Rory McIlory 'would love' to buy Man Utd stake after Alpine F1 investment

Cameron Smith

22 Oct 2023 15:25 BST
4 min read

Rory McIlroy has admitted that he “would love” to buy a stake in Manchester United as Sir Jim Ratcliffe prepares to become a minority shareholder in the club.

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The Ineos CEO is expected to purchase 25% of the Old Trafford club for roughly €1.5 billion and he will be given the reins to take control of football operations at Man Utd.

Furthermore, Paul Mitchell is in line to become Man Utd’s new sporting director in Ratcliffe’s first move as a minority shareholder.

However, the OGC Nice owner is not the only famous person keen on investing in Man Utd.

Golfer Rory McIlroy, who has four major titles to his name and recently helped Team Europe to Ryder Cup glory, is also interested in buying a stake at Old Trafford.

The Northern Irishman is a boyhood Man Utd fan and has revealed his desire to buy a small stake in the club.

© ProShots - Rory McIlroy in Ryder Cup action

What has McIlroy said?

McIlory is currently in attendance at the United States Grand Prix in Texas and admitted to Sky Sports: “Sports team ownership used to be limited to private equity, and people who had a ton of money. But now sports stars are becoming more savvy and using their money in the right way.

“I would love to be able to own a tiny percentage of the club I grew up cheering on as a boy.”

McIlory recently purchased a stake in Formula One team Alpine, along with Anthony Joshua, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Juan Mata and several others. He is present at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin for this weekend’s Grand Prix and revealed that he rejected the chance to invest in Leeds United due to his Man Utd ties.

© ProShots - Pierre Gasly drives for Alpine F1 Team

"I would have loved to have taken 0.00001 percent of Manchester United when Jim Ratcliffe took 25 percent,” McIlroy admitted. “And if another opportunity comes my way I will look at it. But it is not something that has come across our table as of yet.

“There is Tom Brady at Birmingham and there are a few golfers - Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas - who invested with the 49ers Group, and they own a tiny slice of Leeds. They asked me if I wanted to come on board, and I said as a Man United fan I cannot go anywhere near that!

“Sir Jim has got a great track record and everybody that does support United should be excited by the possibilities if they give him full sporting authority and decisions for the club. As a fan I am excited.”

Man Utd are currently eighth in the Premier League table after their 2-1 win over Sheffield United on Saturday night. Scott McTominay and Diogo Dalot were both on the scoresheet for Erik ten Hag’s side.