Manchester United’s takeover rumours have been addressed, amid claims from Saudi Arabia that the club are in ‘advanced talks’ to sell.
After many years of protests and complaints regarding Manchester United’s ownership, the Glazer family decided to sell a portion of the club.
Just shy of 30% of the Red Devils was purchased by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS company, which included the ability to control the club’s football operations.
Despite Ratcliffe’s spending over the past couple of years, United have struggled to perform under the new ownership, with their manager, Ruben Amorim, left scratching his head.
It has now been reported that the club could be due for a takeover from Saudi Arabia, although United sources now suggest that the club are unaware of any talks for the club to be sold.
United unaware of talks
According to a report from the Daily Mail, United sources are unaware of recent takeover rumours, amid speculation that Saudi billionaire Turki Al-Sheikh sees the club as an intriguing prospect.
Al-Sheikh posted: ‘The best news I heard today is that Manchester United is now in an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor – I hope he’s better than the previous owners.’
This comment from the Saudi sports supremo caught the Reds by surprise, with Old Trafford insiders saying that they have no idea where his information has come from.
Despite these rumours being false, Al-Sheikh is understood to be negotiating with the club over a potential friendly game during Riyadh Season.
What a takeover means for Ratcliffe
With United currently being ran by the operations of INEOS, whilst still being majority owned by the Glazers, it could be easy to get confused as to how a club sale would work.
Under the drag-along right included in Ratcliffe’s £1.3billion minority takeover, he cannot prevent the Americans from selling the club after 18 months, which is a clause that took effect on August 13.
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This means that the Glazers could hypothetically, if they chose to, be in secretive conversations with potential buyers without Ratcliffe or even United knowing about it.
Although the rumours claimed by Al-Sheikh lack any known substance at this stage, it will be interesting to see if any new information is released in the coming days.
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