Razeen Gutta
As the Red Devils dropped to bottom of the Premier League table, speculation mounted that the Glazer family may finally be willing to sell the club – and Britain’s richest man has responded.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is also the CEO of Ineos Group Ltd and owns Ligue 1 side Nice. For now though, he is in the news for being interested in buying one of English football’s biggest clubs.
The 69-year-old recently put in a late bid to purchase Chelsea. The offer was in the region of £4 billion (R80 billion) and was rejected as American businessman Todd Boehly eventually took over in London.
Ratcliffe is a Manchester United fan however and a spokesperson for the businessman said that his interest certainly lies there.
“If the club is for sale, Jim is definitely a potential buyer. If something like this was possible, we would be interested in talking with a view to long-term ownership,” Ratcliffe’s spokesperson told The Times.
“This is not about the money that has been spent or not spent. Jim is looking at what can be done now and, knowing how important the club is to the city, it feels like the time is right for a reset.”
Earlier this week, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweeted that he would be buying the club before later admitting that he was joking.
Manchester United’s fall from grace in recent years has been largely pinned on their American owners, the Glazer family.
Club supporters group ‘The 1958’ have confirmed that they will protest against the Glazers on Monday when United host arch rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford.
“The Liverpool game will have the world watching. It is a game for United fans to come together and show the world our deep discontent for this vile ownership that is systematically starving and killing the greatest football institution in world football,” the 1958 said in a statement.
“All United fans have the right to protest with the 1958 or individually. It is not about confrontation. Anything else plays completely into the Glazers’ hands.”
Image source: @ManchesterEveningNews
