Ineos Founder Sir Jim Ratcliffe Joins Qataris to Buy Manchester United
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Qatar Islamic Bank chairman Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani are expected to engage in a bidding war for the ownership of Manchester United. And there’s also serious interest from the US and Saudi Arabia in buying the club.
GossipA-Z has learned that Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s company INEOS has submitted a bid for Manchester United.
It follows the confirmation by the chairman of Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) that he had made an offer for the club.
A source described Sir Jim’s bid as a “British bid to make the club a shining example of a modern, progressive, fan-centric approach to ownership.”
The billionaire, one of Britain’s wealthiest individuals, has never concealed his desire to purchase the club.
As a child, he supported United, and he is believed to still be a fan.
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He also owns the cycling team Ineos Grenadiers, Ligue 1 club Nice, which he took over in 2019, and the Swiss Super League club FC Lausanne-Sport.
Manchester United’s current owners, the Glazer family, had set a “soft” deadline of 10 pm on Friday.
In a statement, Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani, who is heading the Qatari attempt “confirmed a submission for a bid for 100% of Manchester United Football Club”.
The statement continued, “The bid intends to restore the club to its former glory both on and off the field, and will seek to put the fans back at the center of the football club.”
“The bid will be 100% debt-free, via Sheikh Jassim’s Nine Two Foundation which will look to invest in the football teams, the training center, the stadium, and the wider infrastructure.”
The Nine Two Foundation is a new financial entity set up to privately fund the bid.
Sheikh Jassim, whose father Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al Thani is a former prime minister of Qatar, was educated in Britain at Sandhurst military academy, he graduated as an officer cadet and has been chairman at QIB, as well as having roles at other clubs. Sheikh Jassim, who was born in 1982, claims to be a lifelong Manchester United supporter.
The Glazer family, who purchased Manchester United in 2005 and are widely disliked by fans, announced in November that they would sell the club.
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Four parties are believed to be interested in purchasing the club: Sir Jim, Sheikh Jassim, the American duo Josh Harris, and David Blitzer, who attempted to purchase Chelsea, and Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia and Qatar are anticipated to be the only bidders who would not use borrowed funds.
The New York-based Raine Group is promoting the sale of the club and will ensure that any bids for the club are supported by solid financial foundations.
Manchester United would become the third Premier League club to have Gulf owners if the QIB bid is successful, joining Manchester City (UAE) and Newcastle (Saudi Arabia). Paris Saint-Germain in France is owned by the Qatari sovereign wealth fund.
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