Sky News has circulated a report predicting that Sir Jim Ratcliffe will make an announcement “within days” of a £1.25bn deal for 25% of Manchester United.
The information shared by Sky further explains that INEOS Sports, Ratcliffe’s sports investment fund, will take two seats in the boardroom at Old Trafford. However, Sir Jim himself is not expected to be directly involved with the club’s public dealings.
After the deal’s completion, Old Trafford will receive around £245m in funding from Ratcliffe’s personal treasury to finally bring the stadium’s infrastructure to the much-needed renovation phase that both fans and players have been calling for over many years.
Ratcliffe became the frontrunner in the deal after Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani dropped out of it, citing failed negotiations with the Glazer family – the owners of United since 2005.
And while the Sheikh expressed interest in the club’s full ownership, with the Ratcliffe deal the Glazers will remain at the club as potential decision makers.
United continues to be a shell of its former glory even after changing several world-renowned managers over the last decade, with the Premier League title evading the club ever since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement back in 2013.
The Red Devils are currently hanging on by a thread in the UEFA Champions League and hopes of progressing to the knockout stage remain foggy ahead of a 12 December clash with German titan Bayern Munich.
Fans are blaming the Glazers for squeezing the club dry without putting any effort into rebuilding it back up, and the outrage continued after it became clear that the family will stay on Old Trafford after Ratcliffe’s investment. However, it still remains to be seen whether Sir Jim will seek full ownership in the future.
