Glazers: How Manchester United takeover could affect club’s fortune

<p>Manchester United’s takeover is likely to be finalized this week after Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani withdrew from the race to buy the club from the Glazer family.</p>, <p>Sheikh Jassim’s withdrawal from the race over the weekend has paved the way for British billionaire, Sir Jim Ratcliffe to acquire a 25 per cent shareholding from the Glazers, who own 69 per cent of Manchester United.</p>, <p>Ratcliffe, who is now the favourite to buy the club, will reportedly pay between £1.3 billion and £1.5 billion for the stake despite Manchester United’s current market value at around £2.6 billion.</p>, <p>It is understood that Ratcliffe was “more savvy in his deal execution” than rival bidder, Sheikh Jassim, who wanted a full takeover of the Premier League club from their American owners, the Glazer family.</p>, <p>DAILY POST reports that the Glazer family bought Manchester United for £790 million in 2005 in a highly leveraged deal that has been criticized for loading debt on to the club.</p>, <p>Man United have won 13 trophies, including five Premier League titles and a Champions League win in 2008 since the Glazers took over the club. They lost two Champions League finals, both against Barcelona, in 2009 and 2011.</p>, <p>The Glazer family have only spent £94million on improving infrastructure at the club in the last decade, according to financial analyst Kieran Maguire, who revealed this some few months ago.</p>, <p>DAILY POST reports that former Manchester United forward, Cristiano Ronaldo was dissatisfied with the facilities at the club before his contract was terminated by mutual consent last year.</p>, <p>On several occasions, it has been reported that Ronaldo has issued complaints to senior club officials regarding the state of amenities at Old Trafford and Carrington.</p>, <p>However, in November 2022, the Glazer family decided to put Manchester United up for sale.</p>, <p>But the takeover of the Red Devils has dragged on for several months.</p>, <p>Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe were the two fro