- 1,612
- 9
- 38
Who is interested in buying Manchester United?
Sir Jim Ratcliffe's INEOS group have confirmed they are bidding to buy Manchester United and there is interest from the USA and the Middle East, including Qatar.However, while there has been interest, I'm being told by one party who are considering making a bid that it hasn't been quite at the level expected and certainly not as much as there was when Chelsea was for sale. Last year there were more than 100 expressions of interest in buying Chelsea - although that was an exceptional case, with a deadline driven by a global news story and also the aspect of some bidders looking for publicity.
There are likely to have been other potential buyers for United who have contacted The Raine Group - who are orchestrating the sale or invitation for investment on behalf of the Glazers - which we don't know about. They will all have had to sign confidentiality agreements. But there hasn't been the media circus around potential candidates as we saw with Chelsea.
It's also worth noting that the Glazers would potentially just be interested in someone investing in the club, rather than buying it completely. It's well documented they need to redevelop Old Trafford and do some work on their training ground and that could end up costing around £1bn.
Manchester United's share price has doubled on the New York Stock Exchange since the owners effectively put the club up for sale in November.
It has risen another 14 per cent on Wednesday to $24.17 - the biggest rise since late November, while the current share price values the club at £3.2bn.