Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani, once a potential owner of Manchester United, has conveyed his clear intent to potentially submit another bid for the Old Trafford club. This update comes as journalist Fabrizio Romano exclusively shared an internal update from the Qatari group with GIVEMESPORT.
The Glazers put Manchester United up for sale nearly a year ago, and multiple bidders have emerged with offers for the club. The search for investment at Man Utd is nearing its conclusion, with a significant announcement anticipated shortly.
However, Sheikh Jassim has indicated that he has no plans to submit another bid for Manchester United. Responding to the possibility of the Qatari returning to purchase the Old Trafford club, journalist Mike Keegan, in a Premier League Q&A with the MailOnline, stated, “Very much hoping this does not come back to bite me, but I asked this exact question of someone involved in the process yesterday. Their response? ‘Zero chance.'”
Sheikh Jassim’s previous offer was reportedly valued at approximately £5.5 billion, falling short of the Glazers’ £6 billion asking price. While Man Utd supporters wondered if the Qatari group would return with another offer, given the relative closeness in their valuations of the club, it is now apparent that no such offer is expected.
Sheikh Jassim recently engaged in advanced discussions with the Glazers regarding a potential takeover of Manchester United. However, after the offer for 100% of the club was turned down, he opted to withdraw from the deal, believing himself to be Man Utd’s “dream owner.” According to Fabrizio Romano, prospective owners were “very frustrated” with the protracted negotiations.
The Glazers are now expected to turn to Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who is poised to become a minority investor at Old Trafford, holding a 25% share in the club. The INEOS chairman had been Sheikh Jassim’s primary negotiating rival and may have tailored his offer to secure his share in Man Utd.
Romano also disclosed that once the Glazers rejected Sheikh Jassim’s latest offer, he had no intentions of negotiating with the American family again. He had been preparing for the summer transfer window in March and April, envisioning a role in refreshing Manchester United with new player signings. However, due to prolonged and challenging negotiations, this plan was not realized. Romano exclusively conveyed to GIVEMESPORT:
“There was confidence between March and April from the Qatari group to make it [the takeover] happen, even before the summer transfer window, with Sheikh Jassim already involved in the idea of doing something on the transfer market. He was preparing for the signing of new players and helping the refresh of Manchester United already with the summer transfer window.
Then, the negotiation was very long and very difficult. The group tried until the end to restructure their proposal to make things happen. But in the end, the Glazer family said no again, and in that moment, the message coming from Sheikh Jassim was very strong and clear. He had no intention to negotiate anymore with Manchester United.”