Ratcliffe goes all-in on Man Utd by rejecting Liverpool chance

FT Desk

• Updated: 23 May 2023 08:56 CDT
• 3 min read

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, one of the UK's richest men, has ruled out making a bid for Liverpool, thus paving the way for a takeover attempt at Manchester United instead.

United and Liverpool were made available for sale just days apart, with the Glazer family inviting bids for the Red Devils 48 hours after the Fenway Sports Group (FSG) put the Reds on the market.

Ratcliffe, who currently owns French Ligue 1 side Nice, has a net worth of around €27 billion owing, in large part, to the chemical giant INEOS which he founded in 1998.

READ: Man Utd takeover: Who is Sir Jim Ratcliffe? The Ineos billionaire bidding for the Red Devils

A self-confessed Man Utd fan, the 70-year-old, who is now tax resident in Monaco, has no intention of making a move for their great rivals Liverpool according to French outlet Foot Mercato.

"Jim Ratcliffe's name almost always comes out of the hat in these cases," they write. "The CEO of INEOS and owner of OGC Nice since August 2019, the 70-year-old English businessman has a considerable fortune. But he quickly dismissed the idea of buying Liverpool."

READ: Man Utd and Liverpool both for sale: Which club is a better investment?

Potential suitors

United have garnered significant interest since they came on the market, with tech giant Apple, private investors from Saudi Arabia and club legend David Beckham among those credited with an interest in buying the club.

Nice have been relatively prominent in the transfer market since Ratcliffe took charge, and spent €70m on players this summer, with Monaco's Sofiane Diop costing the most at €22m.

Few French sides can match les Aiglons' salary scale, and former Premier League stars like Nicolas Pepe, Kasper Schmeichel, Aaron Ramsey and Ross Barkley are all now also at the club.

United fans can be excited at the prospect of Ratcliffe taking over, and it is something he admitted he was interested in last summer.

"I met Joel and Avram [Glazer] they are really nice people, and they don't want to sell it," he said at the time. "If it had been for sale we probably would have had a go. We can't sit around hoping United will become available."

Now, Ratcliffe has his chance.