Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani will not submit a new bid to buy Manchester United, despite the club's share price falling by over 17 percent year-on-year and the team slumping to its worst league finish in decades. The Qatari banker's group was beaten in a two-horse race by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, whose Ineos group purchased a minority stake after the Glazer family opened the door to outside investment.
United are set to finish in the bottom half of the Premier League for the first time, and will have no European football next season after losing the Europa League final to Tottenham. This will be only the second time in 30 years they miss out on European competition entirely. Ratcliffe's tenure has seen mass cost-cutting, major redundancies, and a string of unpopular decisions, but the Ineos billionaire has no intention of selling his stake.
Despite the club's decline, sources close to Sheikh Jassim have told the Daily Mail there is no appetite to return with a cut-price offer. The Qatari group had previously bid £5 billion for outright ownership, vowing to clear the club's debts, but those talks collapsed. Sheikh Jassim was only ever interested in a full takeover, not a partial investment.
Middle Eastern investment in English football continues to grow, with Manchester City owned by Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia backing Newcastle United. Qatar already owns Paris Saint-Germain but has no presence in the English game. Fans protested at the final home match against Aston Villa, criticising the Glazers once more, as United sink to some of their darkest moments in decades.
