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Manchester United goes Facebook road with an IPO in America

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By Noel Young, Correspondent

July 4, 2012 | 3 min read

After Facebook, Manchester United! The famous English club , owned by the American Glazer family, is going down the Facebook road with an initial public offering of shares in America.

The club crest

The club has filed plans to raise $100 million in an initial public offering in the U.S. No launch date or price range has been set.

There will be two share classes, Class A and Class B, with Class B controlling most of the voting rights, said the Wall Street Journal. The plan is to list on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Glazer family also own Florida's Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

According to the American filing, United had $520 million in revenue last year - but the team also has $664 million in debt.

The WSJ said critics have blamed this debt burden from preventing the club from acquiring the top players in the world. The team is still profitable, however.

United has won 60 trophies in its 134-year history but this season has been disappointing . United was beaten to the Premier League title by Manchester City and was eliminated from the European club championship before the final knockout rounds .

While the team is going through with the public offering, said the WSJ, the Glazers intend to remain in full control.

"The interests of our principal shareholder might not coincide with the interests of the other holders of our capital stock," the filing warned.

United also warns would-be shareholders that much of its revenue depends on team performance. Match-day revenue fell to $173.8 million in 2011 from $179.5 in 2009.

The Journal added, "Still, United remains a cash cow in international soccer. Insurance company Aon PLC pays the team $31.4 million to put its name on United's uniforms." A deal with Nike brought in $40 million in 2011.

United would be one of the first sports teams to go public in the U.S. in more than a decade. The last team was the Cleveland Indians in 1998.

Man U called off plans for a $1 billion IPO in Singapore last year amid market volatility.

United says its key competitive strengths are its globally recognised name and its ability to monetise that as a brand.

It plans to expand its portfolio of global and regional sponsors, and to expand its global broadcasting platform, MUTV.

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