Manchester United Posts Quarterly Loss

8:23 AM PDT 9/18/2012 by Georg Szalai

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The English soccer club, which has a global following, reported improved financials for its fiscal year and predicts upside next year.

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LONDON - English soccer powerhouse Manchester United, which has a global fan base, on Tuesday reported a loss for its fiscal fourth quarter in its first financial update since its IPO last month.

The club's loss of £14.9 million ($24.2 million) was wider than the year-ago loss of £351,000 and was due to lower revenue.

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Quarterly revenue fell 25 percent to £74.5 million ($120.9 million) driven in part by the failure to advance in a key European tournament, the Champions League, and England's FA Cup.

Earnings for the full fiscal year jumped 79 percent though to £23 million ($37.3 million) amid record commercial revenue.

For the new fiscal year, the team known as the Red Devils predicted operating cash flow growth of 17-20 percent to £107 million-£110 million ($174 million-$179 million) and revenue in the £350 million-£360 million range ($568 million-$585 million). This assumes the team reaches the quarterfinals of the Champions League and the domestic cup tournament.

"Fiscal 2012 was the best year ever for Manchester United’s commercial business," said executive vice chairman Ed Woodward. "Our world-record $559 million shirt sponsorship deal with Chevrolet and the Premier League’s new £1 billion a year U.K. television rights deal, a 70 percent increase, highlight the outstanding growth prospects for the future."

He added: "We also expect a substantial increase in the value of the Premier League’s international television contracts scheduled to be announced later this year."

New sponsorship deals since the mid-year start to the new fiscal year include Bwin, Toshiba Medical Systems, Yanmar, Fuji TV, Santander, Shinsei Bank and MBNA.

The Chevrolet deal brought in an exclusive shirt sponsor for seven years beginning in our 2014/2015 season. That was an increase of approximately 120 percent in annual revenue over current shirt sponsor Aon.

Email: Georg.Szalai@thr.com
Twitter: @georgszalai