Glazers' fresh Man Utd U-turn after ongoing Premier League talks and £900m deal
The Glazers have 'paused' the sale of Manchester United in a fresh takeover twist.
United's deeply unpopular owners put the Premier League club up for sale nine months ago, insisting they were seeking "strategic alternatives" and hiring merchant bank The Raine Group to lead the process. A preferred bidder is yet to be named, however.
The Glazers are thought to have received several bids from INEOS chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani - the two leading candidates in the takeover saga - but none of them have twisted the American family's arm.
Many United fans are desperate for the Glazers to sell up after a decade without a Premier League title and 15 years without a Champions League triumph. The Red Devils have struggled to compete with the likes of Manchester City during that time.
According to The I, the Glazers have 'paused' the takeover process because they are disappointed with the offers made by the likes of Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim. Both parties have offered in the region of £5billion to buy the family's controlling stake in the club.
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It's claimed one of the reasons why the Glazers have halted the process is because of United's new partnership with Adidas - worth £900million - which will run until June 2035. Adidas replaced Nike as the club's kit manufacturer in the summer of 2015.
The Glazers are also thought to be keen to see how much the Premier League's new TV deals are worth, as well as the growth of football in the United States. The Premier League's current TV deal in the United Kingdom expires in two years' time.
Joel and Avram Glazer are unsure over whether to sell Manchester United (Phil Duncan/ProSports/REX/Shutterstock)What do you make of the Manchester United takeover saga? Let us know in the comments below!
Despite the painfully slow takeover process, both Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim remain interested in buying United. Ratcliffe wants to buy the Glazers out and obtain a controlling share of the club, while Sheikh Jassim wants to complete a full takeover.
"Obviously we've been involved and it's something that we're very keen to do," Sir Dave Brailsford, INEOS' director of sport, recently told ITV. "It's not something we can discuss in detail, we've got to sign up to NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) and all the rest of it.
“But it's an ongoing process and we'd very much like to do it. To be custodians of one of the biggest sporting teams, brands, in the world and trying to really support the team and go back to the success they deserve.
"And also the fanbase. I've worked in Manchester for a long time, we saw the team become a global phenomenon, Team Sky have done the same. I know Manchester really well so you get a sense of what the club is all about and what the fans want. If we're part of the process, we hope to do that."
Two anonymous members of the 1958 Group, a United supporters' group, urged the Glazers to sell up during a recent interview with BBC Sport. They said: "This family have inflicted untold damage, generational damage, on our club. It is personal and real to us.
"It is community. It is family. A lot of United fans would happily see United go down if it meant that the Glazer family left. Look at what happened when the Glazers came in - some fans went on to form another club. That is the strength of feeling."
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