Jim Ratcliffe closing in on Manchester United takeover

Ineos set to enter final talks with Glazers unless Qataris up bid

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The Glazers and the Raine group are willing to enter final talks with Ratcliffe, above

REUTERS/PHIL NOBLE

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has moved a significant step closer to securing Manchester United with the Glazers and their New York bankers ready to discuss details of a sale with the British petrochemicals billionaire.

The Times understands from sources close to the deal that the Glazers and The Raine Group are now willing to enter final talks with Ratcliffe and his team at Ineos to thrash out the world-record deal.

As The Sunday Times revealed last month, Ratcliffe moved ahead in the contest with a Qatari group fronted by Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani and other rival bidders when his final offer represented the highest valuation — it could reach as much as £6 billion — for the Premier League club.

Insiders believe that valuation, and Ratcliffe’s willingness to agree a deal that enables Joel and Avram Glazer to retain a 20 per cent stake in the club has proved a significant factor. The Qataris’ third and final offer for a 100 per cent buy-out came in below £5 billion, despite claims to the contrary.

Sources close to the Qataris believe they remain part of the process and it could yet be that they respond with an 11th-hour bid that forces the Glazers to reconsider. Raine also oversaw the Chelsea sale last year and at least one rival group believed they were about to receive preferred bidder status only for the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Capital-led consortium to emerge as the winners of that particular contest.

The deal is complicated by the split between B-shares, which carry powerful voting rights, and the A-shares on the New York Stock Exchange, and it is likely that more talks will be needed to thrash out the exact terms of the deal which could take a number of weeks.

Given the animosity between the Glazers and United’s supporters, the prospect of an ongoing connection with the current owners was not met with a great deal of enthusiasm by fan groups.

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But any deal would almost certainly conclude with Ratcliffe purchasing the stake retained by Joel and Avram over two possible phases between the next two to four years.