ISLAMABAD
\nQatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe made their third and final offers to buy Manchester United on Friday
\nQatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe made their third and final offers to buy Manchester United on Friday. Sheikh Jassim is in a bidding war with Ratcliffe after the pair emerged as the main contenders to buy the Premier League club from the Glazer family.
\nWhile Sheikh Jassim\u2019s latest offer is reported to be over GBP 5 billion ($6.2 billion), the size of Ratcliffe\u2019s improved bid was yet to be made public when Friday\u2019s deadline for the third round of bidding passed at 2100 GMT. Sources said Sheikh Jassim\u2019s bid for 100 percent control of the club comes with the promise of significant additional funding for transfers and infrastructure. The spending would include either redeveloping United\u2019s out-dated Old Trafford stadium or build a new ground, along with overhauling the club\u2019s training facilities.
\nSheikh Jassim\u2019s bid also promises to erase United\u2019s $620 million debt. INEOS chemical company founder Ratcliffe, a boyhood United fan who failed in his attempt to buy Chelsea last year, reportedly wants to purchase a controlling stake in United of more than 50 per cent.
\nThat would allow United\u2019s executive co-chairmen Joel and Avram Glazer to remain as shareholders with a 20 percent stake, which has raised concerns among a fanbase tired of the Americans\u2019 controversial reign.
\nThe Glazers reportedly want a world record GBP 6 billion fee for a sports club before they agree to sell the Old Trafford outfit, raising the possibility they might not accept either Sheikh Jassim\u2019s offer or Ratcliffe\u2019s approach.
\nDeeply unpopular with supporters since they saddled the club with debt in a GBP 790 million leveraged takeover in 2005, the Glazers appeared ready to cash out at an enormous profit when they first invited external investment in November.
\nHowever, Elliot Investment Management and The Carlyle Group are among the private equity firms in the market for a minority stake that could allow the Glazers to retain control and provide the funding for investment in the club\u2019s infrastructure.
\nAvram and Joel Glazer are reportedly keen to hold on to their stakes in United, while siblings and fellow directors Kevin, Bryan and Edward Glazer and Darcie Glazer Kassewitz are open to offloading their shares.
\nOffers from the last round of bidding, a process run for the Glazers by New York merchant bank the Raine Group, were believed to have been worth a maximum of GBP 5 billion.
\nThat would have smashed the Premier League record of GBP 2.5 billion paid for Chelsea last year by a consortium led by Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly and private equity firm Clearlake Capital, with a further GBP 1.75 billion promised in investment in infrastructure and players.
\n\u2018Dire need\u2019
\nThe Manchester United Supporters\u2019 Trust (MUST) has called for a swift conclusion to the process to allow new owners to be in place for the summer transfer window.
\n\u201cWe are in dire need of new investment, which undoubtedly requires new ownership. MUST, along with United fans all around the world, are calling for this process to be concluded without further delay,\u201d the fans\u2019 group said in a statement. United fans are believed to be planning a protest against the Glazers ahead of Sunday\u2019s match with Aston Villa at Old Trafford.
\nDecade of decline
\nUnder the Glazers\u2019 ownership, United have been in a steady decline on and off the field over the past decade.
\nThe Red Devils have not won the Premier League title since former manager Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, while the club\u2019s revenue has fallen behind local rivals Manchester City and Liverpool due to a lack of regular Champions League football and a failure to modernise Old Trafford.
\nBut they are enjoying a renaissance under Erik ten Hag\u2019s management this season, having ended a six-year trophy drought by lifting the League Cup in February. They also face Manchester City in the FA Cup final on June 3.
\nJust months after hosting the 2022 World Cup, a successful Qatari bid would give the Gulf state pride of place in the Premier League — the world\u2019s most-watched domestic competition.
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\nBut Sheikh Jassim is the son of former Qatari prime minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, and his close links to the gulf state\u2019s ruling elite would raise questions over another Premier League club becoming a state-backed project.
\nFinnish tycoon Thomas Zilliacus is the outside contender, having recently said his offer from the second round of bidding still stood despite labelling the prolonged sale process as a \u201cfarce\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe made their third and final offers to buy Manchester United on Friday Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe made their third and final offers to buy Manchester United on Friday. Sheikh Jassim is in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":328465,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-328458","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n