LONDON - When a successful chief executive finally bows out, investors often fret that his replacement won’t be able to replicate past glories.
On Wednesday, shareholders of Manchester United - one of the world’s most successful soccer teams - faced similar worries after Alex Ferguson, the club’s 71-year-old manager, abruptly announced his retirement at the end of the season.
In early morning trading in New York on Wednesday, shares of the English club, which went public last year, tumbled as much 4.7 percent â€" putting the premium placed on Mr. Ferguson as worth some $146 million. Later in the morning, the shares recovered a bit, trading down a bit less than 2 percent.
While rumors abounded for years that Mr. Ferguson, who has won 13 English Premier League titles since taking over at Manchester United in 1986, would call it quits, the announcement, made early on Wednesday morning, caught many off guard.
During the most recent English soccer season, which finishes later this month and has seen Manchester United being crowned as champions for the 20th time, the club’s Scottish manager had given several interviews stating that he was not ready to retire.
On Wednesday, all that changed.
“The decision to retire is one that I have thought a great deal about and one that I have not taken lightly,†Mr. Ferguson said in a statement. “It is the right time.â€
Investors and the club’s global fan base must now turn their attention to who will replace one of the most successful soccer managers of all time.
The decision could have a direct impact on Manchester United’ financial performance. Before the team raised $232 million in an initial public offering last year, it raised concerns that the club’s success over the last two decades could not be guaranteed when Mr. Ferguson eventually retired.
“We are highly dependent on members of our management, coaching staff and our players,†the soccer team cautioned in its I.P.O. prospectus in August. “Any successor to our current manager may not be as successful as our current manager.â€
Mr. Ferguson’s shoes will be hard to fill.
Since becoming a manager in Scotland in the 1970’s, he has won almost 50 trophies, including 13 English Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies, with several British clubs.
In comparison, Matt Busby, Manchester United’s legendary post-war manager, won five league titles and a European Cup.
By the afternoon on Wednesday, British bookmakers had slashed the odds of José Mourinho, currently the manager of the Spanish club Real Madrid, becoming the new head of Manchester United, while David Moyes, the manager of the Liverpool club Everton, also remained a favorite to take the helm at Manchester United.
