Richard Arnold has stepped down as Manchester United CEO as part of a wider executive restructure. Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s bid for 25% of the club is expected to be ratified in the near future and it is believed that Arnold’s departure is linked to the upcoming deal.
INEOS founder Ratcliffe is putting his own team in place. The company’s head of sport, Sir Dave Brailsford, has been carrying out an operational audit of Manchester United. Ratcliffe’s deal is predicated on taking sporting control of the club. Therefore, INEOS want to be identify areas of improvement where their expertise across numerous sports can be harnessed. Ratcliffe’s firm owns Nice in Ligue 1, the Grenadiers cycling team and has interests in F1 and rugby.
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Arnold’s tenure saw him rise from group commercial director to managing director before taking the CEO job when the highly controversial Ed Woodward left in 2022. His tenure was marred by his response to the Mason Greenwood situation. Arnold became the public face of the decision to restore the player to the team when the charges of attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm were dropped against the player. After the decision leaked, public outcry from both supporters and charities led the club to backtrack on the decision.
Initially there was extremely cautious optimism over Arnold. He was secretly recorded talking to fans in a pub and impressed many with his honest and measured responses to their questions borne out of their general frustration at the direction of the club. But this ultimately proved to be a false dawn, as nothing substantial changed under Arnold’s stewardship. The CEO was involved in the hiring of manager Erik ten Hag and United won the 2023 Carabao Cup, their first trophy since 2017. But the wider state of the club is largely the same as it was under Woodward.
Will INEOS change that? That remains to be seen. For now the role of CEO will be carried out by Patrick Stewart on an interim basis. Stewart has worked as the club’s legal counsel since 2006 and also sits on the board. Little is known about Stewart apart from having a name that has drawn the expected Star Trek and X-Men jokes. He serves on a number of boards and committees across football, working with the FA and the European Club Association. An experienced figure within football, Stewart has largely operated behind closed doors. While Arnold always looked like Woodward’s heir apparent, this move is more unexpected.
It is unlikely to last. Stewart will likely provide a steady pair of hands while Ratcliffe and INEOS get their ducks in a row. Considering their imminent arrival, Stewart must be a figure they trust. Perhaps there will even be a continued role in the organisation for him when Ratcliffe takes over football operations as expected.
Eras don’t end at Manchester United. You’d be hard-pressed to call Arnold’s tenure an era anyway, given he only took over in February 2022. But in reality changing any of the personnel in the building doesn’t change United’s plight much, Managers have come and gone. Players too. Executives certainly haven’t steadied the ship. United remain a club in crisis and to many fans, that’s all they’ll ever be while the Glazers remain in overall charge. Good luck, Patrick. Good luck, Jim.
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