Manchester United takeover race heats up; Qatar's Sheikh Jassim submits final 'take it or leave it' offer

Manchester United is going through a takeover process. While Sir Jim Ratcliffe was said to be leading the race, Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad bin Al Thani has submitted an 11th-hour improved bid dubbed 'take it or leave it'.

Image credit: Twitter & Getty

English giant Manchester United needs a more precise situation regarding its ownership. While its current owners, the Glazers, invited investment opportunities into the club last November, reports suggested that they favour a partial or minority sale over a full-scale one. In contrast, recent reports indicated that British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe was leading the race against billionaire Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad bin Al Thani, as the former's offer for a partial sale was more significant than the latter's bid for a complete sale.

While the deadline for the final offer of the third and final round of bidding was April 28, on Tuesday, amid the reports of Ratcliffe leading the race, the Qatari submitted a fourth improved offer, dubbed 'take it or leave it'. The news has been confirmed by some renowned media houses in England, including trusted football journalist Fabrizio Romano.

Image credit: Getty

As for the details of the new bid, according to Sky Sports, the bid valuation is still short of the £6 billion valuation by the Glazers, while the new offer is around £5 billion. However, it comes with a pledge to clear all the club's debts worth £1 billion and a separate investment fund for its infrastructure.

Nevertheless, many football pundits are unhappy with the undignified process the entire United takeover scenario has transpired into. While any takeover will likely be completed at the end of July, it will seriously hamper head coach Erik ten Hag's transfer plans for the upcoming summer.