Manchester United have appointed a financial chief amid growing optimism at Old Trafford that the club will become the richest in the world within 12 months.

Cliff Baty has taken the newly-created post in a move United say was taken 'to meet the growing needs of such a rapidly growing business'.

They are estimating record revenues of £500million for the coming year, thanks in no small part to their world record, £750m 10-year kit deal with adidas.

Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney leads his team out for the derby against City on Sunday

10 RICHEST CLUBS IN THE WORLD* 1) Real Madrid (value: £2.17bn) 2) Barcelona (£2.1bn) 3) Manchester United (£2.03bn) 4) Bayern Munich (£1.51bn) 5) Manchester City (£910m) 6) Chelsea (£900m) 7) Arsenal (£850m) 8) Liverpool (£646m) 9) Juventus (£550m) 10) AC Milan (£510m) *according to Forbes list published May 2015 Advertisement

Should that come off, United are likely to overtake Real Madrid, who have topped Deloitte's rich list for the last 10 years.

But it is 2016-17 which has got Old Trafford top brass even more excited.

Because that is when the seismic effect of the Premier League's £5bn TV rights agreement will kick in.

The staggering deal will mean that even the side finishing bottom of the table will pocket £99m, with those at the top looking at around £150m.

And Sportsmail understands that it is with one eye on that windfall that United decided to bring former 45-year-old Ladbrokes and Sportech executive Baty, who is thought to have a 12-month notice period with his existing employers, to the club.

Crowds gather outside Old Trafford - England's largest club stadium - before the Manchester derby

New Manchester United CFO Cliff Baty

A spokesman for United said: 'The club retains the knowledge and expertise of Steve Deaville, the Director of Group Finance but in appointing Cliff, has strengthened its finance team to meet the growing needs of such a rapidly developing business.

'Revenues in the current year are expected to grow from £395m to over £500m (26 per cent projected increase).

'Steve will report to Cliff when he starts.'

Executive vice chairman Ed Woodward added: 'We are very pleased to welcome Cliff to the club.

'He is a proven finance executive who brings a wealth of international business experience, and will be an excellent addition to our senior management team.'

Real Madrid, with Cristiano Ronaldo (left) starring against Celta Vigo at the weekend, top the football rich list