Manchester United is reportedly set to receive imminent takeover offers from the Middle East, Asia and the USA. Ahead of the same, the expansion plans for Old Trafford presented forward have been put on hold.
English giants Manchester United is potentially up for sale after its current owner, the Glazer Family, announced a couple of months back that it was seeking outside investment, including a potential full-scale sale of the club. Meanwhile, The Telegraph has reported that the club is prepared to receive imminent bids from the Middle East, Asia and the United States of America (USA). The Glazers owned the club in 2005 for £790 million and aim to sell it for around £8 billion, nearly double what Todd Boehly paid for Chelsea. While Britain's richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe and ex-United director Michael Knighton were in line to bid for the club, they are unlikely to proceed.
Although the report suggests that Ratcliffe is monitoring the situation, he has yet to show any severe curiosity to bid. He is yet to hold formal talks with his shareholders on the same. Although he has been a lifelong United supporter, he is a season-ticket holder for Chelsea, which he attempted to own last year. His estimated worth is around £20 billion.
The Glazers refused to take out their annual dividend from the club this year, considering that it had to spend huge during the summer transfer window. Meanwhile, it has hired the Raine Group to facilitate the sale, while Avram Glazer reportedly travelled to Qatar during the FIFA World Cup 2022 to hold talks with potential suitors informally.
Old Trafford expansion
United already has quite some proposals on the table for expanding the club's home ground. The proposal also includes the option to build an entirely new venue. However, it is unlikely that any decision would be made on the same anytime soon, not until the Glazers have finally sold the club and roped in outside investment, reports Daily Mail.
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The Red Devils are eager to redevelop Old Trafford and its training facility at Carrington, with facilities at both venues being outdated, as revealed by Cristiano Ronaldo, who expressed his frustration at the same. The upgradation of the venues is likely to cost around £1 billion, with the capacity at Trafford likely to be increased to 74,000.
As for the new stadium, United will remain at Old Trafford until the new venue has finally been built, while the option of total demotion of Trafford and rebuilding it from scratch is also on the table. Nevertheless, any move to create a new ground would increase the cost by a billion.