David Conn explains how the purchase of Manchester United by the American Glazer family seven years ago with a leveraged buyout created a $780 million debt for the club.

The latest quarterfinal financial report shows that from October to December 2011, the cost of the Glazers' leveraged buyout of United -- when they loaded their own $823 borrowings on to the club itself to repay, was $27 million. The club paid $19 million in interest and other financing charges, and $8.3 million paying off some actual debt, which nevertheless remains over $620 million.

Andy Green in his "Love United, Hate Glazer" Andersred blog documented that the total drained out of United in interest, bank charges and other payments before these latest figures was $750 million.

So the total cash taken out of United, to pay for a takeover the fans and then board did not want, was more than $780 million by Dec. 31, 2011.