Britain’s richest man, billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, ‘enquired about’ Man Utd takeover

BRITAIN’S richest man enquired about taking over Manchester United, reports say. Childhood United fan Sir Jim Ratcliffe, worth more than £21billion, was also interested in buying Chelsea earlier this year. Now the petrochemicals tycoon, who owns cycling’s Team Ineos, is said to have approached Old Trafford owners the Glazers. Utdreport say Ratcliffe was put off […]

BRITAIN’S richest man enquired about taking over Manchester United, reports say.

Childhood United fan Sir Jim Ratcliffe, worth more than £21billion, was also interested in buying Chelsea earlier this year.

Reuters

Now the petrochemicals tycoon, who owns cycling’s Team Ineos, is said to have approached Old Trafford owners the Glazers.

Utdreport say Ratcliffe was put off by their asking price.

And it is unclear if the 66-year-old would still consider a buy-out offer.

Lancashire-born Ratcliffe made his wealth after becoming an entrepreneur aged 40, forming chemical company Ineos in Hampshire.

Despite being a Chelsea season-ticket-holder, he bought Swiss side FC Lausanne-Sport in November 2017.

But just last month Ratcliffe said: “I’m a tortured Manchester United fan. We [Ineos] have dipped our toe in the water with football.”

Controversial Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman was linked with a £3.8bn takeover bid of United for several months.

That compares to the £790m the Glazers paid for United in 2005.

But over the years the American family have saddled United with debt.

And although the Glazers have insisted they do not want to sell, the Saudi approach must have been tempting.

The Saudi royal family is worth around £850bn – so money was never the problem.

But it is thought the £3.8bn valuation depended on new boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer earning a Champions League spot.

Instead, United faded to a tame sixth-place finish in the Premier League.

And the Crown Prince has now put any interest on the backburner.

It all means Ratcliffe would have to contemplate spending a huge proportion of his wealth to have any chance of persuading the Glazers to sell.

His self-confessed business model has been to buy “fashionable or unsexy” businesses from large companies and “make them busy… very profitable”.

That approach might not have appealed to Old Trafford fans eager for United to spend big.

So if Ratcliffe had taken over it might have earned him new nicknames to go with James Bond villain “Dr No” and TV show Dallas schemer “JR” – which the Financial Times say he has picked up.