Manchester United Ownership Headache: Sir Jim’s Controversial Comments and Avram Glazer’s Sporting Expansion

Manchester United ownership and being in hot water – Two things that are never far apart.

Since 2005, there have been issues stemming from the leveraged buyout by Malcom Glazer of Manchester United. Since then, the club has been floated on the New York Stock Exchange and in more recent times, British business mogul Sir Jim Ratcliffe has purchased a minority stake in the club. A very brief history of the ownership of Manchester United.

In the past two weeks, Manchester United’s ownership has been more chaotic than usual. Amidst questions surrounding the next Manchester United manager, who the team will be looking to sign in the future and ever-growing tensions between fans and the owners, the focus of the ownership has shifted away from football.

Manchester United Ownership – Focus Switch

Sir Jim Ratcliffe in Hot Water with the FA and British Government

Speaking on Wednesday to Sky News, Manchester United co-owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, made the comment: “You can’t have an economy with nine million people on benefits and huge levels of immigrants coming in. I mean, the UK has been colonised”. He went on to say: “The UK has been colonised by immigrants, really, hasn’t it?”

Understandably, the Ineos CEO has had major backlash as a result of his comments.

The British Prime Minister, Sir Kier Stamer, reacted to the comments, regarding them as “offensive and wrong”. The Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, remarked that Ratcliffe’s comments “go against everything that Manchester has traditionally stood for”. Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, called for Ratcliffe to apologise and called the comments made by Ratcliffe “disgusting” and “unacceptable”.

The FA are also looking into Ratcliffe’s comments to determine whether he has been deemed to have broken the rules. This could lead to further repercussions for the man who resides in Monaco, a famous tax haven.

Ratcliffe’s Reaction

Following the negative reaction to his comments, Sir Jim Ratcliffe released the following statement: "I am sorry that my choice of language has offended some people in the UK and Europe and caused concern but it is important to raise the issue of controlled and well-managed immigration that supports economic growth. 

My comments were made while answering questions about UK policy at the European Industry Summit in Antwerp, where I was discussing the importance of economic growth, jobs, skills and manufacturing in the UK. 

My intention was to stress that governments must manage migration alongside investment in skills, industry and jobs so that long-term prosperity is shared by everyone. It is critical that we maintain an open debate on the challenges facing the UK."

Manchester United’s Response

A considerable time after Ratcliffe’s comments and after Ratcliffe’s ‘apology’, Manchester United released their own statement in response:

“Manchester United prides itself on being an inclusive and welcoming club. Our diverse group of players, staff and global community of supporters reflect the history and heritage of Manchester, a city that anyone can call home. 

Since launching All Red All Equal in 2016, we have embedded equality, diversity and inclusion into everything we do. We remain deeply committed to the principles and spirit of that campaign. They are reflected in our policies but also in our culture and are reinforced by our holding of the Premier League's Advanced Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Standard.”

As of yet, we don’t know what the fallout of Ratcliffe’s comments will be in relation to the club and his position within it.

Avram Glazer Hoping to Expand Sporting Empire

At 65 years of age, Avram Glazer is co-owner of the NFL team, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and also the co-chairman of Manchester United. Now, he will look to expand his cricket portfolio. He already owns a Dubai-based club, Desert Vipers, but he is now looking to invest in the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket franchises, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and the Rajasthan Royals.

Bids in excess of a billion US dollars would be needed to purchase the franchise, understandably angering Manchester United fans. The football club was purchased on debt through a leveraged buyout, and the Glazer family have infamously never invested their own money into Manchester United.

To say that the Glazer family are ‘one step removed’ from Manchester United is an understatement. They rarely, if ever, visit Old Trafford and have all but released control of the footballing side of the club to Ratcliffe and his cronies.

With the potential acquisition of an IPL team, this won't change. Manchester United is nothing but a money maker for the Glazer family. They have no interest in bettering the club on the pitch and will do anything and everything they can to save money, rather than investing where necessary.

Will it ever change? Not until the Glazer family and Ineos relinquish control of Manchester United… and that’s unlikely to happen in our lifetime, disappointingly.