Glazer says Manchester United do not need on-pitch success to keep commercial power

Avram Glazer, co-owner of Manchester United, told a group of investors and financial executives that a club of United's stature does not need success on the pitch to preserve its commercial power and business value. Glazer, who seldom speaks in public, addressed the Deutsche Bank Sports Investment Conference in London in September, its first edition in the English capital.

People familiar with the event said Glazer sees United's value as resting on a strong foundation and as little moved by swings in results, in the manner of the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys. The Yankees last won baseball's World Series in 2009 and the Cowboys have not taken the Super Bowl since 1995.

Both franchises have stayed at the top of the sports market through long waits for titles, the Yankees with 27 World Series wins, the most in baseball history, and the Cowboys with 5 Super Bowls. The Cowboys remain the most valuable team in world sport on the Forbes list at an estimated 17,000 million US dollars in 2026, while the Yankees lead baseball at 8,500 million dollars.

United's own record follows a similar pattern: the club last took the Premier League in 2013, Sir Alex Ferguson's final season, and have not mounted a serious title challenge since, yet hold the English record of 20 league titles. The Glazer group reportedly used the Forbes ranking of the most valuable football clubs as a key reference in judging United's business standing.

That standing has slipped, with Forbes placing United third among football clubs at 7,200 million dollars in May 2026, behind Barcelona at 7,500 million and Real Madrid at 9,500 million. A year earlier the club were second at 6,600 million dollars, trailing only Real Madrid on 6,750 million. United had previously topped the list in 2017 and 2018 and across 2007-2012.