Why Manchester United can afford to play badly

More or Less: Behind the Stats

BBC

Business, Mathematics, Science, News Commentary, News

4.6 • 3.5K Ratings

🗓️ 12 July 2025

⏱️ 9 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Manchester United are terrible, even according to their own manager. Last season saw their worst ever performance in Premier League history.

But at the same time, according to Forbes magazine, they’re still the second most valuable football club in the world.

How is that possible?

Tim talks to Kieran Maguire, a football finance expert and the author of The Price of Football, to find out the secret of Manchester United’s financial success.

Presenter: Tim Harford Producer: Nicholas Barrett Series producer: Tom Colls Production co-ordinator: Brenda Brown Sound mix: Neil Churchill Editor: Richard Vadon

Transcript

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0:00.0	Get closer to the action with live commentary from the world's greatest sporting events on BBC Sounds.
0:06.0	It is all over!
0:08.0	Bulls are an edge, caught behind.
0:10.0	Including cricket Super League, Women's Euro's 2025, Wimbledon, Formula One and much more.
0:17.0	It's all right to the lights and foot to the floor.
0:20.0	Oh, what's's done it!
0:21.4	Drop shots!
0:22.9	Winner!
0:23.7	On five sports extra,
0:25.1	Sports Extra 2 and Sports Extra 3.
0:27.7	Listen, only on BBC Sounds.
0:30.3	Hello, and thanks for downloading the more or less podcast,
0:33.7	with a programme that looks at the numbers in the news and in life.
0:36.9	And I'm Tim Harford.
0:39.9	Manchester United were once, one of the strongest football teams in the world. But it's now been
0:46.3	well over a decade since they won England's Premier League. And last season saw their worst
0:52.3	ever Premier League performance.
0:56.5	They finished 15th out of 20.
0:58.6	And if you don't want to take my word for it,
1:01.4	just listen to their manager, Ruben Amarim.
1:04.2	In 10 games in Premier League we want to.
1:05.6	I know that.
	...

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