Man Utd takeover: Ratcliffe makes £245m ‘pledge’ with ‘deal announcement expected’ imminently
According to reports, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s takeover of Premier League giants Manchester United is ‘expected to be announced within a fortnight’.
The Glazer family announced in November 2022 that they had put Man Utd on the market. Despite this, it has been unclear over the past year as to whether they would sanction a full sale.
Ratcliffe and Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim have been leading the takeover race but the Glazer family have also received interest from several potential minority stakeholders.
The INEOS chief was initially looking to buy a majority stake in Man Utd right away but his revised offer would allow the current owners to remain on board. Sheikh Jassim meanwhile has only been interested in a full takeover and his highest bid was worth around £5bn.
With Sheikh Jassim growing increasingly frustrated, he recently decided to withdraw his interest in Man Utd and this leaves Ratcliffe on the brink of completing a deal.
It has been widely reported in recent weeks that will buy a 25% stake – worth around £1.25bn – in Man Utd (who are fourth in the 2023 Premier League net spend table) but he would immediately take control of footballing matters at Old Trafford.
Sky News are now reporting that ‘Ratcliffe is to commit $300m (£245m) from his multibillion pound fortune to Manchester United Football Club’s ageing infrastructure as part of a deal to acquire a 25% stake that will be unveiled this month’.
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It is said that this ‘investment pledge’ will come ‘alongside the acquisition of a shareholding likely to be worth more than £1.25bn’. The report adds.
‘Sources said on Friday that the £245m investment would be staggered, with the bulk of it being handed to the club by the end of the year. They added that it would be financed by Sir Jim personally and would not add to Manchester United’s existing borrowings.
‘Adding together the cost of the stock purchase and the other capital for investment means that Sir Jim will be committing about £1.5bn on day one of his United interest, although that figure could vary depending on the price he ultimately pays for the shares.
‘The deal is expected to be announced within a fortnight, although negotiations between Sir Jim’s team and the Glazers are ongoing, meaning that the timetable for an announcement remains subject to change.
‘One source close to the talks said the additional $300m investment would be focused on United’s physical infrastructure, and not on addressing deficiencies on the playing side of the club.’
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