Carlyle 'are in talks over a major investment into Manchester United'

US private equity firm Carlyle ‘are in talks over a major investment into Man United’ as the Glazers’ third-round deadline for takeover offers nears… and are interested in acquiring a ‘minority stake’ at Old Trafford

• The American private equity firm are among the bidders to have tabled offers
• The Glazer’s recently invited prospective buyers to a third round of bidding
• Buyers have until the end of the month to table an offer that meets the valuation 

American financial investment giants Carlyle are in talks over a ‘major investment’ into Manchester United, according to reports. 

It was reported earlier in the week that a third and final round of bidding for United is set to take place, with best offers to land before the end of the month.

And it now seems that private equity firm, who have assets worth £298billion, are among one of the leading candidates to land a ‘minority stake’ into the Red Devils. 

According to Sky News, the Nasdaq-listed investment giant have had talks over an investment at Old Trafford as the Glazer’s deadline of offers nears. 

The same outlet claim that Carlyle’s interest in United is ‘serious’ and that the company have been in discussions with club officials for some time. 

American financial investment giants, Carlyle, are in talks to acquire a ‘minority stake’ into Premier League side Manchester United

Man United’s owners, the Glazer family, invited prospective bidders to a third round of offers as they continue to oversee the sale of the club 

Carlyle are a global investment and private equity firm based in the United States, who have owned UK companies including the RAC breakdown recovery service, and Addison Lee, the taxi-hire group. 

Details over their offer are yet to be fully determined but it’s reports claim that they are interested in a ‘minority stake’ as opposed to a complete takeover. 

MailSport have reached out for comment. 

The news comes after confirmation that a third and final round of bidding for United is set to take place, as the Glazers hold out for an offer the meets their valuation.

In the latest twist to the long-running saga, those still in the battle – who also include Qatar-based Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani and British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe – have been told that there are now two deadlines.

The first, which is in the middle of next week, is related to due diligence. The second – April 28 – is for final bids to drop.

The Glazers bought the club for £790m in 2005, and were thought to be seeking a sale price of around £6billion – but the uncertainty around the exact figure has led to additional confusion. 

Overall, the Glazers have taken more than £1bn out of United in the form of dividends, interests, costs and fees during their 18-year-reign, which has been dominated by a decline in on-pitch performance and success. 

When announcing the club was up for sale in November, they invited bids for control and for a stake in exchange for a cash injection but the recent suggestions are that a complete takeover is more likely.

British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe (left) and Qatari Sheikh Jassim (right) are two front-runners to buy United and have already submitted two bids to take ownership of the club

 The Glazers are thought to be seeking a sale price of around £6billion for the club

After the Glazers recently extended the takeover process to a third-round of bidding,  Manchester United Supporters Trust, or MUST, urged the club’s chiefs to ‘accelerate’ their negotiations.

In a statement on their website, MUST wrote: ‘When it was announced in November that the Glazers were undertaking a “strategic review” and inviting offers to buy the Club, MUST welcomed the news and went on to urge the majority owners to move ahead with the process with speed, so that any period of uncertainty was as short as possible.

‘Nearly five months on, we read speculation that offers from prospective buyers remain below the Glazers valuation, and that a third round of offers will now be invited.’

The decision to move to a final round, rather than enter into a period of exclusivity with one group, suggests that the Glazers have not yet attracted a price at which they are happy to sell.

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