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Avram Glazer (Left) and Joel Glazer (Right). |
Manchester United's owners the Glazer
family say they are considering selling the club as they "explore
strategic alternatives".
The Americans bought the club for
£790m ($1.34bn) in 2005.
Their move follows years of protest
from fans against the ownership.
A statement from the club said the
board will "consider all strategic alternatives, including new investment
into the club, a sale, or other transactions involving the company".
It added that the process "will
include an assessment of several initiatives to strengthen the club, including
stadium and infrastructure redevelopment, and expansion of the club's
commercial operations on a global scale" to enhance "the long-term
success of the club's men's, women's and academy teams, and bringing benefits
to fans and other stakeholders".
In 2012, the Glazers sold 10% of
their holding via a stock listing and have sold further shares in the
following years.
"As we seek to continue building
on the club's history of success, the board has authorised a thorough
evaluation of strategic alternatives," said executive co-chairmen and
directors Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer.
"We will evaluate all options to
ensure that we best serve our fans and that Manchester United maximises the
significant growth opportunities available to the club today and in the future.
"Throughout this process we will
remain fully focused on serving the best interests of our fans, shareholders,
and various stakeholders."
The Glazer family have owned NFL side
Tampa Bay Buccaneers since 1995 and Avram Glazer bought a team in the new
United Arab Emirates Twenty20 cricket league in 2021.
Joel and Avram took over the day-to-day
running of United after their father Malcolm suffered a stroke in April 2006.
Billionaire Malcolm died aged 85 in 2014.
American investment firm Raine
Group, who handled Chelsea's £4.25bn sale in May, is exclusively
advising United. A consortium led by Todd Boehly paid £2.5bn for the Stamford
Bridge club's shares, while saying it would provide £1.75bn to invest in the
Premier League club.
The statement from the club added:
"There can be no assurance that the review being undertaken will result in
any transaction involving the company.
"Manchester United does not intend
to make further announcements regarding the review unless and until the board
has approved a specific transaction or other course of action requiring a
formal announcement."
United, who are fifth in the Premier
League, have not won the title since 2013 and have not won a trophy since
claiming the Europa League and EFL Cup in 2017.
There have been multiple protests
against the Glazers' ownership in recent years, including one in May 2021 that
caused United's home league match against Liverpool to be postponed.
Thousands of supporters marched to Old
Trafford in protest before the same fixture this season, in August.
United were part of the failed European
Super League project that rapidly collapsed in April 2021. Manchester United
co-chairman Joel Glazer later apologised for the unrest it caused.
He has since attended fans' forums in
the wake of supporter unrest and pledged to make shares available to the club's
followers.
According to Transfermarkt, United
have a net spend of 1.36bn euros (£1.18bn) on transfers under the Glazers, with
only Manchester City having a higher figure in that period.
Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo,
who left Manchester United with immediate effect on Tuesday, criticised
the club ownership in a controversial interview last week - including
saying the Glazer family "don't care about the club" on the sporting
side.
The move to sell United comes after
Liverpool chairman Tom Werner said Fenway Sports Group were
"exploring a sale".
Also Read: Cristiano Ronaldo to leave Manchester United.
A Bloomberg report in August 2022
said the Glazer family were willing to sell a minority stake in the club.
British billionaire Sir Jim
Ratcliffe said he would be interested in buying United but then
stated in October that the Glazer family had told him they did not want to
sell.
Source:
BBC | Host: ghananews.hrforum.uk
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