Mercedes co-owner invests in English football team

Talks between Jim Ratcliffe, owner of Ineos and therefore partly Mercedes, and Manchester United for a monster investment have been ongoing for some time. The deal had been delayed due to the voicing of concerns by minority shareholders, but a deal has now finally been struck.

Jim Ratcliffe is the owner and founder of Ineos. This is a British chemicals company that partly owns Mercedes. The businessman has long wanted to buy a nearly €1.5 billion stake in English football team, Manchester United. This investment, by the way, is personal.

This purchase was hampered only by concerns about the treatment of future minority shareholders. The delay could be partly attributed to the concerns of certain members of Manchester United's 12-member board about possible future deals and whether they would allow the Glazers, the club's main owners, to pay out money on terms that would not be granted to other shareholders.

An agreement had already been reached in November on the terms and conditions of buying a non-controlling stake. Now the deal has finally closed and Ratcliffe has bought a stake worth almost €1.5 billion. This ensures that he will own 25% of the club's shares, reports the Financial Times.

The Briton is delighted with the closing of the deal. "As a local boy and a lifelong supporter of the Club, I am very pleased that we have been able to agree a deal with the Manchester United board that delegates us management responsibility of the football operations. We are here for the long term and recognise that a lot of challenges and hard work lie ahead.”

Toto Wolff was asked in November whether he would also like to invest in the English football team, but a potential deal was out of the question for him.