Sheikh Jassim has submitted what is referred to as his final bid to buy English Premier League most successful side, Manchester United.
According to the report by renowned football journalist, Fabrizio, Sheikh Jassim and the Qatari group submitted a bid of over £5billion with a pledge to remove all debt and make considerable investment into club’s infrastructure.
The report by Fabrizio, also added that in addition to the figure to buy the club, the Qatari’s bid also includes a plan to invest a further significant amount of additional capital and infrastructure investment into the club directly.
The final decision will be up to the Glazers now.
Sheikh Jassim’s bid is thought to be the only one for full control of the Premier League giants. He wants 100% of the club and his deal would buy out the Glazers and all other shareholders. The Qatari’s offer is improved from his previous bid, but he will not go anywhere near £6bn and is determined not to grossly overpay, according to those with knowledge of the process.
Sheikh Jassim’s main rival for United is Sir Jim Ratcliffe. The British billionaire is seeking a controlling stake of more than 50 per cent, but his offer would allow two brothers from owners the Glazer family, Joel and Avram, to retain their 20 per cent stake.
That is being viewed as a controversial move which would infuriate large sections of United’s fanbase, should it be successful.
A major bidding war including numerous parties appears to have failed to materialise after the Glazers put the club up for sale in November. There are offers of investment in exchange for a partial stake from multiple groups including US financial giants Carlyle and Elliott.
Fans are planning a protest against the Glazers ahead of Sunday’s match with Aston Villa at Old Trafford, where they will call on the unpopular Americans to oversee a full sale of United rather than any other option.