No, you're not dreaming. Manchester United really are up for sale. After 17 years of Glazer ownership, the most famous club in world football is on the market again and will listen to offers of fresh investment after years of mediocracy and failure.
The cautious word is that it could still just be a partial sale, a slight relinquishment of power in order to finance the long-overdue renovations needed for infrastructure at both Old Trafford and the training ground.
That hasn't stopped United fans from dreaming of a proper power shift, though, and it certainly makes a lot of sense for the Glazer family to cash in now and make a huge profit from their leveraged buyout of the club that should never have been allowed in the first place.
Read next: Sir Jim Ratcliffe delivered 'bad omen' as United put up for sale
The bar is pretty low for any prospective owners to clear should they end up in charge of Old Trafford. The Glazers borrowed over half a billion to fund their purchase of the club, made the club pay the interest on the deal, took dividend payments for themselves, rarely invested their own money into the club, and will now walk away with an enormous profit.
It is also no coincidence that they are looking to sell at a time when Liverpool are also on the market, with the two sets of American owners seemingly aware that they might never get such a high return on their profits, particularly given that their dreams of a European Super League proposal backfired so massively.
United have appointed the Raine Group to oversee the sale, and given that they managed to fetch an initial £2.85billion for Chelsea, there is certainly confidence in a much larger fee for a club with a wider global appeal and huge marketing appeal.
But just who could actually buy United? Sir Jim Ratcliffe still represents the dream for many supporters. The Ineos billionaire has supported United since childhood and signalled his interest in buying them back in August. However, since then he has suggested Premier League sides are grossly overvalued and not necessarily a wise business investment as he turns his focus onto French club Nice.
There will also be hopes that the Red Knights, a consortium led by former United director and leading economist Lord O'Neill, could revive previous attempts to buy the club. They certainly have the right motifs for a purchase, but they could be priced out if a bidding war ensues for the club.
Then there is the elephant in the room: sovereign investors. At the same time a World Cup has been sold to Qatar, there has never been a more important discussion about the money in football and where it comes from.
A hardcore backbone of the United fanbase will strongly object to any such takeover, and there will be many ready to walk away if indeed their club facilitates sportswashing at the bloodied hands of countries accused of human rights violations.
United have previously been the subject of rumours of a big-money takeover by Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman and in 2017, the club signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabia’s General Sports Authority to develop the football industry in the Gulf state.
The CIA has determined Bin Salman personally ordered the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018, despite the Saudi government's denial of his involvement. An intelligence report declassified in February of last year stated Bin Salman approved the murder of the Washington Post journalist.
Their subsequent purchase of Newcastle has ended those links with buying United, but it won't be a surprise if another similar state-backed bid is launched.
Just last week, United figures and former players arrived in Dubai for a four-day training camp and a Masters football match.
Without a football regulator in place, there will be no say for fans in who buys their club next, no financial assessment of new owners, and no understanding of the structure they look to implement.
For United fans, there is light at the end of the tunnel, but it remains to be seen whether that is being caused by sunshine or another burning fire.
After 17 years of failure, change is long overdue, but it can't just be for change's sake.
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