Ex-Goldman Sachs chair calls for Manchester United to simplify share structure

Former Goldman Sachs chairman Lord Jim O’Neil has called for Manchester United’s owners to reform its share structure and reduce their stake in the club. It comes after the acrimonious rise and fall of the European Super League, the fall out from which has amped up previously dormant opposition to United’s Florida based majority shareholders. O’Neil previously put together the ‘Red Knights’ consortium back in 2010 which sounded out a possible takeover. The Manchester-born former Goldman boss and conservative Commercial Secretary to the Treasury has reportedly written to Joel Glazer, United’s co-chair, insisting upon immediate corporate governance reforms. According to O’Neil, the football club should ditch its two-tier ownership structure – which sees the New York listed public shares carry an immaterially small share of voting rights versus the Glazer held shares. After simplifying the club’s equity down to a single line of stock, the Glazers should commit to cutting their interests down to a minority stake of no more than 49.9%. The result would be that a greater number of potential investors could consider ownership in the club in the future, with the same voting rights as everyone else including Joel Glazer and his five siblings.