The first offers for the takeover of the English club Manchester United have arrived. Among them, that of Qatar. A news that appeals to Mancunian supporters, currently at odds with the leaders. Judged responsible for the sporting decline of the Red Devils, the American Glazer family, which has controlled the club since 2005, is no longer in the odor of sanctity on the side of Old Trafford, where the supporters again expressed their anger on Sunday on the sidelines of the reception of Leicester in the Premier League.
“Get up if you hate the Glazers,” chanted the stands, despite the Red Devils’ 3-0 victory. The Glazers announced at the end of November that they were ready to sell the club if an offer suited them. Two candidates have declared themselves since Friday: the president of the Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB), Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani, and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, founder of the petrochemical group Ineos.
“Both will suit me as long as the Glazers get clear. I think that’s all most United fans want,” Steven Storrinot, 58, from Coventry told AFP. Other offers could arrive, but between the two declared declared candidates, the Mancunian supporters, torn between the heart and the wallet, have a hard time choosing.
“Minot” against billions
“I like the fact that Jim Ratcliffe is from Manchester, he was born and raised in Manchester, but the Qataris brought a lot of money and investment,” Darren O’Donough, 44, a computer scientist, revealed when interviewed by the AFP. “Ratcliffe was a United supporter when he was a kid, so I prefer him to anyone in the race at the moment,” said Dick Morden, a 65-year-old pensioner from Leicester.
Financially, the owner of the Ineos group and the clubs of Nice (French League 1) and Lausanne (Switzerland) does not seem to have the weight, despite a personal fortune recently announced at more than 14 billion euros by Forbes. Because the mere mention of Qatar makes the eyes of some shine, convinced that behind the boss of the QIB, it is almost all the fortune of the emirate which will be at the service of the Red Devils.
“To really be at the top of European football, the amount of money needed is only increasing and very few people can afford it,” said project manager Ross Ingles, 30, from Glasgow. “The ruling family of Qatar is probably one of the few investors capable of taking United to another level, with the modernization of the stadium and the investments that will be necessary in the team. That’s why I prefer (this offer),” he added.
Qatar makes you dream and worry
If the QIB is indeed a subsidiary of the sovereign wealth fund of Qatar (QIA), which manages some 430 billion euros in assets, it is not at all certain that Jassim ben Hamad al-Thani draws from it at will. The example of Manchester City is in everyone’s mind. The rival club, bought in 2008 by the United Arab Emirates, has won four of England’s last five league titles, when United’s last dates back ten years.
But it also acts as a warning, after the charges of massive fraud recently brought against Sky Blue by the Premier League. “If it’s to end up like Man City where a lot of things come out because everything doesn’t seem to have been done legally, could that happen to us in the future?” Jason asked. McNeely, 35, chef in Bristol.
The Manchester United Supporters’ Trust, which brings together the main groups of Mancunian supporters, also raised in a press release the question of sporting fairness “given the extremely close links between this candidate and the owners of other European clubs, including Paris Saint-Germain”. The MUST also demands commitments on human rights, especially against discrimination against women and members of the LGBTQ+ community.
“We won’t bring them into the 21st century by pushing them away. Let them come (…) to see how life is on this side of the world, and I think that’s something they will adopt”, wants to believe computer scientist Darren O’Donough, decidedly very optimistic.
Fr
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