(Football news) Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who had previously bid £4.25 billion for Chelsea has now turned his attention to buy Manchester United through his company INEOS. The Glazer family announced in November last year that they are exploring investment opportunities including a complete takeover after a 17 year long ownership of the Red Devils which has been marred by protests by fans as well as declining performance on the field.
Ratcliffe has supported Manchester United since he was a boy and has made it no secret that he would be interested in buying the club should it ever be for sale. The 70 year old billionaire also owns French club Nice that he purchased for £100 million in 2019 as well as Swiss Super League club FC Lausanne-Sport. It’s expected that should he buy Manchester United, he will sell Nice in order to focus his attention on the Red Devils’ ambitions. Other interested parties are expected to emerge in the foreseeable future with Saudi Arabia sports minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal also confirming his country’s interest.
Under INEOS’ ownership, Nice has invested significant money (€200m in three and a half seasons) but the results on the pitch have been underwhelming. They finished sixth in the first season under Patrick Vieira, ninth in the second season and fifth in the third season under Christophe Galtier, who is currently managing Paris Saint-Germain. The relationship between INEOS and the Nice fans is also a rocky one as the club haven’t managed to get Champions League football under Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s ownership or managed to compete against Paris Saint-Germain or Marseille for the Ligue 1 title.
As per the rules, an individual or organisation cannot own two football clubs that are competing in the same European competition such as the Champions League or the Europa League. A club like Manchester United must compete in Europe’s elite club competition which means that they will either have to sell Nice or own them with the intention that they never compete in the Champions League again, something that will not go down well with the Nice fans at all. More importantly, Manchester United fans will hope that any potential new owner eliminates the existing debt from the club, invests in the dilapidated Old Trafford stadium as well as Carrington training round and gets the team winning trophies again.
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