Man Utd takeover fears laid bare as Glazers accused of 'holding club hostage'

24 August 2023 , 10:16

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Man Utd takeover fears laid bare as Glazers accused of 'holding club hostage'

It is now nine months since the Glazer family officially put Manchester United up for sale and a final decision over who will own the club has still not yet been made.

Despite reports claiming Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim was expecting to finalise a purchase by October, it is understood the Glazers have not yet made a decision about United's future much to the dismay of supporters.

Sheikh Jassim and INEOS chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe are the two frontrunners to buy the club and neither party has received definitive responses from Raine Group, the bank overseeing the potential sale on behalf of the Glazers.

United fans are planning fresh protests against the owners at their Premier League game against Nottingham Forest and the Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST) believe the Glazers are "holding the club and supporters hostage" by dragging out the takeover process.

"It is nine months and the hope of change has receded and fans are just exasperated, fed up and hoping desperately for some news," spokesman Chris Rumsfitt told the i. "We feel the Glazers are holding the club and supporters hostage and it is holding back the club from making progress.

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"History will tell you that at clubs that are up for sale investment is stripped back and the club falls behind. Slow decision-making has always been a hallmark of the Glazer family ownership but this is taking the biscuit."

The Glazers are yet to make a decision on the future of Manchester United (Phil Duncan/ProSports/REX/Shutterstock)

Both Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe's latest bids are worth more than £5bn, but the Glazers value the club at more than £6bn which is significantly more than the £4.25bn Todd Boehly and Clearlake capital paid to buy Chelsea last year.

And football finance expert Kieran Maguire has suggested the Glazers may not sell the club at all unless someone meets their £6bn valuation. "The Glazers are convinced that there's money to be made in the utilisation of new technology, such as artificial intelligence and augmented reality, which are coming very soon," he explained.

"From their perspective, the Glazers can't lose. They make a fortune in either dividends or management fees and while it creates a vacuum on the ground they've shown they don't care."

Matthew Cooper