Sir Jim Ratcliffe may be on the brink of ending the Glazer family’s full ownership of Manchester United, but things could have turned out very differently for the self-made billionaire.
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The 71-year-old’s £1.3bn investment in United is expected to be completed by the end of the month.
Ratcliffe will take control of football operations at United, though the Glazer family will retain control of the club itself.
While it’s not the full buyout that many United fans had prayed for, the hope of the Americans ending their 18-year control of the Red Devils is in sight.
Ratcliffe is expected to pump £245m of his own money into improving Old Trafford and the club’s Carrington training ground.
But there remains significant question marks over the Brit’s plans for the club, even though he owns several sporting teams.
One clue about Ratcliffe’s aspirations for United came in 2021 – when he tried to buy Chelsea.
Ratcliffe was a surprise bidder for the Blues when Roman Abramovich was forced to give up the club.
Though Ratcliffe ultimately failed with his £2.5bn bid, his promise to Chelsea fans at the time should excite Manchester United supporters.
Ratcliffe vowed to pledge an extra £1.75bn into the club over the next decade, and said he would renovate Stamford Bridge to make it a ‘world class stadium befitting Chelsea Football Club.’
In his opening statement following the bid, Ratcliffe set out his proposal to charm Chelsea supporters and vowed that any takeover would not be ‘for profit’.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe's promise to Chelsea fans after £2.5bn takeover bid
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, chairman of Ineos, has made a formal bid for Chelsea FC, for £4.25bn. £2.5bn is committed to the Charitable Trust to support victims of the war, with £1.75bn committed to investment directly into the club over the next 10 years.
This is a British bid, for a British club. We believe that a club is bigger than its owners who are temporary custodians of a great tradition. With responsibility to the fans and the community.
That is why we are committing to spending £1.75bn over 10 years that will be for the direct benefit of the club.
We will invest in Stamford Bridge to make it a world-class stadium, befitting of Chelsea FC.
This will be organic and ongoing so that we will not move away from the home of Chelsea and risk losing the support of loyal fans.
We will continue to invest in the team to ensure we have a first-class squad of the world’s greatest players, coaches and support staff, in the men’s and women’s games.
And we hope to continue to invest in the academy to provide opportunity for talented youngsters to develop into first class players.
We believe that London should have a club that reflects the stature of the city. One that is held in the same regard as Real Madrid, Barcelona or Bayern Munich. We intend Chelsea to be that club.
We are making this investment as fans of the beautiful game – not as a means to turn a profit. We do that with our core businesses. The club is rooted in its community and its fans. And it is our intention to invest in Chelsea FC for that reason.
No further comment will be made from Sir Jim or INEOS during the bidding process.
Ratcliffe admitted at the time of his bid that he is a Chelsea season ticket holder.
That’s despite the fact that he is a Manchester United fan, but Ratcliffe argued as a London-resident that he wanted a nearby team to watch.
The 71-year-old also used the season ticket to entertain clients for his company, INEOS.
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