Reports are claiming that six Asian billionaires are poised to make a £1 billion pound bid for Manchester United. Variously described as being based in Bangkog or Beijing, they have been working on the project for three months. They think that financial problems at Old Trafford mean that this is a good time to make a bid. United has debts of £699m, the biggest in football’s history, and an annual interest bill of £60m a year. There are fewer season ticket holders at Old Trafford this year with just 55,000 taking up a renewal option after an agreement with the Office of Fair Trading.
Reports are claiming that six Asian billionaires are poised to make a £1 billion pound bid for Manchester United. Variously described as being based in Bangkog or Beijing, they have been working on the project for three months. They think that financial problems at Old Trafford mean that this is a good time to make a bid. United has debts of £699m, the biggest in football’s history, and an annual interest bill of £60m a year. There are fewer season ticket holders at Old Trafford this year with just 55,000 taking up a renewal option after an agreement with the Office of Fair Trading. There has also been a reduction in the number of hospitality packages being sold, partially a result of the economic downturn. Last week Malcolm Glazer sold his home in Palm Beach at a profit of $10m.
Before yesterday’s 0-1 home defeat by Aston Villa, Sir Alex Ferguson warned United fans not to expect any big name signings in the near future. However, the United manager dismissed claims that he has no money to spend because of the club’s huge debts. Fergson said that he has unlikely to buy in the winter transfer window because he does not see ‘any value’ in the transfer market, a sitiation that he fears could persist until after the summer because of the World Cup finals in South Africa, when prices for players may remain ‘inflated’. He said that the £80m Real Madrid paid for Ronaldo, coupled with other big money deals such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s £60.7m to Barcelona and Carlos Tevez’s £47m signing by Manchester City, have distorted the market. He commented, ‘Last season’s deals did inflate the market. It was silly season, with the prices paid for players. The prices we quoted were not reasonable and that’s why I didn’t do anything.’