Man Utd takeover: Bidders to arrive for talks with the club this week

William of England
By William of England 3 Min Read
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By Jamie Spencer & Graeme Bailey

Prospective buyers from Manchester United are due to meet the club this week as steps towards a potential takeover at Old Trafford continue.

Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and Sir Jim Ratcliffe are the faces of the competing bids from Qatar and INEOS respectively. They are the only two bidders to have gone public with plans to buy the club, although other undisclosed parties still remain in contention.

The “soft deadline” for the offers expired on February 17, at which point bidders were required to provide details and proof of funds to Raine Group, the investment banking firm overseeing the process.

90 minutes he understands representatives of Sheikh Jassim, who is the son of a former Qatari prime minister, will meet United on Thursday. The next day, the INEOS contingent, including Ratcliffe himself, will also arrive for their talks.

Ratcliffe has been a popular choice with many supporters due to his roots growing as a United supporter in Oldham. The 70-year-old, who has made his fortune in the chemical industry, made a late offer to buy Chelsea in the summer and has other existing sporting ventures in cycling, as well as owning football clubs Lausanne-Sport and OGC Nice.

Relatively little is known about Sheikh Jassim, a banker and lifelong United fan, but he graduated as an officer cadet from the UK’s Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst before going into finance.

The Glazer family first announced plans to consider “strategic alternatives,” including the possibility of a full takeover, in November of last year. Their valuation of the club is believed to be at least £6bn, substantially more than what Chelsea were sold (£4.25bn), although no bids are believed to have reached that valuation at the start of this year. March.

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This article was originally posted on 90min.com as Man Utd takeover: Bidders to arrive for talks with the club this week.

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