Manchester United are in crisis once more, and the family with ultimate control of the club has not been seen or heard. The Glazers, who have owned United since 2005, have stayed silent as the team sits just two points above the bottom of the Premier League table and a manager waits for the axe to fall.
The picture from the United States resembles owning the grandest house on a street, renting it to tenants who promised to modernize it, and then watching them start a fire. The Glazers handed control of soccer operations to Sir Jim Ratcliffe in February 2024 in exchange for a £1.5 billion deal for a 28% stake. Almost three years later, the club is facing turmoil and even the possibility of a relegation battle.
The Glazers have never been popular with supporters, who blame them for loading the club with £600 million of debt in their leveraged takeover 21 years ago. Ratcliffe, however, arrived promising a revival and has delivered the opposite. A source who watched Sunday's 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth from the directors' box told ESPN: "The fans were all singing about the Glazers, but I'm not sure they realize how bad Jim is." The source added that he has "downgraded in all departments."
The Glazers, who also own the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, still hold nearly 72% of United. A drag-along clause in their agreement with Ratcliffe, active since August 2025, lets them force him to sell his stake if they sell to a third party. Until February 2027, Ratcliffe is entitled to $33 a share, matching what he paid. That floor expires in four months, after which the Glazers could sell at any price.
Sources told ESPN that the market for Premier League clubs is weak at the moment, particularly for one with United's problems. Manchester City's appeal against a guilty verdict on 114 of 115 charges leaves potential buyers wary, since the outcome could range from expulsion from the league to a victory that keeps City a financial powerhouse. United's shares closed at $20.61 in New York last Friday, well below the $33 Ratcliffe paid.
One source said the Glazers are waiting for the right moment to sell. Two possible triggers were mentioned by another source: the construction of a new stadium at Old Trafford, which would raise the club's value, and City being thrown out of the Premier League, which would remove a powerful rival. If that is the plan, the club stays in limbo in the meantime.
Since taking over football operations, Ratcliffe has hired and fired senior executives, presided over several failed managerial appointments, cut transfer and salary budgets and overseen almost 500 job cuts at Old Trafford. United are likely to be searching for a fourth manager in about two years before the end of the week.
Sources said the job cuts did not sit well with co-chairmen Joel and Avram Glazer. One source said the way Ratcliffe carried them out jarred with Joel's "sense of decency and old-fashioned values." Many fans would dispute that image, given the debt, the lack of communication and almost £2 billion in interest, dividends and financial costs that have left the club since 2005. Joel, 59, has not attended a game at Old Trafford since the Barcelona match in April 2019.
Yet multiple ESPN sources described a once hands-on owner who spoke to executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward "several times a day" and even signed off on small expenses such as a paint order for the maintenance team. He also vetoed plans to furlough staff during the COVID-19 pandemic, keeping employees on full pay. Now, the Glazers watch United burn while Ratcliffe tries to put out the fire, with no sign he can.
