Man Utd takeover: Why Sir Jim Ratcliffe deal has been held up as agreement date ‘pencilled in’

Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s partial Manchester United takeover was delayed once again last week, causing further frustration for supporters.

Fans had hoped the 25 percent investment from Ineos would be wrapped up in time for January, giving a clearer structure ahead of the transfer window opening, but that now looks unlikely.

The Glazer have all but agreed for Ratcliffe to purchase a minority stake in the club, with the finer details still to be completed. Once formally agreed, there will be a gap until the deal is formally ratified, in order for parties to comply with public company regulations and Premier League tests.

But once Ratcliffe’s purchase is in place, he plans to oversee the club’s football operations, including transfer policy. The Failsworth-born billionaire also intends to bring Sir Dave Brailsford and Jean-Claude Blanc to United in some capacity, while Paul Mitchell remains of interest to come in as the club’s new director of football. Ratcliffe also plans to invest around £245m into club infrastructure, to make much-needed improvements to United’s stadium and training ground.

But a lot has to happen before then.

Why has there been a hold-up?

In mid-November, there was a sense that an agreement was imminent, with suggestions that it could even have been announced by 17 November. Yet, as we approach the second week of December, nothing has been confirmed still.

There’s not particularly interesting about the hold-up, and it’s mainly down to lawyers wading through a mountain of paperwork, which can ‘take an age to get through’ as one source told ManchesterWorld. There’s no concern that the agreement won’t be completed, but it’s looking increasingly unlikely it will be announced this week.

When will the takeover be complete?

Sky report that an agreement has been ‘pencilled in’ for early next week, with Ineos officials set to take two boardroom seats at Old Trafford. The minority investment will cost $33-a-share, with Ratcliffe buying 25 percent of the company’s A-shares and B-shares.

“Sir Jim is understood to be committed to investing additional sums in future, although it is unclear whether these will be publicly discussed at the time of the stake purchase,” Sky add.