BREAKING: Manchester United could be sold by the Glazer family after their 17-year reign
Manchester United fans could finally get their wish and get rid of owners, the Glazer family, with the Americans looking for new investment.
The Glazers have not been welcomed by United supporters throughout their 17 years in charge of the club, with numerous protests against their ownership.
Now, according to Sky News, the family could finally be looking into selling the club, with sources claiming that a statement from them could be imminent.
The report claims that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers owners are ready to announce their plans to look for ‘outside investment into the club.’
That could include them starting an ‘auction’ to buy the club outright, which could see them make billions in profit from their 2005 buyout.
Sky say that investment bankers have already been told to advise on the process of a partial or full sale of United, or third party investment.
The main bone of contention when the Americans, then led by Malcolm Glazer, who died in 2014, leaving the club to his sons, was the manner of their takeover.
The Glazer family borrowed much of the £790 million to buy United, against the club, with the interest on the loan growing year on year.
They have also been criticised for not investing in the club in the years since, with all the money the club spend being generated by itself.
On top of that, they have continued to take more money out of the profits to line their own pockets, whilst not investing to help on the pitch or off.
In the time since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement, in 2013, things have stagnated and they have not come close to adding to their 13 Premier League titles.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s recent interview, which hugely criticised many aspects of the club, included shots at the owners and the lack of development of both the training facilities and the stadium.
United’s Carrington training ground opened in 2000, replacing ‘The Cliff,’ and was considered well ahead of most of their rivals’ facilities at the time.
More parts were added to the ground in 2013, with a medical centre and sports science department opened, but there has been no significant changes since then.
Similarly Old Trafford has been overtaken by many of United’s closest rivals, with Manchester City and Liverpool having significant investment into their stadia, and Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur both moving to new, modern grounds.
The Glazers reportedly acknowledge the need to invest into the stadium, the largest in English football outside of Wembley, and a partial sale to raise the funds needed is one outcome of the potential sale, according to Sky.
If they do sell, United would likely fetch the family even more money than Chelsea was sold to Todd Boehly earlier this year for, with the American’s consortium paying $2.5 billion.
Liverpool’s American owners are also reportedly open to selling the Premier League giants, which would also attract some huge bids.
