Manchester United were the subject of an official bid of a minimum £4bn on Friday from Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani, the chairman of QIB, a Qatari bank. The offer comes with a promise to load no debt on the club and to redevelop the club’s infrastructure.
The bid from Sheikh al-Thani, via his Nine Two Foundation, came before Friday’s 10pm “soft” deadline for all potential buyers to lodge their opening offers for the club. Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the Ineos chairman and Britain’s richest person, also confirmed his bid for “majority ownership” on Saturday following widespread reports of an offer on Friday night.
