Jim Ratcliffe to buy Manchester United

Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe is interested in buying Manchester United 

British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe is interested in buying Manchester United, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters after Elon Musk said his plan to buy the Premier League club was all part of A long-running Joke.

Musk, the world’s richest person, said on Tuesday on Twitter that he wanted to buy England’s most successful club before clarifying that it was a joke and that he had no interest in purchasing any sports teams.

The club’s owners, the American Glazer family, are under pressure with the united sitting bottom of the Premier League after two games of the season. Bloomberg reported they would consider selling a minority stake, opening the door for Ratcliffe.

A source close to Ratcliffe said the billionaire was a potential buyer as he wants to help rebuild the team. The times first reported Ratcliffe’s interest on Wednesday.

It is unclear if the interest would result in any deals. The Glazer family is not ready to concede the controlling stake in Manchester United and has an expectation of valuing the club at more than double its current market of $2.2 billion, another source said.

 In may 2022, Chelsea Football club was sold to a consortium led by an investment group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital for $3.2 billion 

 

The Glazers have been the target of intense criticism for their failure to invest in the team who have not won a trophy in 5 years. United’s net debt had grown 11% to about 496 million pounds by the end of march 

 The owners have also been criticised for not improving the Old Trafford stadium, the biggest club ground in the country with a capacity of around 75,000 fans.

Ratcliffe, head of chemical company INEOS, is from the Manchester area and a long-standing United fan.

 Ratcliffe failed this year to buy London club Chelsea which was ultimately bought by an investment group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake capital.

United finished sixth last season in their worst Premier League campaign with respect to points earned, failing to qualify for the lucrative European Champions League.

 They won the last of their record 20 top flight league titles in 2013, the year Alex Ferguson stepped down as manager after more than 26 years in charge.

The club hired manager Erik ten Hag from Ajax Amsterdam in a bid to turn around their fortunes but the Dutchman has not yet succeeded in imposing his playing style, with United losing their opening two games after conceding six goals.

United play their arch-rivals Liver pool, who scored 9 times without reply in their two league meeting last season at Old Trafford on Monday.

 

Manchester United Football Club

Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd), or simply United, is a professional football club based in the Old Trafford area of Greater Manchester, England. 

The club competes in the Premier League, the top division in the English football league system. Nicknamed the Red Devils, it was founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878 but changed its name to Manchester United in 1902. The club moved from Newton Heath to its current stadium, Old Trafford, in 1910.

Manchester United have won a record 20 League titles, 12 FA Cups, five League Cups, and a record 21 FA Community Shields. 

They have won the European Cup/UEFA Champions League three times, and the UEFA Europa League, the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, the UEFA Super Cup, the Intercontinental Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup once each. 

 

United’s current ground, Old Trafford, after its expansion in 2006

In 1968, under the management of Matt Busby, 10 years after eight of the club’s players were killed in the Munich air disaster, they became the first English club to win the European Cup.

 Alex Ferguson is the club’s longest-serving and most successful manager, winning 38 trophies, including 13 league titles, 5 FA Cups, and 2 UEFA Champions League titles between 1986 and 2013. 

In the 1998–99 season, under Ferguson, the club became the first in the history of English football to achieve the European treble of the Premier League, FA Cup, and UEFA Champions League. 

In winning the UEFA Europa League under José Mourinho in 2016–17, they became one of five clubs to have won the original three main UEFA club competitions (the Champions League, Europa League and Cup Winners’ Cup).

 

Sir James Arthur Ratcliffe 

Sir James Arthur Ratcliffe was born on 18 October 1952 and is an English billionaire chemical engineer and businessman. 

Ratcliffe is the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Ineos chemicals group, which he founded in 1998 and of which he still owns two-thirds, and which has been estimated to have a turnover of $15 billion in 2019. 

He does not have a high public profile, and has been described by The Sunday Times as “publicity shy”.

 

As of May 2018, he was the richest person in the UK, with a net worth of £21.05 billion. As of April 2020, Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimated his net worth at $28.2 billion, 55th richest in the world and second in the UK.

In September 2020, Ratcliffe officially changed his tax residence from Hampshire to Monaco, a move that is estimated will save him £4 billion in tax. 

 

---

Read More – Elon Musk is going to buy Manchester United

---