Stefan Borson shares staggering £3.5bn Man United verdict

Manchester United could astonishingly land themselves in up to £3.5billion worth of debt if they decide to build a new stadium. 

That is the view of former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider it’s unlikely the Premier League giants would decide to fund the project solely by debt due to the money the club already owes.

United have set up an expert task force – which includes Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and ex-defender Gary Neville – as they look to either regenerate Old Trafford or build a new facility altogether.

The Telegraph reported on 29 July the task force has initially concluded the best option would be the creation of a new stadium, boasting a capacity of up to 100,000.

If United decide to push forward with the plans, the proposed development is expected to cost up to £2billion – double the £1billion expenditure of redeveloping Old Trafford – and take six years to complete.

Man United unlikely to fund new stadium project solely by debt

Borson revealed it would be difficult for the club to service up to £3.5billion worth of debt based on the revenues and profits they currently make.

He told Football Insider: “I would say Man United would end up spending more than £2billion if they were to build the stadium.

“United would be starting with almost £1billion debt today, so this would be incremental debt on top to build a new stadium.

“There comes a point where the football club doesn’t have the free cash flow to service the debt of that scale.

“Football clubs are not very profitable. United could maybe service £1billion of debt, but can they service £3-3.5billion of debt?

“I suspect they can’t just say ‘We are going to build a new stadium with 100,000 seats, we are going to fund the whole lot by debt and just service the debt over the next 25 years’.

“I think that would be pretty unlikely because it would leave United with more than £3billion debt.

“It’s a club that simply doesn’t generate the sort of revenues and profits that are required to service that level of debt.”

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