Nice football club owner Jim Ratcliffe on Monday took a 25 percent stake worth around a billion euros in the English Premier League outfit Manchester United.
The 71-year-old pledged to invest around 300 million euros in the club in an attempt to try to revive its fortunes.
The deal will allow Ratcliffe's INEOS group to take over management of the club's soccer operations and ends more than a year of negotiations after the majority owners said they were looking at strategic options.
"As a local boy and a lifelong supporter of the club, I am very pleased that we have been able to agree a deal with the Manchester United Board that delegates us management responsibility of the football operations of the club," Ratcliffe said in a statement.
"Whilst the commercial success of the club has ensured there have always been available funds to win trophies at the highest level, this potential has not been fully unlocked in recent times.
"We will bring the global knowledge, expertise and talent from the wider INEOS Sport group to help drive further improvement at the Club, while also providing funds intended to enable future investment into Old Trafford."
The billion-euro deal will inevitably turn the spotlight on Ratcliffe's time at Nice. He purchased the club in 2019 after the side had finished in the top four of Ligue 1 for three of the past six seasons.
However, they have failed to push for the title. Christophe Galtier arrived as head coach in June 2021 after taking Lille to the Ligue 1 crown.
His side was unable to ruffle Paris Saint-Germain but reached the final of the 2022 Coupe de France where they were beaten by Nantes.
Changes
Galtier was poached by PSG in July 2022 and replaced by Lucien Favre.
But he was sacked in January 2023 following a loss to third division Le Puy Foot 43 Auvergne in the Coupe de France. New boss Francesco Farioli has steered the side to second in Ligue 1 with 35 points after 17 games.
Ratcliffe assumes power at United with Erik Ten Hag's team in eighth place, 12 points off pacesetters Arsenal and seemingly out of the race for the 2024 English Premier League crown – a trophy they have not lifted since the departure of Alex Ferguson in 2013.
United have gone through five permanent managers and three caretakers in the quest to to recapture his success. United have won one FA Cup, two League Cup trophies and a Europa League title. Ferguson harvested 38 trophies including 13 domestic championships in 27 years at the helm.
"Sir Jim and INEOS bring a wealth of commercial experience as well as significant financial commitment into the club," United's executive chairs Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer said.
"And, through INEOS Sport, Manchester United will have access to seasoned high-performance professionals, experienced in creating and leading elite teams from both inside and outside the game."
The club said around 200 million euros of Ratcliffe's planned investment would be paid on closing of the deal, and a further 100 million by the end of 2024.
The Manchester United Supporters Trust (Must) welcomed Ratcliffe's investment but questioned the new structure that will be put in place and called for a meeting with the INEOS team to understand its plans.
"We note the statements that he and his team will control sporting activities, yet puzzle how any organisation can put its very core business in the hands of a minority shareholder, and how that meaningfully works in practice," Must said in a statement.
"It is now incumbent on the club's owners and management to properly explain how this new structure will work, where the new investment will be directed and how it will benefit the team on the field."
"We are here for the long term and recognise that a lot of challenges and hard work lie ahead," Ratcliffe added.
"Our shared ambition is clear: we all want to see Manchester United back where we belong, at the very top of English, European and world football."
United will launch the Ratcliffe era on Tuesday with a home match against third-placed Aston Villa.
