Ratcliffe would pay more than $1.5 billion for 25% Manchester United stake-source

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 Premier League 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.

via Reuters