By Anirban Sen
(Reuters) – Ineos Chair Jim Ratcliffe would pay over $1.5 billion for a 25% stake in Manchester United Plc were his bid for the iconic soccer club to be accepted by the Glazer family that controls it, a person familiar with the matter said on Sunday.
The terms of Ratcliffe’s bid, reported here for the first time, infer a valuation on Manchester United of close to $6.5 billion, excluding its net debt of more than $600 million, the source said.
That is slightly higher than a rival offer from Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al Thani for $100% of the club. Manchester United is currently valued by the stock market at $3.3 billion.
Sheikh Jassim informed the Glazer family in the last few days that he would not be raising his bid further. The Glazers have not yet reached a deal with Ratcliffe and negotiations may continue at least until the end of the month, the source said.
The Glazer family, which made its fortune in real estate, retail and healthcare and also owns the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, bought the team for 790 million pounds ($960 million) in 2005. The six descendants of Malcolm Glazer, who died in 2014, together control 96% of Manchester United’s voting stock.
The deal structure that Ratcliffe has proposed would allow members of the Glazer family, as well as other shareholders, to partially cash out, the source said.
Ratcliffe has offered to be in charge of hiring and managing talent at Manchester United should his bid prevail, the source said. Some club fans have criticized the Glazers over the years over their handling of this key aspect of Manchester United’s operations.
The source requested anonymity because the matter is confidential. Manchester United and Ratcliffe did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ratcliffe founded Ineos in 1998 and is the chemical group’s chairman and chief executive officer, with a two-thirds stake.
(Reporting by Anirban Sen in New York; Editing by Greg Roumeliotis and Sandra Maler)
