Manchester United takeover: Bidders to meet the club this week

• Manchester United takeover has entered a new phase this week of March 2023
• The prospective owners are scheduled to meet the club on Thursday, March 16 2023 to a discussion of a takeover
• The Premier League club has been put on sale by its current owners the Glazers family and has been highly supported by fans

Prospective Manchester United buyers are due to meet with the Premier League club this week as negotiations for a possible takeover at Old Trafford continue.

Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and Sir Jim Ratcliffe are the faces of rival bids from Qatar and INEOS, respectively. They are the only two candidates who have made their intentions to purchase the club public, though other unnamed parties are still in the running.

READ: Potential Manchester United owners

The soft deadline’ for bids passed on February 17, at which time bidders were needed to provide details and proof of funds to Raine Group, the investment banking firm overseeing the process.

The Glazers family are the current owners of Manchester United and have put up the club for sale and the takeover process is going on as expected. | PHOTO: teamTALK |

SportsLeo has learned that Sheikh Jassim’s representatives will speak with United on Thursday. Sheikh Jassim is the son of a previous Qatari prime minister. The INEOS team, which will also include Ratcliffe in person, will come the following day for their own talks.

Due to his personal history as a United supporter who grew up in Oldham, Ratcliffe has been a popular option with many supporters. The 70-year-old, who amassed wealth in the chemical business, made a late offer to purchase Chelsea in the summer and also owns football clubs Lausanne-Sport and OGC Nice. He also has other existing sporting endeavours in cycling.

Sheikh Jassim, a banker and lifelong United supporter, is relatively unknown, but he finished as an officer cadet from the UK’s Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst before pursuing a career in banking.

In November of last year, the Glazer family made their initial announcement that they were going to explore “strategic alternatives,” including the potential for a full takeover. Though it isn’t believed that any offer had reached that valuation at the beginning of March, their valuation of the club is thought to be at least £6 billion, which is significantly more than the amount for which Chelsea were sold (£4.25 billion).