English Premier League club Manchester United posted a 10% fall in first quarter revenue as the absence of lucrative Champions League soccer this season took its toll.
United are currently seventh in the table and are still struggling with what has been a dismal transition since Alex Ferguson retired as manager in May 2013.
The club said today that total revenue fell to £88.7m in the three months to September 30.
That compared to £98.5m posted a year ago but was ahead of an analyst consensus forecast of £86m.
An 8.6% drop in adjusted core earnings to £20.3m was also ahead of analyst expectations of £14.5m, helped by a rise in sponsorship money and a lower wage bill.
"While we recognise that the 2014/15 fiscal year financial results will reflect our absence from the Champions League, we are excited to focus our efforts on the meaningful growth opportunities in sponsorship, digital media and retail and merchandising," United's executive vice chairman Ed Woodward said.
The club's global appeal, which is says stretches to 659 million followers, continued to prove lucrative, with five sponsorship deals signed in the quarter as well as a world record £750m kit deal with Adidas.
However, its broadcasting and matchday revenues took a hit, falling 13% and 22% respectively, as the impact of last season's failure to qualify for the Champions League, Europe's top club competition, was laid bare.
This season is the club's first without European soccer for over two decades. United, majority owned by the American Glazer family, reiterated expectations for lower full-year revenue of £385-395m, and core earnings of £90-95m.
