After a prudent first bidding campaign, candidates to buy Manchester United soccer club, including the Qataris and British millionaire Jim Ratcliffe, are being called upon to submit a second bid that should be around $7.35 billion to satisfy the owners, the Glazer family.
That amount, set especially after the advice of the American business bank Raine -in charge of the sale-, will surely not be reached when the term expires at 10:00 p.m. (9:00 p.m. GMT).
In the first round of offers, in mid-February, the two main ones were those of the president of the Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB), Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani, and that of Ratcliffe, owner of the petrochemical group Ineos, who valued the club. at about 4.5 billion pounds (5.1 billion euros, 5.5 billion dollars).
According to the English press, the offers should this time exceed 5,000 million pounds (5,700 million euros, 6,150 million dollars), after the main candidates visited the club’s facilities and met with their management at the end of last week.
That sum would already be a symbolic barrier overcome, since it would constitute the highest figure ever offered by a collective sports club in the world, but it would be significantly below what the Glazers are seeking, which leaves the process in an uncertain situation.
– Up to eight candidates? –
The two main candidates for the purchase are known, but there also seem to be other offers on the table, although not necessarily for a takeover of the club.
The Sky Sports television channel advanced on Tuesday that there will be “at least five offers and maybe up to eight”, without specifying the identity of the mysterious candidates or the amount of their offers.
In the first round of offers, the American investment fund Elliott, former owner of AC Milan, would have positioned itself to help finance all or part of a purchase.
It is possible that other funds, especially American ones, appear on the scene.
The Glazers, at least Joel and Avram (Manchester United co-chairmen), have never ruled out going ahead and not selling, despite their vast unpopularity.
If they find a financial partner to buy the shares of his four brothers and sisters, invest massively in the stadium and the club, and to reduce or end the club’s 580 million euros ($625 million) of debt, they could even rule out offers as they are considered insufficient.
Jim Ratcliffe’s remarks to the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday appear to lower his chances in this race.
“What you don’t have to do is pay crazy sums for things that you later regret,” he dropped on an eventual acquisition of a club that he has supported since he was a child.
– Banking turmoil –
Ratcliffe has stood out in recent years for its investments in sports, be it with the Nice (France) or Lausanne (Switzerland) clubs, or with the Ineos Grenadiers cycling team.
He would aspire to assume the part of the Glazer family in the club, that is, 69%, while his Qatari rival is considering the acquisition of 100% of the club.
If the Glazers rely solely on the amount received, the Qatari option seems to have an advantage.
In addition, to finance their offer they would not have to go through a banking sector whose climate is currently very tense, after the bankruptcy of three US banks and the emergency purchase of Credit Suisse by UBS.
It cannot be ruled out that the agreement that Ratcliffe seemed to have with the US banks Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to finance his offer has been affected by the current turmoil.
The Glazers seem determined not to sell before the end of the season and might even take the candidates to a third round in this particular ‘auction’.
Manchester United also seems to be in good sporting health. They are third in the Premier League, have won the League Cup and have qualified for the Europa League quarterfinals and the FA Cup semifinals. AFP
