Manchester United are set to enter a new chapter with Sir Jim Ratcliffe to take a role as minority investor.
A minority investment deal feels pretty underwhelming right now, doesn’t it?
Manchester United fans dreamed of an end to the depressing Glazer regime, and the start of an optimistic new chapter.
Even with Sir Jim Ratcliffe demanding control of football operations, per BBC Sport, it’s tough to get too excited about his 25 per cent investment stake.
Manchester United fans wanted the Glazers gone
Manchester United fans will only be happy when the Glazers are gone. Knowing that Joel and Avram plan to stick around, is incredibly frustrating.
There is a chance that the Glazers could still hold United back, and become a thorn in the side for Ratcliffe’s intentions to rebuild.
Who will have the final say when there is a disagreement? You would suspect that Ratcliffe as a minority shareholder, would not be the winner.
The worst case scenario was the Glazers refusing to sell altogether. That would have placed Manchester United in a state of perpetual limbo.
We know they don’t have the money to lead the club forward, nor the expertise.
The best minority investment option
Sir Jim Ratcliffe only switched his offer to a minority bid recently. It was a decision that swung the race.
Of the various minority offers, this is the only one which is at least in some way acceptable, or palatable to Manchester United fans.
There were three US hedge funds to make minority offers. These were Elliott Management, Ares Management Corp, and Oaktree Capital.
If any of this trio had been announced as the Glazers’ preferred choice, it would have been a terrifying prospect, as all would have been viewed by fans as faceless, corporate investors, who would have simply been propping up the current owners.
There was a fear that an investment firm would simply buy into United for the same reason as the Glazers; to make money.
The difference with Ratcliffe is his public presence. He is a figure who is answerable to the press, who has a reputation he cares about. He won’t want to tarnish it with failure at Manchester United.
His firm Ineos has a track record of sporting success, and football experience, and while there are clearly no guarantees about the forthcoming spell at United, his investment is welcomed by some fans, as it is viewed as the gateway to an eventual Glazer exit.
A path forward
If a US hedge fund had agreed a deal with the Glazers to purchase a stake, there would be little appetite among fans to see them buy a controlling stake. It would have been swapping one for another.
What we have with the Ratcliffe investment is some hope that it will lead to him buying the Glazers out completely.
The Mail report this is seen as the first step towards a gradual takeover. There was no sign any of the investment firms wanted to head in this direction, simply pursuing a minority offer as their maximum.
There is hope with this approach. It’s not ideal, it’s not the ‘too good to be true’ fix all solution, but it may be something Manchester United fans can live with, for now.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
