Goal.com

15 Feb 2013 10:00:39 AM

Manchester United has announced significant rises in income and profits for the three-month period ending December 2012, as it revealed it has agreed terms on another major sponsorship deal.

Manchester United has announced significant rises in income and profits for the three-month period ending December 2012, as it revealed it has agreed terms on another major sponsorship deal.

Six new sponsorship deals with Kansai, Singha, Wahaha, Multistrada, China Construction Bank and Denizbank have seen commercial revenues rise 29% to £35.6 million, compared to the same period in 2011. The English Premier League giant reported record second quarter total revenue of £110.1 million versus £101.3 million in 2011, along with record earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of £50.2 million against £44.9 million in 2011. United said its forecast for revenue for the 2013 financial year is expected to come in between £350 million and £360 million, while EBITDA, its preferred measure of profit, is set to range from £107 million to £110 million. United’s revenues dropped by 3.3% to £320 million last year, mainly due to early exits from both the UEFA Champions League and FA Cup.

In what has been a busy quarter for the club, United completed the strategic acquisition of BSkyB’s one-third stake in MUTV, taking full control of its global television channel. New York-based investment firm BlackRock last month also acquired 8.21% of the available shares in United, continuing the upward trend enjoyed by its listing on the New York Stock Exchange. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, BlackRock said it acquired 3.3 million shares in Manchester United PLC, with the transaction valued at around US$55 million on the club’s share price at the time. Following an indifferent debut in August, United’s stock has risen substantially in the past three months, and at close of trading on Thursday stood at $18.51 – representing a market capitalisation of $3.06 billion. Commenting on the club’s financial results, executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward said: “Manchester United achieved record revenue and record adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter driven by our commercial operation, which continues to experience extremely strong growth particularly in sponsorship. In addition, our acquisition of BSkyB’s one third stake in Manchester United’s global television channel MUTV will be key in expanding our media business in the future.”

In an interesting aside to Thursday’s results, United revealed it has agreed an eight-year sponsorship agreement for its training kit rights, adding an official announcement will be made in the near future. United in October reached a settlement agreement on its training kit sponsorship with DHL in the belief that the partnership was significantly undervalued. The leading logistics company upgraded its relationship with the club in August 2011 to become its first official training kit sponsor. DHL had been United’s official logistics partner for a year, and the four-year agreement, worth £40 million, had seen the company’s logo included on the club’s training kit during domestic competitions. The agreement dwarfed the revenues that the majority of United’s Premier League rivals generate for their main shirt sponsors, but United believed that it could secure a more lucrative deal.