The Glazer family owns Manchester United, and they say they are considering selling the team while looking into other options.
The Americans gave the club £790 million ($1.34 billion) in 2005.
Fans have been mad at the owners for years, so they finally did something about it.
The club said that the board would consider all options. For example, this could be a new investment in the club, a sale, or something else that the company does.
In 2012, the Glazers sold 10% of their share on the stock market. Over the next few years, they sold more shares.
Since 1995, the Glazer family has owned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And Avram Glazer bought a team in the new Twenty20 cricket league that will start in the United Arab Emirates in 2021.
In April 2006, Joel and Avram took over running United daily after their father Malcolm had a stroke. Malcolm died in 2014 when he was 85 years old.
United only pays attention to the American investment firm Raine Group. In May, Raine Group got £4.25 billion for selling Chelsea.
Fifth in the Premier League is United. The last time they won the league title was in 2013. Before 2017, when they won the Europa League and the EFL Cup, they had yet to win any trophies.
Glazer out protests
There have been protests against the Glazers’ ownership in the past few months. Because of one of these protests, United’s home league game against Liverpool in May 2021 had to be moved.
Before the same game in August, thousands of fans marched to Old Trafford to protest.
United was a part of the European Super League, but it didn’t work out. Instead, the league fell apart quickly in April 2021. Later, Manchester United’s co-chairman, Joel Glazer, apologized for the trouble it caused.
Since then, when fans were upset, he went to forums with them and promised to sell shares to the club’s fans.
Transfermarkt says that the Glazers have spent a net of 1.18 billion euros on players for Manchester United. In that time, only Manchester City spent more.
Last week, Cristiano Ronaldo, the captain of Portugal, said bad things about the club’s owners in an interview that caused a lot of trouble. He also said that the Glazer family “doesn’t care about the club” regarding sports.
After Liverpool chairman Tom Werner said that Fenway Sports Group was considering selling, the Glazers decided to sell United as well.
Bloomberg reported in August 2022 that the Glazer family was ready to sell a small piece of the club.
A British billionaire named Sir Jim Ratcliffe said he might want to buy United. But he said that the Glazers told him they didn’t want to sell in October.
Manchester United fans will be happy to see Glazer leave the club
No one has said that the Glazers don’t see Manchester United as an investment.
Everyone is interested in the football side, but Joel and Avram, co-chairmen, are the most interested. But the main goal is to make money, which they have done.
So, now that a few things have come together, the Glazers think it’s a great time to see how they feel about leaving.
First, they abolished European Super League plan. Even though Barcelona, Juventus, and Real Madrid are sure, the courts will clear it up.
Then, by helping Newcastle, Saudi Arabia makes the Premier League and Europe more competitive.
Also, the club needs to spend a lot of money to fix up Old Trafford and improve its Carrington training ground. So, keeping United competitive in the short term will cost a lot.
So, the summer sale of Chelsea for £4.25 billion looks like a great deal.
United fans have not liked the Glazers since they bought the club in 2005.
If they leave, most fans will be glad to see them go. But if it sells for a lot, their dream of owning it may take a lot of work.
Read Also: Liverpool FC owners put club up for sale
Even if Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a fan since he was a child, follows through with his plan to try to buy the club this summer.
