Manchester United have landed their first major signing since Sir Jim Ratcliffe's arrival at Old Trafford, but it's one which has come away from the field with Omar Berrada pinched from bitter local rivals Manchester City's City Football Group (GFP) to herald the beginning of a new era for the Red Devils. Berrada might not be a player for Erik ten Hag to slot into his starting XI to start bringing in immediate results, but he will be the new authoritative figure on the red half of Manchester who will start introducing new methods and working cultures once he takes office.
"Manchester United is pleased to announce the appointment of Omar Berrada as its new CEO," read Saturday's official club statement. "The Club is determined to put football and performance on the pitch back at the heart of everything we do. Omar's appointment represents the first step on this journey. As one of the most experienced football executives at the top of European football, Omar brings a wealth of football and commercial expertise, with a proven record of successful leadership and a passion to help lead change across the Club.
"He is currently serving as Chief Football Operations Officer for City Football Group overseeing 11 clubs across five continents and, prior to this, held senior roles at Barcelona. It is our stated ambition to re-establish Manchester United as a title-winning club. We are pleased that Omar will be joining us to help achieve that goal, so that, once again, United fans can see, in the words of Sir Matt Busby, the red flag flying high at the summit of English, European and world football. Omar's start date will be confirmed in due course; in the meantime, Patrick Stewart will continue as interim CEO."
Who, then, is Omar Berrada and why is the first time that many of you are hearing about him?
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Berrada's background
Back in 2011, Paris-born Moroccan Berrada was appointed as City's head of international business development having previously worked as Barcelona's head of sponsorship. He worked his way up the City hierarchy through various roles such as senior vice-president group commercial director before becoming the Premier League champions' chief operating officer by 2016. He was moved into a senior role in the City Football Group in 2020 and it is from that chief football operations office role with CFG that United have plucked him to be their new CEO. Despite being born in France to Moroccan parents, Berrada spent time growing up in the U.S. and joined Barca from Tiscali back in 2004.
A big loss for City
Berrada's rise through the ranks with City and CFG speaks for itself about how big a loss he will be for the Premier League and European champions. Having worked closely with Txiki Begiristain over the years, it will mean that a key aspect of business will need to be reconsidered and reconfigured moving forward knowing that United will likely improve under Berrada's watch and get back close to being something of a threat again in the coming years. As well as his commercial savvy, Berrada was also recognized as having played an increasingly influential on the financial side of player negotiations such as Aymeric Laporte's arrival back in 2018. City, no matter how well things are going on the field in the past few years, will need to consider his replacement extremely carefully so as to not destabilize themselves.
A big deal for United
United are a mess at present and Berrada is not going to arrive and simply wave a magic wand to fix all of that. However, it is a strong message to send within the first month since Sir Jim Ratcliffe's entry into the club that not only are things going to be change but that the long-term future at Old Trafford is bright enough for one of City's top executives to have crossed the divide. United are getting an expert across the sporting and non-sporting areas having seen up close the construction of a successful business model on the blue half of Manchester. The challenge is now for Berrada to get to grips with United's chaotic current nature and establish a workable model based up his experience with City and to a lesser degree Barcelona.
Berrada's United and INEOS mission
This is effectively the first move in an attempt to turn the tide and bring United back closer to English soccer's elite which they have drifted away from since Sir Alex Ferguson's departure and consequent failed succession plans. Berrada being one of INEOS' first moves suggests that Ratcliffe's involvement means business but also that the days of rewarding mediocrity from within under the Glazer family are over. United also remain a commercial force with a substantial following despite years of underachievement and the expectation will be for that might to be put to better use than it has been in recent years.
