the other side of the “enterprise”, let’s say the commercial and financial side, Mr. David Gill; current CEO of Manchester United was as well making strategic decisions within the club.
For instance the headquarters needed to me relocated due to the large amount of staff that was working within the club by those years. David Gill was also in charge of the main 3 sources of the club’s revenue:
-Match-day revenues.
-Broadcasting revenues.
-And Sponsorship and commercial revenues.
Despite the fact that David Gill seemed to be at the top of the club, he wasn’t, family Glazer was. Let’s remember that, between 1991 and 2003, Manchester United was a public company listed on the London Stock Exchange Market. Later, in 2005 the company was acquired by Malcolm Glazer in what fans may call an outrage for the team, because not only he did not know anything about soccer, but also he managed to purchase the company mainly financed by debt.
Nevertheless and despite being financed by debt, Manchester United as a whole was considered as the most valuable European club by the year of 2011. Yet, not everything seemed to be in control, in fact David Gill was about to face the most challenging decision within the club in the past 25 years, a decision that would not just affect the commercial and financial part of Manchester United but the Club as a whole: the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson and the financial and strategic changes that come alongside with it. Which take us to our analysis.
Question nº 4: Assuming that Ferguson does retire at the end of the 2009‐10 season, what advice would you give to Gill and the Manchester United board as to how the club can