As Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim grew frustrated and withdrew his bid, the British billionaire adopted a more flexible and creative approach
Behind the scenes of the biggest and most protracted deal in sport, the atmosphere was febrile and, at times, unpleasant.
Non-disclosure agreements were signed almost 10 months ago and most bidders complied with orders to keep schtum away from their boardrooms. But, when uncertainty was at its worst as deadlines came and went, central players involved on both sides of the deal failed to hide their exasperation.
“I think he is full of s—,” said one key figure privately in a tirade about one of the contenders. “They are making up lies, they’re a disgrace,” was another slur aimed at a rival at a critical juncture. “It’s a circus,” said other people familiar with the process.
Whether intentional or not, an air of confusion, unease and paranoia took root as the Glazers’ plan to squeeze every penny out of a potential Manchester United sale kept bidders and brokers guessing. Even the one clear parameter – that, by hook or by crook, this process would conclude within the first quarter of 2023 – quickly eroded on ever-moving sands.
Stock market values have jolted in both directions in recent months as various interested parties tried in vain to second guess the Glazers’ thinking, the situation complicated all the more by the contrasting wishes of the six, notoriously secretive American siblings. “There has been a lot of smoke and mirrors,” said one potential investor. “It’s been a trying experience,” said another.
Finally, however, the cloud of uncertainty is clearing – at least partially – over Old Trafford. Sir Jim Ratcliffe could be handed the keys to one of Britain’s great sporting institutions as soon as this week.
Ratcliffe visiting Old Trafford in February 2023 during his prolonged takeover attempt Credit: Jon Super
But it is only thanks to some deft deal-making and the patience of the Ineos founder that the Glazers finally look close to doing business with a man who they had once regarded with some suspicion.
Previous dealings between the billionaire owner of the petrochemicals giant and Raine, the New York brokers handpicked by the Glazers, had not exactly been smooth.
He first made contact with the Manhattan-based group when Roman Abramovich first toyed with selling Chelsea in 2018. But, as sanctions forced the Russian’s hand into finally offloading the west London club last year, relations became bumpy as Ratcliffe initially walked away from sale talks, citing a £3 billion target price as too high, before returning with an attempt to hijack a deal once exclusive talks were already set to begin with the Boehly-Clearlake group.
Over the ensuing year, Ratcliffe stepped up his efforts with United, his boyhood club, and was once again in touch with Raine as the first rumours the Glazers were exploring investment opportunities surfaced in the summer of last year. Ratcliffe even met with Joel and Avram Glazer, the United co-chairmen, in the August, only to be told the club was not for sale.
When United were finally put formally on the market in November, Ratcliffe – who was in Barcelona that fabled night Sir Alex Ferguson’s side overcame Bayern Munich in the most dramatic circumstances to clinch the Champions League and, with it, English football’s first Treble – was presented with an opportunity he had not been expecting.
Telegraph Sport established immediately that Ratcliffe would table a fresh bid for the club, but there was scepticism from some inside the process as to whether a serious offer would materialise. Indeed, attitudes towards Ratcliffe even appeared hostile in those early days and the notion of the local boy made good riding to the club’s rescue was initially given short shrift by American critics eager to point out that was a little rich given he relocated to tax-free Monaco a few years ago.
In contrast, Ratcliffe’s rival, the Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani, appeared a natural frontrunner, with his family links to one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds. The Qataris’ great play to blow Ratcliffe out the water was that their bid for 100 per cent of the club came with a promise of huge debt-free investment in infrastructure and the local community, not to mention into a squad as in need of regeneration as tired Old Trafford.
It certainly captured the imagination of those fans desperate for an end to so-called Glazernomics. Friends of Sheikh Jassim claimed his final takeover package on the table before he threw in the towel on Saturday was “almost double” United’s current stock market valuation of $3.2 billion (£2.6 billion), with a further £1.4bn earmarked to address Old Trafford and the training ground.
Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani gave up his pursuit of Manchester United after growing frustrated by the Glazer Family’s valuation of the club
But, in the background, the Glazers were never convinced. One well-placed figure said over the weekend that the fine detail did not match grand statements leaked to media. “The offer never sufficiently showed maximum value for the shareholders,” the insider added. Another key insider had been openly sceptical from the moment the Qatari bid went public with its offer.
Ultimately, Ratcliffe read the room better by adopting a more nimble, flexible approach.
Whereas the Qataris did not waver from their take-it-or-leave-it mantra and grew increasingly frustrated with the process, Ratcliffe’s proposals went through various iterations. An offer for the Glazers’ 69 per cent shareholding may have remained on the table but, sensing Joel and Avram were reluctant to relinquish control – at least at the valuations on offer – Ratcliffe got creative after a third-round deadline in late April.
A new offer for 50.1 per cent of the club that would have allowed the Glazers to retain a minority stake for a number of years before automatically being forced out took discussions in a new direction, from which Ratcliffe would gradually emerge as the clear front-runner. Ratcliffe, it was obvious, was prepared to be malleable and, in that regard, his offer of 25 per cent investment for up to £1.35 billion – which was only raised as an alternative in the last month or so, but which could now be voted through at a meeting of board members on Thursday – should perhaps come as no surprise.
It was a different story with the Qataris. Relations, in all truth, never seemed to recover properly from the unedifying game of claim and counter-claim that ensued in the wake of the second bid deadline in March, when United sources claimed the Jassim-led group were being economical with the truth about being given an extension on their bid deadline. Indeed, by the time the Qataris submitted a fifth and final bid on June 7, they were barely attempting to hide their misgivings.
Ratcliffe, in contrast, has been talking to the family with increasing regularity in recent months, flying out to New York to express his willingness to effectively get into bed with the family in an alliance that would have seemed unthinkable late last year.
Association with the Glazers’ toxic regime is a risky strategy, not least given the trenchant attitude of United fans towards them, but Ratcliffe came to view it as the only way to end the impasse.
Equally, a 25 per cent purchase should be regarded merely as the first step in Ratcliffe’s long desired pursuit of overall control at Old Trafford and, as detailed on Sunday by Telegraph Sport, his generous offer for a quarter stake came with a stipulation that he be granted control of football operations from the outset.
Ratcliffe with his sons George and Sam during a match at Nice, who are owned by his INEOS group
With the Glazers seemingly prepared to take a back seat on sporting matters, fans will hope Ratcliffe can start to drive some meaningful change on the pitch at a time when the club sit 10th in the Premier League and a number of the summer signings have endured difficult starts. “If the deal works as described, he will be very hands-on,” says one source familiar with Ratcliffe and Ineos. “Ratcliffe is not going to buy a chunk of the club then sit back and hope it goes better with no change. He’s not going to be a passive investor.”
Sheikh Jassim, meanwhile, threatens to disappear from England’s sporting discourse almost as quickly as his face first became known with an accompanying press release announcing his bid.
His bid excited plenty of fans but ultimately not the people who were always going to determine the process and that gave Ratcliffe – once the underdog – the upper hand, even if some will wonder how such an unusual union can work in reality, and will bristle at the idea of the Glazers’ pockets being lined further.
The Americans, of course, will care little that the fans scream as loud as ever for their exit. They had, in fairness, never guaranteed that they would sell the whole club, even if supporters had become fixated with the idea ever since the decision was taken to include the option of a “full sale” in the strategic review announced last November.
Joel and Avram – in contrast to their siblings Edward, Bryan, Kevin and Darcie – had been particularly reticent about relinquishing all interest, hence why they never shut the door on the prospect of a minority sale. Ratcliffe, wise to the family dynamics at play, capitalised by getting creative.
On Monday, Wall Street reacted initially with some unease to Sheikh Jassim quitting the takeover process in frustration. United shares fell as much as 22 per cent in pre-market trading in New York, before paring losses.
For United fans, however, there can be some optimism that the Ineos arrival at Old Trafford is intended to mark a beginning of the end for the loathed American owners. The Glazers may resist disappearing entirely from view while there is still money to be made, but Ratcliffe has demonstrated in his dogged determination over the past 10 months that restoring United to former glories is a mission he will not give up easily.
