Manchester United’s shares surged 16% after the market closed on Monday, following reports that Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani will become the new owner of the Premier League club.
Qatari outlet Al-Watan, a news organisation owned by Sheikh Jassim’s father, said that their final bid last Wednesday had been successful.
????️Qatari outlet Al-Watan, an organisation that Sheikh Jassim’s father owns, reports that the Qataris have been successful in their bid to purchase Manchester United. ????????@al_watanQatar pic.twitter.com/fGc99RouhF
— Terry Flewers (@terryflewers) June 12, 2023
The banker was believed to have been behind Ineos’ owner Jim Ratcliffe in the race for Manchester United, with the Glazers said to have preferred to keep a stake in the club which Ratcliffe's bid offered.
However, Sheikh Jassim, determined and unwavering in his attempts to buy the club, submitted a final ‘Fergie Time’ take-it-or-leave-it bid said to be in the region of £6bn, which includes the clearance of the £1bn debt pile.