The identity of the potential new owners of Manchester United seems to be between two parties – Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani’s 92 foundation.
Utd fans are eagerly anticipating updates on progress of the bids that the Glazer family have received, but so far things have fallen silent on the side of the Americans.
It seems now that somebody has spoken on the matter and it’s INEOS’ director of sport, Sir David Brailsford.
Sir Brailsford was speaking to ITV News at the Tour de France and was quizzed on how confident he felt about INEOS’ bid for the club as well as his involvement in that process.
In response to the question, Brailsford said, “Obviously we’ve been involved and it’s something that we’re very keen to do.
“It’s not something we can discuss in detail, we’ve got to sign up to NDAs and all the rest of it. But it’s an ongoing process and we’d very much like to do it.
“To be custodians of one of the biggest sporting teams, brands, in the world and trying to really support the team and go back to the success they deserve. And also the fanbase.
“I’ve worked in Manchester for a long time, we saw the team become a global phenomenon, Team Sky have done the same. I know Manchester really well so you get a sense of what the club is all about and what the fans want. If we’re part of the process, we hope to do that.”
From Sir Brailsford’s comments, it’s clear that INEOS are still very keen to be considered as new owners of the club and there seems to be genuine desire from him to see the club move forward.
The British cycling coach and performance director is principal of Team Sky as well as being involved in Nice – so he will be aware of what it takes to run a success sports entity if INEOS were to be triumphant.
Unfortunately for United fans, outside of these comments, things look pretsays ty bleak on the takeover front. Reports are emerging that the Glazers are not going to sell as their asking price of $6bn has not been met. Whether that means that the club will stay in the hands of the Glazer family or a compromise will be met with either INEOS or 92 foundation remains to be seen.
