Cristiano Ronaldo faces imminent financial blow that could scupper Man Utd takeover dream

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Cristiano Ronaldo could see a loss on his investment in Spanish second-tier side Almeria if they fail to be promoted this season. And such a setback could put him off investing in Manchester United in the future according to a football finance expert.

Late last month, the Portuguese footballing icon dipped his toes into club ownership for the first time. Through his company CR7 Sports Investments he purchased a 25 per cent stake in Almeria.

The 41-year-old joins an existing ownership group led by Saudi investor Mohamed Al-Khereiji that took over the club in 2025. Almeria are currently fighting for promotion to La Liga .

Should they fail to secure a place in the top flight for next season, Al-Nassr star Ronaldo may see his stake depreciate and he could lose millions, it has been claimed. This may dent his aspiration to become a shareholder at Old Trafford .

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Speaking to OLBG , football finance expert Professor Rob Wilson said: "Almeria is a less conventional investment and it comes across more as a strategic brand opportunity for Cristiano Ronaldo .

"From a football finance perspective, in particular, minority stakes rarely deliver meaningful short-term cash returns so he's going to be looking at a long-term upside through commercial expansion of the club and global visibility he can articulate with his brand.

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"Ronaldo's off-the-field empire expands through hospitality and media so the stake isn't going to materially shift his earnings in the short-term and probably not in the medium term either.

"Realistically, short impact on Ronaldo's wider business empire, will sit up to £5m annually. It's relative to his off-the-field earnings which are in the hundreds of millions per year.

"Ronaldo could certainly suffer an initial loss. We know football clubs are volatile so if the club fails to control its costs and secure promotion to LaLiga, the valuation of the club could stagnate or fall.

"The downside is a loss of up to 30 per cent in enterprise value so his 25 per cent holding would decline proportionately. If we assume his stake in the club is worth £50million, then his loss could be £10million to £15million depending on the severity."

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In the past, Ronaldo has hinted that buying a stake in United could be on his agenda . In particular, at the 2024 Dubai Globe Soccer Awards he put himself in the owner's shoes.

"The problem is not always the coach. It's much more than that. If I will be the owner of the club, I will make things clear and adjust things that are bad there," he said.

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