Why Manchester United can afford to play badly

Why Manchester United can afford to play badly

More or Less: Behind the Stats · 2025-07-12

Manchester United are terrible, even according to their own manager. Last season saw their worst ever performance in Premier League history.

But at the same time, according to Forbes magazine, they’re still the second most valuable football club in the world.

How is that possible?

Tim talks to Kieran Maguire, a football finance expert and the author of The Price of Football, to find out the secret of Manchester United’s financial success.

Presenter: Tim HarfordProducer: Nicholas BarrettSeries producer: Tom CollsProduction co-ordinator: Brenda BrownSound mix: Neil ChurchillEditor: Richard Vadon

More or Less: Behind the Stats

Tim Harford and the More or Less team try to make sense of the statistics which surround us. From BBC Radio 4

  • No. of episodes: 1,031
  • Latest episode: 2025-07-19
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