Four tickets were purchased by Bournville College in Birmingham under former principal Norman Cave, a Freedom of Information request has revealed.
The Longbridge further education college also held a Â£170,000 centenary event, a Â£35,000 staff party, and paid consultants Â£2.8m over three years.
Mr Cave, who has since retired, denied any claims of financial mismanagement.
Updates on this story and more from Birmingham
New bosses at the college said they no longer had the season tickets.
A whistleblower, who wished to remain anonymous, said previous management was "chaotic" and it was "clear funds were spent where they shouldn't have been".
Referring to the Manchester United tickets, the source told the BBC: "I could possibly understand it if it were a local team [and] you would be showing off Birmingham at its best, but Manchester? No."
More than 100 redundancies were made at the college during the last year- almost a quarter of the workforce.
New interim principal Michelle Sutton said: "The college has experienced a period of financial challenges as a result of some of the strategic decisions that have been taken in the past."
She said the management team had been halved in size and that a recovery plan was now in place.
Regarding the football tickets, the college added: "The previous management team pursued a strategy of growth, of which the relationship with Manchester United was part.
"The new management team and board cannot comment further on the rationale and detail behind decisions taken by the previous management team.
"However, we can confirm that these arrangements no longer exist."

The code received widespread support during consultation and was unanimously approved by the Scottish Parliament.
It was introduced following concerns over the number of people being searched without a legal basis.
The code says statutory searches must be "necessary, proportionate and in accordance with the law". There is also specific guidance on dealing with children and vulnerable adults.
Non-statutory or "consensual" stop-and-searches are now banned entirely.
The new code was drawn up by an advisory group led by John Scott QC.
Justice Secretary Michael Matheson said: "The ability of police to stop and search individuals can be an intrusion into liberty and privacy, but remains a valuable tool in combating crime.
"I have spent some time with police officers using the new code on our streets and am in no doubt that such searches will be carried out with fairness, integrity and respect.
"The views expressed during the consultation period were absolutely key to shaping the new code."
The code states that stopping and searching must be done for a good reason and be both "necessary and proportionate".
This means that officers must have a "reasonable suspicion" based on "facts, information and/or intelligence" that the person being searched is likely to be carrying an illegal item.
Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Mark Williams said: "Police Scotland welcomes the introduction of the code and has worked closely with the Scottish government to support its development.
"It provides clear guidance to all our officers and places the rights of the individuals at the centre of any decision to carry out a search.
"In preparation for the introduction of the code, all frontline officers have received training and we will continue to work closely with partners, particularly children and young people, to monitor its impact."
A college bought Manchester United season tickets in a "growth strategy" before cutting more than 100 jobs.
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A new code of practice on police stop-and-search powers has come into force.