Manchester United's executive co-chairmen Avie (left) and Joel Glazer. In total, six members of the Glazer family are directors of the club.
Man Utd: Fans group criticises £16m Glazer dividend
A fans group has criticised Manchester United's new dividend that will pay the Glazer family over £16m a year.
United have not paid a dividend on their shares, which have been floated on the US Stock Exchange since 2012.
That policy will change, with shareholders getting 0.045 cents (£0.03) per share each quarter.
Manchester United Supporters Trust vice-chairman Sean Bones said: "This is rubbing salt into the wound. Profits from the club should go back into it."
A United spokesman said the owners were committed to investing in the team and that the dividend payment underlined the club's strong financial position.
The announcement came on the same day United said they were considering selling a further 24 million ''Class A'' shares.
Although the filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission does not mean the Glazers are certain to proceed with the sale, it would speed up the process should they choose to do so during its three year lifespan.
How the Glazer family will get £16m
In total, there are approximately 164 million shares in United.
The vast majority, around 83%, are Class B shares, owned by the Glazer family.
The remainder are Class A shares, that have been sold in three separate sales, the first in 2012, followed by two in 2014, the latter solely on behalf of Edward Glazer.
Providing the dividend announced during a conference call to investors following the release of the club's 2015 annual results is maintained as United anticipate, the Glazers' combined shareholding will receive $24.5m (£15.79m) annually.
"The Glazer family have already cost us £1bn in interest payments," said Bones.
"They are sitting on an asset worth £2bn, which still has debts of over £400m, yet are now milking it for even more. How greedy can you get?"
United spent £113.7m on six new players this summer, recouping £74m, including £44.3m from Paris St-Germain for Angel di Maria.
What else did Manchester United say?
United's recorded a £38m fall in total revenue in the year to 30 June 2015.
It is estimated the club lost £35m through their failure to qualify for last season's Champions League.
Hopes remain high for this season's competition, despite Louis van Gaal's side losing their opening group game to PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday.
"We have not changed our assumptions," said United's head of corporate finance Hemen Tseayo, when asked about financial projections. "Quarter-final in the Champions League. For (financial) modelling purposes, I would keep it the same."
Executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward said there remained a "great belief" in the concept of Financial Fair Play across Europe's top clubs, despite a relaxation in the rules.
In addition, Woodward hinted that more cash will be heading the Premier League's way if a six-year contract with US broadcaster NBC, said to be worth £640m over the course of the deal, is any guide.
"The Premier League has been in the market for a few months and my expectation is that the bulk will be done through to end of year," he said.
"We don't get reported to on a granular basis but the numbers around the deal in the States are not far off. It is positive, definitely heading in the right direction in terms of where you would expect it to go."