Interested parties eager to stake their claim at Manchester United had until 21:00 GMT on Wednesday last week, in order to lodge their bids for a majority takeover at the club.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the son of a former Qatari prime minister Sheikh Jassim were the only publicly declared bidders, up until Finnish entrepreneur Thomas Zilliacus announced his offer, which comprises of a stake split down the middle – one half owned by him and the other by the fans themselves.
However, according to the latest odds sourced by BettingSites.co.uk’s resident compiler Alan Alger, it is life-long Red Devils fan and Britain’s richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe who is thought to be the current frontrunner at 4/6.
Odds for next Manchester United owners
- Sir Jim Ratcliffe – 4/6
- Sheikh Jassim/Qatar – 5/2
- Dubai Sovereign Wealth Fund 8/1
- US Private Equity Firm 10/1
- Apple 10/1
- Lord Jim O’Neill 14/1
- Amancio Ortega 16/1
- David Beckham 25/1
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim Lead to Bidding For Manchester United Takeover
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has emerged as the favourite according to Betting Sites’ latest exclusive odds. In partnership with his Ineos investment group, the 70-year-old is looking to expand on his current sporting assets which already feature French Ligue 1 club Nice and Swiss club Lausanne.
Ratcliffe is a life-long United fan and his public desire to purchase the club is supported by a narrative promoting the return of a British custodian. The Manchester-born billionaire says he aims to “put the Manchester back into Manchester United”.
Elsewhere, our odds-maker Alan Alger has priced the Qatari consortium at 5/2. Elsewhere, the only other known parties who have sent their bids to the club are Elliott Management, Ares, MSD Partners and Oaktree Capital.
Commentary
Commenting on the latest Manchester United takeover bids, Betting Sites PR manager Liam Solomon said: “It is comforting to see a British-led bid currently favoured, particularly with Sir Jim Ratcliffe being a born and bred Mancunian.
“Qatar had previously said their expansion into football would slow down after the monumental undertaking of the 2022 World Cup, but their pursuit of Manchester United looks to be unrelenting.
“The nation is yet to infiltrate the Premier League ownership sphere, but it would come as no surprise to see their economic firepower sway the Glazers into selling to them.
“Elsewhere, American ownership of English clubs has increased at a staggering rate in the past five years, so US equity firms such as Elliot Management and Ares simply can not be counted out at this stage.”
*Note. These are hypothetical odds by the Betting Sites trading team. They are for entertainment purposes only.”
Liam is a content writer for Betting Sites. He has 7 years of experience writing articles on trending topics including sports and finance. Liam has a passion for analysing trending data and has had his data shared in publications including New York Times, BBC and 1000's more.
