In an attempt to turn around Manchester United’s struggling finances, British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe said on Sunday that he would purchase a quarter of the English Premier League team. He also promised to invest US$300 million in the team.
After the Glazer family, the club’s principal owners, stated in November 2022 that they were considering strategic options, more than a year of uncertainty was ended by the agreement, which also sees Ratcliffe’s INEOS group assume management of the soccer activities.
The Glazers have faced harsh criticism from supporters for overseeing a drop in the team’s output since departing manager Alex Ferguson in 2013 after an unmatched run of success.
“As a local boy and a lifelong supporter of the club, I am very pleased that we have been able to agree a deal with the Manchester United Board that delegates us management responsibility of the football operations of the club,” Ratcliffe, who is 71 years old, stated in a
“Although the club’s financial prosperity has guaranteed that money has always been available to win championships at the highest level, this potential hasn’t been completely realized recently.
“We will bring the global knowledge, expertise and talent from the wider INEOS Sport group to help drive further improvement at the Club, while also providing funds intended to enable future investment into Old Trafford.”
A person acquainted with the situation stated that Ratcliffe’s acquisition of a stake for US$33 per share places the 20-time English champions’ total market value at US$6.3 billion, including debt.
Ratcliffe’s projected investment of US$200 million will be paid at agreement closing, and an additional US$100 million by the end of 2024, according to the club.
Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al Thani of Qatar had also expressed interest in purchasing the team, but he withdrew from the bidding process after declaring he would not increase his US$6 billion offer.
In addition, Ratcliffe’s INEOS is the owner of Nice, a team in French Ligue 1, FC Lausanne-Sport, a team in the Swiss Super League, and Racing Club Abidjan, an Ivory Coast Ligue One team. Additionally, the Grenadiers, one of the most successful cycling teams in the world, are powered by it.