Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani, the chairman of one of Qatar’s largest banks, has announced that his foundation will make a bid to purchase Manchester United football club. The announcement came just before the ‘soft deadline’ for submitting proposals on Friday at 22:00 GMT. This is the second bid that has been made public, with businessman Sir Jim Ratcliffe having declared his interest in purchasing the club last month.
According to a statement by the Qatari consortium, the bid is aimed at returning the club to its former glories. The Glazer family, who acquired Manchester United in 2005, are said to be exploring strategic alternatives, and the possibility of selling the club has been discussed. The Qatari consortium, therefore, views this as an opportunity to acquire the club and return it to its former status as one of the world’s greatest football clubs.
The bid, which will be submitted through Sheikh Jassim’s Nine Two Foundation, will be entirely debt-free, and the foundation will invest in the football team, training center, stadium, infrastructure, fan experience, and communities that the club supports. The consortium envisions that Manchester United will become renowned for footballing excellence and regarded as the greatest football club in the world.
Sheikh Jassim is a lifelong Manchester United fan and the chairman of Qatari bank QIB. He is also the son of a former prime minister of Qatar. However, the statement released by the consortium did not provide any details on the amount proposed in the bid for the club.
It is expected that there will be at least two offers for Manchester United from the United States, and there have also been suggestions of interest from Saudi Arabia. Therefore, there could be up to five parties trying to negotiate a full sale, with others looking to make a smaller investment in return for a partial stake in the club.
The prospect of Qatari investment in a Premier League club has raised concerns among human rights and LGBTQ+ groups, especially with the knowledge that Paris St-Germain president Nasser al-Khelaifi is set to be a key figure in any Qatari ownership bid, even if he could have no direct involvement in the club.
Qatar Sports Investment (QSI), headed by Al-Khelaifi, had been exploring the potential of taking a smaller stake in a Premier League club. However, due to Uefa rules that prohibit multi-club ownership, any Qatari bid to purchase Manchester United in its entirety would have to come through private individuals or a different organization.
In summary, Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani’s foundation will make a bid to purchase Manchester United, with the aim of returning the club to its former glories. The bid will be entirely debt-free, and the Nine Two Foundation will invest in various aspects of the club, including the football team, training center, stadium, infrastructure, fan experience, and the communities that the club supports.
The consortium envisions that Manchester United will become renowned for footballing excellence and regarded as the greatest football club in the world. However, there are concerns about the potential ownership of the club by a Qatari consortium, and these concerns have been raised by human rights and LGBTQ+ groups.