The American owners of Manchester United have begun looking at options for the 20-time English soccer champions, including a new investment or a potential sale, 17 years after the Glazer family bought the club.

The Glazer family is working with financial advisers on the process, which could lead to a partial sale of the Old Trafford club or investments including stadium and infrastructure redevelopment, the club said in a statement.

Manchester United fans have been clamouring for a change of ownership and the Glazers have been the target of intense criticism as the team, which has a record 13 English Premier League titles, have gone five years without winning a trophy. The last silverware they lifted was the Europa League and League Cup back in 2017.

Manchester United executive co-chairperson and director Joel Glazer. (Photo: Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images)

“As we seek to continue building on the club’s history of success, the board has authorised a thorough evaluation of strategic alternatives,” Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer, executive co-chairs and directors of United, said in the statement.

“We will evaluate all options to ensure that we best serve our fans and that Manchester United maximises the significant growth opportunities available to the club today and in the future.”

Potential nvestors

A sale of the club may attract high-profile investors.

In August, British billionaire and a long-standing Man United fan, Jim Ratcliffe, had expressed interest in buying the club, Reuters reported. At the time, Elon Musk had also joked about planning to buy the club. Chemical firm INEOS, where Ratcliffe is chairman, declined to comment on Wednesday.

Manchester United shares jumped as much as 10% in pre-market trade on the New York Stock Exchange, building on the more than 14% rise after news of the possible sale on Tuesday afternoon.

Its Frankfurt-listed shares, MUF.F, rose 7.2% to their highest level since 21 September, albeit in very light volumes. 

The company was worth $2.5-billion at the close of US trading on Tuesday, but the shares are only slightly above their 2012 IPO price of $14.

The club’s capitalisation as a public company peaked at $4.3-billion in 2018.

Asian tycoons, especially those from China, have been buying European teams in recent years, including Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers and Italy’s Inter Milan.

Old Trafford Stadium, the home of Manchester United Football Club, in Manchester, England. (Photo: Christopher Furlong / Getty Images)

However, football clubs have since been deemed unfavourable assets by China and any major overseas purchase would seem unlikely at the moment, said Mark Dreyer, Beijing-based author of “Sporting Superpower”, a book about China’s sports ambitions.

“It’s almost impossible to see how any Chinese-related entity could justify a purchase of this magnitude in the current climate,” he said, citing the economic fallout of China’s ongoing battle to contain Covid infections.

“No state body would approve this kind of deal.”

The Glazers, who also own National Football League team Tampa Bay Bucccaneers, are under pressure with United sitting fifth in the Premier League midway through the season, which has been put on hold while the Qatar World Cup plays itself out.

More big clubs are in play

Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has said the Premier League side’s owners, Fenway Sports Group, were exploring a sale of the club.

In May, Roman Abramovich sold Chelsea Football Club to an investment group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital for $3.2-billion.

Jefferies Analysts said they believe Manchester United would fetch more than Chelsea — the club’s Old Trafford stadium is bigger, the club has more than a billion followers — far more than its London rival — and it generates more revenue and core profit.

Hargreaves Lansdown senior investment and markets analyst Susannah Streeter estimated the club’s worth at more than $4.5-billion. 

Cristiano Ronaldo. (Photo: EPA-EFE / Andrew Yates)

Also on Tuesday, the club said star striker Cristiano Ronaldo will leave with immediate effect, marking a bitter end to the Portugal captain’s second spell at Old Trafford after he said he felt betrayed by the club.

The Glazers bought the club for £790-million ($939-million) in 2005 in a highly leveraged deal which has been criticised for loading debt on to the club. They sold 10% of their holding via the 2012 US listing and have sold more shares since. 

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The Raine Group is acting as financial adviser and Latham & Watkins is the legal adviser to Manchester United. Rothschild & Co is acting as financial adviser to the Glazer family shareholders.

Among the fan protests against the Glazers was one in May 2021 that forced the postponement of a home match against Liverpool, one of the club’s biggest rivals. It was the first Premier League match to be postponed because of a protest.

Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho (centre) celebrates after scoring during the English Premier League soccer match between Fulham FC and Manchester United in London on 13 November 2022. (Photo: EPA-EFE / Tolga Akmen)

United finished sixth last season in their worst Premier League campaign in terms of points earned, failing to qualify for the lucrative European Champions League competition.

They won the last of their record 20 top-flight league titles in 2013, the year the great Alex Ferguson stepped down as manager after more than 26 years in charge.

The club have hired Dutch manager Erik ten Hag from Ajax Amsterdam in a bid to turn around their fortunes. Reuters/DM