In a bid to take full ownership of Manchester United, Sir Jim Ratcliffe is reportedly willing to sell French club OGC Nice amid interest from Saudi Arabia. Ratcliffe acquired Nice in 2019 through his chemical company INEOS for around £89 million (€100m) before acquiring a minority stake in United in February 2024.
After Ratcliffe completed the acquisition of Nice, stakeholders expected the club’s performance to improve, as they competed with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) for domestic dominance.
However, the reverse has been the case, as they haven’t qualified for Europe’s premier football club competition, the Champions League, since the purchase. The club’s best finish in a league season has been fifth (on three occasions) since it was acquired by the INEOS CEO.
According to French outlet L’Informé, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) are interested in the securities of Nice. Sir Jim Ratcliffe is ready to listen to offers for the club that currently sit in the sixth position on the Ligue 1 table. The report adds that any proceeds generated from the sale of Nice would be used to fund a complete takeover of Manchester United.
The news of a potential sale follows Ratcliffe’s comments last March, in which he expressed dissatisfaction about watching Nice play, saying their level of football did not excite him.
He told The Times (via L’Informé):
At the moment, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has a 28.94% stake in Manchester United. He paid £79.43 million ($100m) last December in addition to the £1.25 billion ($1.6bn) he had paid to buy an initial 25% stake.
Two senior figures at Manchester United are reportedly expected to leave the club as part of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s second round of redundancies. Since Ratcliffe became United’s minority owner, redundancies have been rampant.
In July 2024, more than 250 staff members were released in the first wave of cost-cutting measures, and recent reports have claimed that approximately 200 jobs may be cut soon.
According to The Athletic, director of football insights and innovations, Richard Hawkins, and director of football operations, David Harrison, have been told that they will no longer continue in their roles. Discussions regarding their exits are underway.
The report added that the staff at risk of losing their jobs have been holding meetings with HR since Monday (April 28) to find out their fate. Hawkins was appointed as a human performance manager before he assumed his current role in March 2023. Harrison was hired by former United football director John Murtough when Hawkins assumed his current role.
An ardent Chelsea fan, Ezekiel’s journey as a football fan began in his childhood, witnessing Ronaldinho dazzle with his skills. His interest in the beautiful game deepened after Nigeria were knocked out of the 2010 FIFA World Cup; he was impressed with the Super Eagles’ fighting spirit in their 2-2 Group B draw against South Korea. Some other World Cup matches which have left a deep impact on him were Belgium’s incredible comeback against Japan in the round of 16 of the 2018 version and the 2022 final.
Lionel Messi is the one true GOAT for Ezekiel and he also follows the Major League Soccer and the Saudi Pro League owing to him and Cristiano Ronaldo. When not writing, he spends his free time deepening his SEO knowledge and watching skits.
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