Manchester United IPO: Singapore fans may soon own slice of club
Now you can do more than scream and shout. The chance to buy Man U stocks may be coming soon.
Nothing spells love like some stock issue slips.
The U.S.-based Glazer family, owners of Manchester United, is banking on this sentiment with a plan to list the club on the Singapore Stock Exchange.
According to Today, the soccer club has already applied to the Singapore Exchange (SGX) for approval to list in the city-state, with plans for an estimated US$1 billion (S$1.2 billion) worth of Man U shares to hit the market by September.
The Singapore listing will be a second round for the club, which was listed on the London Stock Exchange before being taken over by the Glazer family in 2005.
The decision to list in Singapore is no accident.
Man U has an ardent support base in Asia with an estimated 190 million Asian fans.
"Manchester United's financial position is frightening," says Glenn Connley, host of FC Daily on the Football Channel.
"The club has been saddled with hundreds of millions of pounds of debt and, it would appear, the IPO is one way to offset this, particularly with UEFA's financial fair play regulations about to come into force."
The Financial Fair Play rules put forth by European governing body UEFA aim to limit the amount of debt clubs can take on. The team's debt stood at £478 million (S$955 million) at the end of March.
"Broadly speaking, most Manchester United fans are unhappy with the club's current owners," says Connley. "Floating a portion of the club on the other side of the world will only muddy the ownership waters even further."
The floatation will see shares listed with different voting power, a characteristic the SGX was able to offer over the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEx), the biggest IPO market in the world.
While the likelihood of owning Man U shares might be a dream come true for some fans, it's an open question whether or not a public buy-in is good for the team?
"I don't think this situation is ideal for Manchester United or football clubs in general," says Connley, who is the author of a soon to be released book titled, "How to be Ferocious Like Sir Alex Ferguson."
"The most successful clubs in the world lose millions of dollars a year," says Connley. "People who buy shares in any company do so to earn a return, to make a profit.
"If Manchester United want to compete with Manchester City, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Chelsea, there's no way they'll be able to run at a profit.
"I foresee a situation where you will have fans demanding the club spend money on players and shareholders demanding the club tighten its belt, possibly even sell star players.
"It could get very, very messy."
