Skip to main content

Don't knock Glazers United bidders told

Bidders for Manchester United have been told to stop running public campaigns which could damage the Glazer family following the official start of the race to take control of the club.

A statement from the Qatar bid in particular is understood to have caused consternation among those running the process, with the promise to return United to its “former glories” seen as implied criticism of the present owners.

The confirmed bidders are a group led by Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad bin Jaber Al Thani, chairman of one of the Emirate’s biggest banks and Ineos, fronted by British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe. It is understood there is no bid from Saudi Arabia despite initial interest.

On Friday, the Qatari bid issued a detailed statement outlining plans that were clearly designed to appeal to supporters critical of the Glazer regime. This included the declaration that it would be a “completely debt free” purchase following the controversies of the Glazers’ leveraged buyout.

The Qatar bid was not alone in issuing a statement timed to coincide with Friday’s 10pm UK time “soft deadline” for opening bids. The Ineos bid issued its own statement on Saturday morning in which it talked of “putting the Manchester back into Manchester United” while investing “to make them the number one club in the world once again”.

The Times understands that has prompted Raine, the New York bank managing the sale for the Glazers, to firmly remind bidders that the process is meant to be private, having been required to sign comprehensive non-disclosure agreements as part of the process.

It is not yet clear how many other groups have entered the race to buy United. The main rivals to the Qatari and Ratcliffe bids are expected to be private equity funds in the United States, with The Sunday Times reporting that US hedge fund Elliott is linked to one offer.   This could be a bid for a minority stake or to fund other bidders.

Both known bids are thought to value United somewhere between £4 billion and £5 billion, which the Glazers will hope to drive up. While the Qatari bid is for the entire club, Ratcliffe’s Ineos offer is for “majority ownership” by purchasing the Glazers’ 69 per cent stake, including the Class B shares which carry the majority of the voting rights. Ratcliffe’s group could then seek to pick up the rest of the shares once they have control.

United’s debt is understood to be around £570 million and the Qatari bid claims it would immediately wipe the whole amount off the books. Ineos has spoken to banks including JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs about possible support, though the petrochemicals company insists that it will not load any fresh debt onto the club and is seeking to run the club as a successful sporting enterprise rather than a business.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fulham requires big funding from owner

After lengthy delays, Fulham’s shiny, new Riverside Stand has finally opened, creating “a unique Thameside destination with first class facilities for supporters and partners on match days, as well as for the wider community year-round”. This ambitious project has increased Craven Cottage’s capacity by around 4,000 to 29,600, while it has also taken advantage of the club’s fantastic location and wealthy catchment area by including two Michelin star restaurants, a rooftop swimming pool, corporate hospitality and event space, all benefiting from views of the Thames. Chief executive Alistair Mackintosh observed, “Fulham is the sort of club that can have a business class or first class and have fans that turn left on a plane.” Indeed, there is also an exclusive members club – with a football season ticket as an optional extra. It’s fair to say that “the times they are a-changing”, as this is a long way from the traditional pie and a pint. However, in a world where clubs face the tw...
Post a Comment
Read more

It's no deal say Spurs insiders over Taiwanese takeover

Senior figures at Tottenham Hotspur insisted on Friday that they had not been informed of any deal to sell Daniel Levy’s stake in the club. A business group, Eight Sports Capital — which is said to include a billionaire Taiwanese financier — claimed that it had an agreement in place to buy a 24.99 per cent stake in ENIC, the club’s majority owners, from Levy, who owns 29.88 per cent. The Times has been told Ng Wing Fai and Brooklyn Earick form part of the group, having both been linked previously to potential takeovers of the Premier League club. The Taiwanese businessman, Richard Tsai, is also said to be part of the consortium. He is reportedly worth £7 billion.  Last year Earick, the former DJ and tech entrepreneur, was part of an attempted £4.5 billion takeover, which was “unequivocally rejected” by Spurs.  An ENIC spokesperson said: “We can confirm that neither ENIC nor THFC are aware of any sale by Daniel Levy’s Family Trust of its minority stake in ENIC, THFC’...
Post a Comment
Read more

Threat of financial calamity removed from Baggies

West Bromwich Albion had effectively been in decline ever since the club was sold to a Chinese consortium in August 2016, paying a figure north of £200m to buy former owner Jeremy Peace’s stake. Controlling shareholder Guochuan Lai’s ownership was fairly disastrous for the club, but his unloved tenure finally came to an end after Bilkul Football WBA, a company ultimately owned by Florida-based entrepreneur Shilen Patel and his father Dr Kiran Patel, acquired an 87.8% shareholding in West Bromwich Albion Group Limited, the parent company of West Bromwich Albion Football Club. This change in ownership was urgently required, due to the numerous financial problems facing West Brom, including growing high-interest debt and serious cash flow concerns, following years of no investment from the former owner. Indeed, West Brom’s auditors had already rung the alarm bell in the 2021/22 accounts when they cast doubt on the club’s ability to continue as a going concern without making player s...
1 comment
Read more