Manchester United posts seventh straight annual loss of £43m despite record revenue

Manchester United reported a seventh straight annual loss on Wednesday, revealing a net loss of £43m for the year ended 30 June 2026 in its annual financial results. The loss came despite record revenue of £677.6m.

Costs tied to player acquisitions and the sacking of Ruben Amorim contributed to the wider deficit, the club said, and British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the club’s minority shareholder and head of its football operations, has taken measures including job cuts and ticket-price increases to try to restore profitability. “We will continue to take a disciplined approach to ensure our finances remain sustainable,” the CEO, Omar Berrada, said in a statement. Insiders at the club view the latest loss as evidence of the need for continued financial discipline.

The club’s New York-listed shares, which have gained almost 24% this year, were down 3% in US premarket trading following the results. The 20-times English champions have recorded cumulative losses of nearly £190m since fiscal 2024.

The reported net loss of £43m was wider than the £33m loss a year earlier and included an exceptional cost of £8.2m tied to Amorim’s departure and restructuring. United also said it saved some money on Amorim’s January exit after initially recording his departure as an exceptional item costing £16.7m in third-quarter results, a figure the club said has been significantly reduced because he has taken on the Milan job.

United’s wage bill fell to £302m, down £11.3m or 3.6% on the previous year, a decrease the club attributed to changes in the men’s first-team squad and headcount reduction programmes implemented over the past two years. The club framed the lower wage bill as one component of its wider cost-reduction efforts.

A late surge under Michael Carrick helped Manchester United finish third in the Premier League and secure a Champions League place last season, a result the club cited when publishing a revenue forecast. United projected record revenue of between £740m and £760m for fiscal 2027, driven in part by that Champions League qualification.