Jim Ratcliffe and his chemicals company INEOS have officially put their name into the hat to buy Manchester United.
The 70-year-old INEOS CEO has been vocal in the past about his desire to own a Premier League Club, having entered the race to buy Chelsea last year before it was sold to a Todd Boehly-led consortium for £4.25bn.
Read more: Jim Ratcliffe confirms he wants to buy Manchester United
Manchester-born Ratcliffe also confirmed he approached the Glazer Family, which owns Manchester United, last summer about buying the club, although the Americans at the time were only interested in letting go of a partial stake.
Who is Jim Ratcliffe?
Born in Greater Manchester, Ratcliffe amassed his wealth through INEOS, the fourth-largest chemical company in the world, reporting a turnover of US$61bn in 2021.
Founded in 1998, INEOS’ model centred on buying unwanted operations from the likes of BP, which had the potential to double their earnings over five years, allowing Ratcliffe to build a personal net worth of US$16.3bn, according to Forbes.
He has used both his wealth and the success of his company to buy sports clubs globally, including football clubs FC Lausanne in Switzerland in 2017 and OGC Nice in France in 2019.
What can United fans expect?
Ratcliffe has shown during his tenure at the French club Nice that he isn’t afraid to put his hands into his pockets.
In the four years before his takeover in 2019, the French club spent €73.6mln on new players. However, since his takeover, that figure has nearly tripled to €206mln.
With that being said, investment on the pitch doesn’t equal trophies.
United’s net spend over the last 10 years surpasses £1.1bn, above rivals Manchester City at £900mln, although the fortunes of the two couldn’t be more different since United won their last league title a decade ago.
The money would need to be spent wisely, meaning investment at the boardroom level to bring in the best "football people", something United fans have begged the Glazers for in the past.
The Old Trafford faithful have been outspoken on a crumbling stadium and training facilities, highlighting the need for investment in all facets of the clubs.
“I think if you want it to be a success, you have to invest,” said Conrad Wiacek, a sports analyst at GlobalData.
“Old Trafford needs investment, the training ground needs investment, the team needs investment, so in the short term, spending will be needed on the club.”
Wiacek also noted that Ratcliffe’s emotional attachment to the club means he will be driven to bring the club back to its glory days, but not at the cost of extracting as much value as possible.
“A businessman, no matter what stripe, no matter their funding, no matter their desire to own a football club, ultimately, would want to make some money out of it,” said Wiacek.
Anyone else?
Ratcliffe is the first to put his name in the hat, but an opportunity to own one of the biggest football clubs doesn’t present itself very often, so others will likely present themselves over the coming weeks.
A stumbling block to any takeover, of course, is the reported price tag, believed to be more than £5bn.
In comparison, Chelsea was sold for £4.25bn and Liverpool, which is also on sale by their American owners FSG, is reportedly on the market for £4bn.
The touted price quickly shrinks the pool of would-be buyers.
That being said, there are a few stand-outs.
Firstly, a US-based consortium could be involved, given much of the interest in Chelsea’s sale nearly a year ago came from across the pond.
Secondly, a wealthy gulf-state, in particular Qatar, could swoop in, with Qatari investment groups said to be looking at increasing their exposure to football, and the Premier League, following the World Cup last month.
Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), a sovereign wealth fund valued at US$455bn, confirmed its interest in investing in the Premier League, although it has yet to make up its mind as to who, according to the Liverpool Echo.
QIA’s CEO, Mansoor bin Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud, helped fund Elon Musk’s US$44bn takeover of Twitter with a US$310mln investment.
Qatar Sports Authority, which owns French club PSG, is also reportedly interested in a full or minority stake in Liverpool or Manchester United, Bloomberg reported earlier this month.