Intro
This is it. I have been working all of my blog years towards this moment. I have conjured up enough evidence and analysis to write this saga. As you can tell, this is only Part 1 of a series into the history of just how terrible the Glazer family is and how poorly they have run this Club.
Before I get down to business, there are a few things you should know: 1. I am an idiot who doesn’t know much 2. I am not an employee of Manchester United PLC 3. Fuck the Glazer family. Now it’s about time to unleash fury on these fools. Buckle up, this is gonna be a long diatribe against this Club‘s ownership.
The Glazer Takeover
Some might know the history of the Glazer Family as it pertains to Manchester United, but my aim is to describe it in detail for the common fan. The story starts off when a rich guy from Rochester, NY who thought owning a team would be a good idea. From 2003-2005, Malcolm Glazer began purchasing shares and building his ownership stake in Manchester United. At the end of those two years, the Glazer family paid roughly $790 million for 90% of the club. At the surface, this seems normal as many sports teams were valued well below their potential. So then, why was the Glazer purchase so bad? The answer is so simple it’s painful. Debt.
Debt, in many instances, is a good thing. It can allow the me or you opportunities not possible otherwise, such as buying a car or owning a home. What Glazer did using debt was a truly abhorrent idea – to leverage the Club’s free cash flow. Of the $790 million paid, Malcolm Glazer financed the purchase with reportedly up to $575 million in debt raised, exclusive of costs incurred to finance the debt, which was likely millions. To build such a significant holding in a company primarily through debt is not very smart. If you have to borrow 73% of the money used to buy a team, should you really even purchase the team in the first place? Financing a takeover with 73% debt is a bad idea, but what happened next is pure lunacy.
Greed Above All Else
Malcolm Glazer, who is scum, shifted the massive liability from his own holding companies to Manchester United’s balance sheet! Imagine buying something with YOUR debt and not assuming any of the responsibilities to repay it? Can you imagine buying a house, and the house has to pay for it? Fuck Malcolm Glazer. Malcolm Glazer established his intent to reap all of the benefits of owning Manchester United and none of the downside!
Reactions to the Glazers
The Glazer Takeover was met with groans by some, and unconvincing optimism by others. Generally with a takeover in soccer, business is the concept of a “white knight.” Why does the knight have to be white is suspect in my opinion, but I digress. A White Knight takes over with good intentions when they see a failing company, or even useful business struggling to grow, and infuse resources and sophistication to improve the outlook. Call me crazy, but the Glazers did the exact opposite. Dumping a ton of debt onto Manchester United began what can only be regarded as an extremely greedy idea, and operationally restrictive concept.
That’s it for this segment! Let me know what you think? I’ll keep them coming if you liked (hated) learning about how terrible Malcolm Glazer truly was. I’ll aim to get a new part of this horrid story out once a week. With the current state of the operations of the club, it’s important to know this didn’t happen overnight. The Glazer’s took the most important club in Football history and ran it into the ground, all at the cost of the fans, the managers, and the players. Before I forget, cop some merch here, I’m rocking the hot-fire Stanley Chow beanie as I write this.
You already know the motto: Green and Gold Until the Club is Sold!
GGMU
JR
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