Sports

Qatari Sheikh to make another bid for Man Utd as third deadline looms: sources

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

With the deadline fast approaching on Friday for the third round of bidding to buy Manchester United, the Premier League giants’ future seems uncertain.

Reportedly, the Glazers — the current owners of the league — want a world record £6 billion ($7.3 billion) fee — an offer that is yet to be met.

However, despite fans’ concerns that the Glazers could prolong their controversial ownership, Qatari Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al-Thani is set to submit yet another bid before the deadline passes at 10pm BST time.

ESPN reported that the Qatar-backed Sheikh remains confident that his bid will be successful.

The Qatari banker and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe — who is fronting INEOS — are the front runners in the race to buy United.

When they first invited external investment in November, the Glazers — who have been unpopular with fans since they saddled the club with debt in a £790 million leveraged takeover in 2005 — appeared ready to cash out at an enormous profit.

Some private equity firms — including Elliot Investment Management and the Carlyle Group — which are in the market for a minority stake allowing the Glazers to retain control and provide the funding for investment in the club’s infrastructure.

According to reports, while Avram and Joel Glazer want to hold on to their stakes in the league, fellow directors Kevin, Bryan and Edward Glazer and Darcie Glazer Kassewitz are open to offloading their shares.

Offers from the second round of bidding last month were believed to have been worth around £5 billion.

That would smash the Premier League record of £2.5 billion paid for Chelsea last year by a consortium led by Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly and private equity firm Clearlake Capital, with a further £1.75 billion promised in investment in infrastructure and players.

The Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (MUST) has called for a swift conclusion to the process to allow new owners to be in place for the summer transfer window.

“We are in dire need of new investment, which undoubtedly requires new ownership. MUST, along with United fans all around the world, are calling for this process to be concluded without further delay,” the fans’ group said in a statement.

Latest News

Tickets for the Pakistan-India match were sold out in a matter of minutes.

Published

1 day ago

Farwa

The International Cricket Council (ICC) reports that tickets for the much awaited Pakistan-India encounter in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which is set to take place in Dubai, were sold out in a matter of minutes.

The tremendous demand for the Pakistan-India match underscores the fierce rivalry and excitement surrounding the tournament, even though tickets for the semi-finals are currently on sale.

Pavilion-specific ticket prices ranged from 500 AED for regular pavilion tickets to 1,200 AED to 5,000 AED for premium seats. The price of the elite Grand Lounge VIP packages was 12,500 AED, or roughly PKR 500,000.

On Tuesday, tickets will also go on sale for India’s first semi-final in Dubai as well as their final two group matches. Tickets for general stands are available for purchase online with prices for general stands starting at 125 AED.

Latest News

ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Today marks the start of the second phase of ticket sales.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Today marks the start of the second phase of the ICC Champions Trophy ticket sale.
Tickets for the opening match of mega event between Pakistan and New Zealand already sold out in the first Phase.
Following the Online sale of Tickets Last week, Physical Tickets for the Eight-Team competition will go on sale from Today.
Tickets for Matches in Pakistan including Group Stage Fixtures and the second Semi-Final will be Available at 108 Outlets of courier Service across the Country.
The Physical Tickets will be available to fans in 26 Cities of Pakistan.

For the ten matches that will be held in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, general stand tickets will start at 1,000 Pakistan Rupees, while premium seats in various categories will start at 1,500 Pakistan Rupees.
Tickets for the India matches scheduled for February 20 and 23 and March 2 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, will be made available as soon as possible.

Latest News

Will the Champions Trophy 2025 miss an opening ceremony?

Published

6 days ago

Farwa

The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 may commence without the traditional opening ceremony or captains’ press conference due to a modified arrival schedule for the participating teams.

This year, the England and Australia cricket teams will arrive in Pakistan nearer to the commencement of the event.

Sources inside the International Cricket Council (ICC) have verified that teams, including England and Australia, will arrive in Pakistan following their separate tours.

England is set to complete its tour of India by February 12, but Australia will conclude their series in Sri Lanka on February 14.

Consequently, both teams have retracted from the warm-up matches, a decision aligned with prior ICC events, where tardy attendance hindered practice matches.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) indicated interest in staging an opening ceremony; but, logistical issues related to the teams’ arrival dates resulted in its postponement.

The PCB stated that although the occurrence was not officially verified, it has consistently been regarded as a potentiality.

Although the opening ceremony and press conference have been cancelled, the PCB is dedicated to organising an alternative event to commemorate the importance of hosting the ICC Champions Trophy for the first time in 29 years.

The inaugural match of the tournament, featuring Pakistan and New Zealand, is set for February 19 in Karachi.

The PCB has stated that a celebration for fans will be organized ahead of the match to highlight the excitement surrounding the event.