The race to become the new owner of Manchester United was thrown into turmoil after what was a chaotic few hours on Wednesday evening.
Parties interested in completing a takeover of the Old Trafford club were set a deadline of 9pm on Wednesday evening to submit any bids. That deadline came and went and supporters were none the wiser over who would be replacing the Glazers at the helm.
The club’s current American owners announced their intentions to end their stewardship of the Red Devils all the way back in November. The process appears set to rumble on even further now. With that being said, Mirror Football tells you all you need to know about where a potential takeover stands...
What’s happened so far?
Well, where do we start? The Glazers announced their intentions to sell in November in a lengthy statement. They confirmed that a full sale of the Red Devils would be considered as part of an exploration of “strategic alternatives”.
Following that statement, a number of interested parties stepped forwards although a vast array were just speculative. The Raine Group were appointed by the Glazers as facilitators of any potential sale.
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Who is in the running?
Whilst there were a huge number of parties stepping forwards to complete a deal - both in public and privately - there always appeared to be two front-runners for a takeover. Britain’s richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe confirmed his intentions to bid having previously been left frustrated in his efforts to buy Chelsea.
Qatari Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani also lodged a bid for the club in February as he attempted to rival Ratcliffe. It is thought that both of their initial bids were worth in the region of £4bn to £4.5bn ahead of what was labelled a ‘soft deadline’ on February 17.
There were also a number of other bidders that did not publicly announce their interest. American hedge fund Elliott Management were among a group of investors aiming to finance a bid rather than attempt their own.
What about the talks?
Amid an ongoing process to buy the club, in-person talks have been held in an effort to find a preferred bidder. Despite bids not being accepted, representatives of a number of parties gathered at Old Trafford last week for talks and were given the chance to examine club accounts.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe travelled over to Manchester himself to hold talks with club officials and the Raine Group. It is thought that he left a good impression on those at the club following extensive talks, whilst Erik ten Hag also spoke out on his conversation with the INEOS mogul.
Elsewhere, representatives of Sheikh Jassim also travelled to Manchester and held extensive discussions ahead of a second bid.
So, what happened on Wednesday?
The real question really should be what didn’t happen on Wednesday. Any interested parties were set a 9pm deadline on Wednesday March 22 to lodge their second bids.
That included both Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim, as well as any other bidders interested in a deal. The deadline came and went without any news of any improved bids, leaving United fans in real limbo.
That is where the chaos kicked off. It was claimed by a Qatari group representing Sheikh Jassim that they had lodged a world record bid for United, only for those reports to be disputed by the Raine Group.
There was also major doubt over a second bid from Ratcliffe’s INEOS group. Raine confirmed that an array of bids had been received - none of which were from Sheikh Jassim or Ratcliffe.
What happens now?
It is slightly uncertain to predict in which direction the process will go from now but both Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe have been granted extended deadlines to get second bids in. The Times suggests that requests to extend the deadline were lodged as early as Tuesday.
It is further suggested that INEOS intend to lodge their own bid on Thursday after being granted their own extension, whilst a second Qatari offer could arrive on Friday - both parties still keen on bettering their initial bids. Neither party are thought to have been given a revised deadline for new bids although Sky Sports report that both Raine and the Glazers will take a week to evaluate the revised offers.
Once that happens then one bidder could potentially be given a period of exclusivity to complete a deal. Given the chaos on Wednesday evening, it remains to be seen whether those offers arrive or not.
What is the Glazers' stance?
Amid the delay, there are growing fears that the much-maligned Glazers could yet remain at the club. Red Devils icon Gary Neville has already revealed his concern at that eventuality coming to fruition.
It appears that the Americans are sticking strongly to their previously set asking price of £6bn. There has already been a difference of opinion between members of the family regarding a full sale or alternative investment.
The Athletic report that there is currently ‘no guarantee’ that the Americans will cash-in on the club. Meanwhile, The Telegraph suggests that four of the Glazers siblings, Kevin, Edward, Bryan and Darcie are keen to cash-in at the right price, with the most resistance coming from United’s current co-chairmen Joel and Avram.
It appears likely that they then will only cash-in should their previously set asking price of £6bn be met by either Ratcliffe or Sheikh Jassim.
