Sir Jim Ratcliffe has become part owner of Manchester United as one of the UK’s richest men has bought a 25 per cent stake in the club he supported as a boy.
The billionaire has bought a share in the Old Trafford club, worth a reported £1.25 billion (€1.4 billion), after Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani withdrew his interest to end a lengthy process where he tried to buy the club outright.
The 71-year-old has a reported net worth £12.5 billion thanks to the success of global chemical company Ineos, which has enjoyed exponential growth since he founded it in 1998, and will assume delegated responsibility for the club’s football operations.
He will also invest an additional $300 million (£236.7million) into the club’s infrastructure. Manchester United reaches agreement for Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Chairman of INEOS, to acquire up to a 25% shareholding in the Company.#MUFC — Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 24, 2023 Ratcliffe has been chairman throughout and has seen the company go from 400 employees to 26,000 and annual revenues of around £52.5bn.