As many as eight groups are claimed to be involved in Manchester United's takeover process - and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani has been labelled the frontrunner.
The club have been up for sale since November and despite fears that owners the Glazer family are split on whether to sanction a full sale or seek minority investment, a deal is still on track to be completed before the end of April. That's according to the Daily Telegraph, which adds that alongside Sheikh Jassim and fellow would-be owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a number of groups - such as US hedge fund Elliott Management - remain in talks with United.
Manchester-born billionaire Ratcliffe, found of chemical giants INEOS, and representatives for Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim are set to sit down with Old Trafford officials this week to continue the second stage of a sale process, having each made bids in February. While other groups are also interested in a full takeover and have pencilled in meetings, some are instead looking at alternative options such as financing a takeover, just as Elliott allegedly plan to.
Meanwhile, The Guardian reports that Sheik Jassim - the son of a former Qatari prime minister - is the front runner ahead of Ratcliffe. It's said that he's the Glazers' favoured bidder, partially due to potentially opening up business opportunities for the American family in his native Middle East.
Sheikh Jassim's representatives are expected to meet with the club hierarchy in Manchester on Thursday, with Ratcliffe following for the same talks on Friday. Despite the INEOS chief executive previously naming United co-chairmen Joel and Avram Glazer as "the nicest people", the report explains that the Americans haven't warmed to him during the first two stages of a possible sale.
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Ratcliffe will fly to Manchester after watching Nice - the French club which he already owns through INEOS - play their Europa Conference League second leg at home to Sheriff Tiraspol on Thursday evening. There are differences between Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe's respective bids, with the Qatari banker intent on buying 100 per cent of United without taking on any debt, while Ratcliffe is thought to only want the Glazers' 69 per cent share and could call on extra investment to get a deal over the line.
Fans are divided over who they'd prefer to see succeed the Glazers after 18 years at the helm. The Manchester United Supporters' Trust (MUST) addressed the club's potential new owners in an open latter published in February, urging them to publicly commit to manager Erik ten Hag's revolution and respect the rights of women and the LGBTQ+ community.
MUST said: "Any successful bid should not be based on debt and should include a commitment to replace existing debt, and fund future capital expenditure, through new share issues. Manchester United needs urgent new capital investment – to modernise both the stadium and training ground, as well as long-term guarantees about available spend on players across the men's team, women's team and youth setup.
"The club should commit to never again seek to enter any competition similar to the European Super League, and any proposal to change the competitions the club enters should require definitive consent of fans."
