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A third bidder has moved into the second stage of the process to buy Manchester United, according to a new report from The Daily Mail.
The Peoples Person reported tonight that Sir Jim Ratcliffe, head of petrochemical giant INEOS, and Sheikh Jassim, a Qatari businessman, had been given the green light to enter the second stage of negotiations.
This means that the Raine Group, acting on behalf of the Glazer family to find a buyer, has accepted that it has legitimate credibility and funding to acquire the club.
However, The Mail now claims that an unnamed third party also passed the initial screening and was allowed to proceed to the next stage.
This will mean that all three parties have full access to the finances of the club.
The Mail reports that “despite the development, which comes a fortnight after the bids were sent, there is growing frustration among some of those involved over the continued lack of access to United’s full financial picture.”
Interested parties have had to sign a confidentiality agreement, meaning they can’t reveal what they find by looking at United’s books.
The Glazers are reportedly seeking a figure of around $6 billion, but the current highest offer is understood to be below that, at around $4.5 billion.
The club’s book value is reported to be around $1.7 billion.
“Several summits will take place between those now in the second stage of the process, the Raine merchant bankers who are overseeing the negotiations and United’s top brass,” says The Mail.
“Several senior United figures, including CFO Cliff Baty and CEO Richard Arnold, are believed to be present at the meetings, along with officials from New York-based Raine.”
The identity of the third party remains a mystery, although there has been much speculation about an offer from Saudi Arabia.
American bids have also been proposed from Harris Blitzer Sports Entertainment (HBSE), a sports and entertainment holding company, Bain Capital co-chairman and Boston Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca and an unnamed third bidder.
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