Football: Man United bids go into extra time

A view of banners and signs displayed by Manchester United fans inside the stadium targeting owners the Glazer family before the match against Fulham. PHOTO: REUTERS

LONDON – Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe have been granted extensions to submit their second bids to buy Manchester United in an extraordinary turn of events on Wednesday.

Interested parties had until 9pm UK time to declare their offer to the Raine Group, the merchant bank brought in to assist the sale of the club.

It was initially reported that both Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe had submitted their offers by the deadline, before it emerged that the bids had not been received by Raine.

Sky Sports then reported that there were requests from both sides for an extension, which was granted.

It added that Raine had received “many proposals” – presumably minority investments rather than a full takeover – from other parties but not from the Qataris or Ratcliffe.

Nearly two hours after the deadline, Sky Sports chief sports reporter Kaveh Solhekol clarified that the Qatar bid, which was all set and ready, was not submitted as they were offered an extension granted to other bidders, and Sheikh Jassim decided to take it up.

It is expected that both Qatar and Ineos’ Ratcliffe will still put in their bids, latest by Friday.

United’s owners, the Glazer family, have reportedly set a world-record £6 billion (S$9.8 billion) valuation for the club. The bids are expected to be around £5-5.5 billion.

Sheikh Jassim’s bid for 100 per cent control of the club also promises to wipe United’s more than £500 million existing debt and invest in a new stadium and training ground, in addition to backing for the men’s and women’s teams.

A source close to his bid told AFP he remains confident his bid is “the best for the club, fans and local community”.

Ineos chemical company founder Ratcliffe has been more circumspect in his assessment, insisting he will not pay a “stupid” price in bidding war for one of football’s most iconic clubs.

The Briton, who wants the 69 per cent stake owned by the Glazer family, said his interest in United would be “purely in winning things”, calling the club a “community asset”.

Deeply unpopular with supporters since they saddled the club with debt in a £790 million leveraged takeover in 2005, the Glazers appeared ready to cash out at an enormous profit when they invited external investment in November.

However, they could yet shun the option of selling a controlling stake in the club with other parties interested in a minority shareholding.

The initial offers for a full takeover from the first round of bidding in February were believed to have been worth around £4.5 billion, with Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe moving on to the second round since then.

All bidders are expected to hear from United next week, with possibly another round of bidding still in play.
AFP

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