Manchester United Football Club Front office - Escuela Internacional Model United Nations November Crisis Committee
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
1
Manchester United
Football Club
Front office
Escuela Internacional Model United
Nations November Crisis Committee
2
I. Letter from the Chair (Page 3)
II. Structure and Procedure (Page 4)
III. Committee Timeline (Page 5)
IV. History (Page 6-8)
V. Topics and Position Papers (Page 9-11)
VI. Roles (Page 12-14)
VII. Research (Page 15)
3
I. Letter from the Chair
Dear delegates,
Welcome to the Escuela Internacional Sampedrana MUN’s November Crisis! My name
is Mr. Harris and I will be your chair for the Manchester United Front Office. Your Vice Chair
will be Christopher Harris.
Manchester United has always been an important aspect of my life. Growing up overseas
the teams I was able to follow were limited to big name teams such as Real Madrid, AS Roma,
Juventos, Barcelona, AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Liverpool. However, one team stuck out among
the powerhouses, Manchester United. Throughout primary and secondary school I witnessed
“Fergies Fledglings” go on to win multiple league titles and the Champions league in 1999.
Manchester United is beyond a football club and is a symbol for the international game.
This was exemplified in a match played three seasons ago when Manchester United became the
first major football team to start eleven players from eleven different countries in a game. The
fan base of the team is also international, with 350 million fans in every nation on the planet. As
an individual who considers himself as an “international citizen” this team is truly symbolic for
the ideals and principles I live my life by.
The Manchester United Front Office committee will simulate one and a half seasons of
the English Premier League starting at January of 2014 ending June of 2015. Your task will be to
lead Manchester United towards two successful seasons. It will be your responsibility to come up
with policies and plans for the club that supporters could stand by and support. Spending large
sums of money is not a viable solution, especially with the recent introduction of “oil”
powerhouses such as PSG, Monaco and Manchester City. Instead, as a committee we seek
business savvy and innovative methods to compete with these oil rich clubs.
Each of you will have an area of the club that you will oversee. These areas may include
the likes of scouting, training, marketing, financing and medicine. Although this is a
“Manchester United” front office, many of the skills and know-how revolve around “Business”.
You are expected to not only understand the team and the sport, but the various business-related
transactions revolving around the club and how those transactions can be enhanced.
Glory Glory Man United.
Sincerely,
Nickolas Harris
4
II. Structure and Procedure
Our committee will be simulating the front office of the Manchester United football club.
The owner of the team Malcolm Glazer will be played by the Chair, Mr. Harris. The Co-Chair,
Chris Harris will play the part of Avram “Avi” Glazer, the son of Malcolm Glazer and the
Executive Co-Chairman and Director of the club.
As the front office of the organization your goal will be to help drive the clubforward
through advising the owner through directives passed by the body as a whole. The front office
must be ready to advise in all fields pertaining to running a football club. Whether the matter
may be dealing with individuals in the club team or dealing with sponsorships with transnational
corporations.
Each job comes with a specific power and you are permitted to make use of these
privileges through taking individual actions and informing the chair through a personal directive.
However, with that being said, personal directives have their limits. Ultimately, the committee
will be guided through decisions made by the room as a whole.
5
III. Committee Timeline
Session 1
The first session will take place between January 1nd to January 31st, 2104. The front office will
be in charge of making key mid-season decisions. The main decisions will be revolving around
the transfer of players and coaches. However, the front office must also take into consideration
the long-run future, budgets and meeting the demands of the fans.
Session 2
The second session will take place between February to late April. As the season progresses
towards its end the front office must take care of issues in and outside the stadium to help the
team progress towards defending its title.
Session 3
The third session will start off with the chairs informing delegates how the 2013-14 season
concluded. Based upon these results, various challenges and new issues will emerge. The front
office will have to make maximum use of its powers to direct the club in the right direction
during the summer of 2014.
Session 4
The fourth session will take place between September 1 to December 31st, 2014.
Session 5
The fifth session will take place between January 1st to January 31st, 2015.
Session 6
The final session will take place between February to the end of the season.
*The sessions may slide ahead or behind depending on the pace of the committees. The goal is
to go through 1.5 seasons throughout the six sessions.
6
IV. History
1878-1945: Newton Heath and James Gibson
In 1878, the Newton Heath LYR Football Club was formed
by Carriage and Wagon department of the Lancashire and
Yorkshire Railway depot at Newton Heath. The club began
to play for the top tier league from 1892. Eventually the
clubs name was changed in 1902 to “Manchester United”.
The club would go on to win its first league title in 1908 and
the FA Cup in 1909. In 1910, United made the move to Old
Trafford. United would find itself in between division 1 and
2 from 1922 to 1934. The club went through major financial disasters in 1931, where the club
would have gone bankrupt if it was not for the investments made by James W. Gibson. During
WWII United would participate in the wartime league.
1945-1968: Busby Babes, Munich Disaster and European Glory
In October of 1945, Matt Busby was appointed as
manager. Busby led the team to win the FA Cup in
1948 and the league in 1952. Busby fielded a very
young team in 1956, with the average age of only 22.
This team was coined as the “Busby Babes” by the
media. Matt Busbys team was involved with an
accident that took place in 1958, which claimed the
lives of eight players and many more staff of the team.
Busby survived, however was greatly injured in the
crash. In 1968 Manchester United would go on to become the first English team to win the
European Cup, beating Portugals Benfica 4-1 in the finals. This squad contained players such as
Bobby Charlton, Dennis Law and George Best.
1968-19: Relegation, Bryan Robson and Ron Atkinson
Manchester United was relegated in 1974. The team prior to regulation was
continuing to lose key players including George Best, Dennis Law and Bobby
Charleton. Ron Atkinson was appointed to manage the team from 1981, where
he broke the British record for transfer fees by signing Bryan Robson from
West Bromwich Albion. With Robson as manager, United would go on to win
the FA cup, but fail to win the title in 1983. In 1986 following a poor previous
season and a poor start to 1986-87, Atkinson was let go.
1986-1998 Fergusons Early Years
7
Alex Ferguson, former manager of Aberdeen was appointed
as manager for United in 1986. Ferguson’s United would
not win any silverware their first three seasons. However,
the fourth season United went on to win their first of many
trophies under the Ferguson era, winning the 1990 FA Cup.
United. The team would go on to participate the following
year in the UEFA Cup Winners Cup where they became
champions in 1991. From 1992 to1998 United marched on to be one of the dominant forces in
England and Europe. United during this period would go on to win the Premier league for 4
seasons between 1992 to1998 with 2 FA Cups acquired in
the same period. United acquired big name transfers
during this period including Eric Cantona in 1992, Roy
Keane in 1993 and Andy Cole in 1995. It was from this
time period where “Fergies Fledings” the group of young
Manchester United players recruited by Alex Ferguson
began to shine. These players included the likes of David
Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville, Paul
Scholes and Phil Neville.
1999-2004 The Most Successful Season Ever, Arrival of Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo
The 1998-1999 season was the most successful
season in Manchester United history. The club went
on to win the “treble” acquiring the FA Cup,
Champions League and Leagued title in the same
year. After beating Arsenal in injury time during the
FA Cup and scoring two goals in injury time to beat
Bayern Munich at the Champions league final,
United begun to earn its reputation as a “come back
team”.
In 2000, United went on to be the first team to win three seasons in a
row. Success continued, United would go on to win the Premier
League in 2000, 2001, and 2003 and go on to win the FA Cup in
2004. In 2003, Uniteds #7, David Beckham was sold to Real Madrid,
the same year, 18 year old Cristiano Ronaldo inherits United #7. One
season later, United purchased the 19 year old striker Wyane Rooney
from Everton for 25.6 million pounds. The two players would go on
to become key figures in Uniteds success in the 2000’s.
8
2005-2008 Start of the Glazer Era, Departure of Ronaldo
In 2005, the Glazer family became major
shareholders for Manchester United. In 2007 United
had one of the most successful seasons with the club
winning the league and seven players being selected
for the PFA Team of the Year. In 2008, the club
went on to win the Champions League defeating
rivals Chelsea in penalty kicks. The club then went
on to win the FIFA Club World Cup defeating South
American champions LDU Quito becoming the first English team to win the completion. At the
end of the season Cristiano Ronaldo went on to win the FIFA Ballon d’Or before his transfer to
the Spanish giants, Real Madrid at a record fee of 80 million pounds.
2009-2013 Rivalry with Manchester City
In 2008, rivals Manchester City went under new
ownership. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan,
the owner of the Abu Dhabi United Group took over
the club after purchasing the shares owned by
Thaksin Shinawatra. After the take over, massive
investments have been made by the Emarati, an
estimated 1 billion pounds of his personal money has
been utilized for the club. The club is now the fifth
richest football club in England and eleventh in the
world (based on a Deloitte study made in 2010).
Since the emergence of Manchester City the two Manchester Clubs have been dominate forces in
the Premier league with both teams finishing in the top three positions for the previous three
seasons. Although United have been successful domestically, at the European stage the English
Champions have failed to lift the Champions League cup since 2008. Although the club had
made it to the finals twice, they were eliminated both in 2009 and 2011 by Barcelona FC.
2013-Present Moyes and New Concerns
In May of 2013, Alex Ferguson announced his retirement.
There were several speculations made about who would take
his place, speculations including Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp
and Mark Hughes. It was announced shortly after that David
Moyes, the manager for Everton at the time would take the
Scotsmans place. The Moyes era as of October 12th, 2013 has seen major struggles both on and
off the pitch. On the pitch, United currently sits in 9th place between Hull City and Aston Villa
with 3 wins, 1 draw and 3 losses.
9
V. Topics and Position Papers
David Moyes
David Moyes managerial career did not get off to
a smooth start, even before the season started.
Despite being provided a large sum of money for
transfers, the Scotsman only major signing was the
25 year old Belgian, Fellaini for 27.5 million
pounds. The transfer was a consolation after the
team failed to land big names including Cesc
Fabregas, Leighton Baines, Fabio Coentrao, and
Daniele De Rossi. The 2013-14 season begun with United having their worst start in 24 years. As
of October 12th, United sit in 9th place. Fans are beginning to voice their concern over Moyes
capability of handling the role as manager at a “big club” given his lack of trophies won and
experience managing top teams. Although it takes time to build a squad, Manchester United fans
are used to seeing United at the top of the table. In fact, United have finished in the top every
season since 2005. If the poor form continues the front office must take into consideration the
possibility of replacing Moyes in the near future, despite his long term contract.
Exit of David Gill
David Gill, the former chief executive of Manchester United is often largely attributed to the
Ferugon era’s success. He was behind some of the most important transfers including, Vidic,
Carrick, Robin Van Persie and Rooney. Gill left
United at the same period Sir Alex Ferguson left
the club and was replaced by Ed Woodward.
Many fans believe that the lack of Gills presence
hindered United efforts in landing a big name
player in the summer of 2013. The pressure is
mounting on Gills replacement, Ed Woodward.
Despite Woodwards massive contribution
towards United the past few decades, his
position itself as Executive vice-chairman may
come to question depending on the outcome of
the upcoming winter and summer transfer windows.
Financial Fair Play (FFP)
FFP will fully be implemented from 2015. The FFP would mean that a clubs transfer fees and
player wages can only come from the clubs income from admissions, TV revenues, advertising,
merchandising, and sales. For Manchester United and other Premier
League clubs, the news of the Premier League signing a new contract
for a lucrative television deal was great news. However, United do
have one of the highest payrolls in the Premier League and must
begin to strategize ways to pay off players when the new rule sets in.
Although some fans believe that UEFA is only threatening teams, in
recent years these threats come to action. In the past two years alone,
teams such as Rubin Kazan, Athletico Madrid, Maraga and Fenebahce
have been fined or banned from tournaments for not following FFP.
10
Manchester United Debt
Manchester United is currently in heavy debt. The
team owes 390 million pounds, which had been
steadily increasing since the Glazer take over in
2005. However, this debt in the past 12 months
has dropped, as profits rose 282% with United
completing several global sponsorship
partnerships, including a shirt deal with Chevrolet.
With the financial fair play looming, Manchester
United must come up with business strategies that can maximize the profits for the team. The
front office must be creative and innovative and think of new ways the club can bring in greater
revenue in order to minimize the existing debt.
International Brand
According to Forbes, Manchester United is the second most valued team in the world at 3.2
billion US dollars. United is behind first place Real Madrid at 3.3 billion US dollars and far
ahead of the 2nd and 3rd most valuable teams in England (Arsenal at
945 million US dollars and Manchester City at 651 million US
dollars). Manchester United has a global fan base, and it is the front
offices responsibility to come up with fiscal policies that can create
business models, which take advantage global support. The team
currently takes advantage of the summers by touring around the
world in order to play in front of the global fan base. With the value
of the club continually increasing Manchester United must continue
to come up with various club policies to promote their global image.
Rooney Issue
There was a fall out between Rooney and Sir Alex Ferguson at the end of the 2012-13 season
over the controversy of Rooneys transfer request. Sir Alex Ferguson claimed that Rooney had
submitted a transfer request, while Rooney denied these allegations. However, this was not the
first time Rooney had submitted a transfer request. In 2010, Wayne Rooney handed in a transfer
request after the club denied him a raise in his wages. The request was later withdrawn when
Rooney was rewarded a new contract of 250,000 pounds a week, making him the highest paid
United player in the history of the club. Although the truth to
whether or not Rooney handed in a transfer request is
unclear, the scandal alone has soured the relationship
between Rooney and a section of United fans. Although
Rooney ultimately stayed with United after the summer
transfer window, talks and negotiations continue with
Rooneys agent and the club in regards to his future. When
receiving offers for Wayne Rooney the board must take into
consideration whether Wayne Rooney is one of the premier
leagues top class strikers. Is he worth the 250,000 pounds he
receives a year? How can the club convince him to say?
What are Rooneys demands?11 Big Name Signing Each year the so-called “Big Clubs”, such as Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester United are looking for key signings to satisfy the fans demands and to elevate the status of the club. In 2013, European rivals made major signings such as, Mario Gotze to Bayern Munich for 32.5 million pounds, Fernandinho to Manchester City for 35 million pounds, Mesut Ozil to Arsenal for 42.5 million pounds, Neymar to Barcelona for 50 million pounds, Edinson Cavani to PSG for 57 million pounds and Gareth Bale to Real Madrid for 88 million pounds. United during this period only managed to sign Felaini from Everton. As a result, fans were unhappy after the summer transfer window and the board is now prepared to invest in a major signings during the winter transfer window. Position Paper The position paper should be a 3-5 paragraph essay addressing solutions to the topics above. Due to the fact that there are a variety of topics and issues, it is recommended that delegates subjectively decide which topics they would prefer to prioritize. Additionally, delegates should take into consideration that certain issues will be prioritized based upon the session taking place and the chairs decisions. For example, in the first session the issue of signing a new player during the winter transfer window would be one of the main priorities. Although the committee will be in charge of both the business side and strategic elements of team building, the committee will most likely focus on transfers. Delegates will be expected to be able to contribute to discussion in regards to both how to run a business, but also create a winning team.
12
VI. Roles
Our committee will be simulating the front office of the Manchester United football club. The
owner of the team Malcolm Glazer will be simulated by the chair. The chair has modified the
front office by adding fictional characters who are not part of the front office in real life in order
to create a more diverse and lively front office group.
Ed Woodward
Executive vice-chairman
Woodward has major influence over the transfer activities of the club working directly alongside
with manager David Moyes. The former PricewaterhouseCoopers accountant has been under
great pressure after failing to contribute to landing a big
name signing during the summer of 2013. Woodward has a
background of working in the commercial and media
operations in Manchester United, and was successful in
signing various sponsorship deals for the club. Woodward
has the most influence over transfers, however, this also
means Woodward will be the one to burden responsibility
for failed transfer windows.
Richard Arnold
Commercial Director and Director
Arnold is responsible for the management and the growth of
Uniteds sponsorships, retail, and apparel. He is heavily involved
with the marketing and licensing of the products and was
nominated in 2011 for SportBusiness Internationals Sports
innovator of the year. Arnold has heavy ties with the sponsors
and is well connected with the corporate world. Arnold has the
powers to independently negotiate with corporate sponsors for
new deals or extensions for existing sponsor contracts.
Michael Bolingbroke
Chief Operating Office (COO)
Bolingbroke is responsible for the clubs ticketing, hospitality,
property management and corporate services including
finance. As COO, Bolingbroke oversees the day to day
operations of the club and has major influence over stadium
related decisions such as stadium reformations, ticket prices
and deals, and13
Phil Neville
Director of Player Personnel (Fiction)
Phil Neville is a former Manchester United and Everton footballer. He
returned back to Manchester United the summer of 2013 to serve as the
director of player personnel. Neville was the captain for Everton under
David Moyes prior to his departure to Manchester United the summer of
2013. Neville is a rookie in the front office, but his ample knowledge of the
premier league, and his past experience of being the captain for Moyes gives
him major influence over the manager and players. As director of player
personnel, Neville has the unique role of being able to interact directly with
players on a daily basis. He can help the front office move forward through
directly contacting players.
Sir Alex Ferguson
Special Adviser to Club (Fiction)
Sir Alex Ferguson, the former manager for Manchester United
has been part of the Manchester United family for over 26
years. He will contribute to the club by providing advice in
how to run the club at all levels, ranging from day to day
operations, transfers to sponsorships. Sir Alex Ferguson has a
great presence in the club and his public statements will be
taken seriously by the media and fans. However, as a rookie
on the board, Sir Alex Ferguson does not have specific powers that many of the other board
members possess. Instead, Sir Alex will try to influence the club through using his political
power and putting pressure on the club through media.
Joey Whitehead (Fiction)
Director of Player Development (Fiction)
A former Manchester United player, Whitehead was only able to earn 34 caps and 2 goals during
his career as a player. However, as a coach Whitehead has had a successful run with the club.
After completing 5 years as the youth coach at Derby County, Whitehead joined United as a
coach for the youth squad from 1990 to 1998. He joined the front office in 1998 as the director of
player development. Today, he oversees the development of players in the Academy. Whitehead
has the ability to recommend the promotion of youth players and direction for youth
development. United currently boast the #1 academy in England and #5 in the world and many
attribute this success to Whiteheads work.14 Jeffery Scott (Fiction) President for Corporate Relations (Fiction) Jefferey Scott is the former COO for Nike who is currently in charge of maintaining the clubs relations with corporate sponsors. At age 19, Scott graduated Stanford University and joined consulting firm Bain Consulting. After completing several years at Bain, Scott moved on to Harvard Buisness school where he earned his MBA in 2007. He joined the front office in the spring of 2012 as one of the youngest members of the board. With European footballer seeing the emergence of oil rich owners purchasing teams across Europe, Manchester United is attempting to hold on to its team value through innovative and creative ideas. Scott is the “golden child” of the group and is expected to come up with innovative business ideas. Thomas Stern (Fiction) Marketing and Brand Development (Fiction) Stern is in charge of the keeping the prestigious United brand popular internationally. He is in charge of the clubs marketing strategy, and works closely with existing sponsors in order to expand the United brand to its maximum capacity. Nicholas Swanson (Fiction) Adviser (Fiction) Nicholas Swanson serves on the board as a general adviser. Michael McGeedy (Fiction) Adviser (Fiction) Nicholas Swanson serves on the board as a general adviser. Emily Brown (Fiction) Adviser (Fiction) Emily Brown serves on the board as a general adviser.
15
VII. Research
Research Issues:
1. Manchester United’s global image and corporate values
2. The effects of the Glazer take over
3. Manchester United’s debt
4. Manchester United’s stock performance
5. The effects of Financial Fair Play (FFP)
6. The business strategy of the Manchester United Football Club
7. Possible players to transfer out of Manchester United
8. Possible players to transfer in to Manchester United
9. Salary caps for Manchester United (and for other teams in the English Premier League)
10. How to deal with Wayne Rooney the transfer window in 2013/2014
Websites:
http://www.manutd.com/en/Club/Club-Contacts.aspx
http://ir.manutd.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=133303&p=irol-irhome
http://www.economist.com/topics/manchester-united
http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/en/manchester-united/fakten/verein_985.html
http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=879581
http://bsr.london.edu/lbs-article/644/index.html16
United’s flag is deepest red
It shrouded all our Munich dead
Before their limbs grew stiff and cold
Their heart’s blood dyed it’s ev’ry fold
Then raise United’s banner high
Beneath it’s shade we’ll live and die
So keep the faith and never fear
We’ll keep the Red Flag flying here
We’ll never die, we’ll never die
We’ll never die, we’ll never die
We’ll keep the Red flag flying high
‘Cos Man United will never dieYou can also read
