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An online poll conducted by The Athletic revealed that the majority of respondents who took part in the survey prefer a scenario where Manchester United is under the management of Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
United is for sale, and Friday was widely pointed to as the Glazers’ flexible deadline for potential buyers to submit their submissions.
Qatari investors led by Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani were the first to submit their offer to the Raine Group.
In an official statement issued by Al Thani, he confirmed his interest in United and his intention to restore the Red Devils to their former glories while putting the fans at the center of everything that is done within the club.
It followed a later report which conveyed that Al Thani’s offer contains the promise of significant investment in the redevelopment of Old Trafford, the youth and women’s teams, as well as the local area.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe also presented his proposal. The INEOS billionaire is confident of his Manchester roots to triumph against Qatar.
After Sheikh Al Thani, INEOS’ offer for Manchester United was also presented tonight. ???????? #MUFC
Sir Jim Ratcliffe wants to buy the club as stated in public – the proposal is now confirmed according to @TheAthleticFC. pic.twitter.com/MP2JfKXyEa
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 17, 2023
Ratcliffe and Qatar are seen as the two heavyweights to become the next custodian of the Theater of Dreams.
Athletic posed a series of questions to their subscribers about what they want in potential owners and the results are interesting.
According to The Athletic, “Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who is the only person to publicly declare his interest in buying United [at the time of writing], reached the top by a considerable distance. Ratcliffe claimed 66.2 percent of the vote, with Qatar in second place with 16.9 percent.
The Athletic provided Ratcliffe’s upbringing from a council house resident in Failsworth, north of Manchester, to a chemist billionaire as a possible story that resonated with subscribers.
Athletic’s research exercise revealed that 98.2% of respondents are strongly against the prospect of the Glazer family retaining control at Old Trafford.
Another question sought to gauge fans’ openness to a sovereign wealth fund taking control of United.
“Just half of you (49.9 percent) said you wouldn’t be open to United being bought by a sovereign wealth fund. The rest were split: 26.6 percent said they would and 23.4 percent said maybe.”
Where it matters most, sporting achievements took a marginal lead against other objectives such as debt settlement, infrastructure renovation, fan engagement, transfer spending and investment in the local area.
The Athletic adds: “Question five has a similar tone, as 54 per cent of you care where the money comes from. Only 9.9 percent considered this not important at all, with 36.1 percent neutral. Nationality is even, but the biggest slice of the pie went to 33.3 percent no matter what. The “Yes, a little” and “No, not a lot” options were evenly split, with just 8.6 per cent feeling that a United owner’s background mattered a lot.”
Fan opinion was divided when asked if Ratcliffe should join a Saudi fund. 45% voted they wouldn’t care, and 43% said it would be a terrible idea.
There was a similar fringe split when the issue of multi-club ownership came to light.
Ahead of what shapes up to be a closely contested race, it will be fascinating to see who emerges victorious.
