Manchester United in search of a new owner: The Glazer family, who have been managing the club since 2005, announced last fall that they were beginning to consider "strategic alternatives" for development. For Manchester United, this means two things: either attracting additional investment, or a complete sale of assets. Now everything is moving towards the second option - applications are already being collected for the purchase of club shares, the selection and consideration of which is carried out by the same investment bank that participated in the takeover of Chelsea by Todd Bowley's concern. So far, RainGroup has received the only official application - billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, who has been a fan of Manchester United since childhood, has entered the fight for the club (which did not stop him from trying to acquire Chelsea and Newcastle).

"Is it worth the dirty money?" Manchester United buy favorite thwarted by unusual protest
News broke this week that Qatari investors are among the contenders for United shares: Qatar does not hide the fact that they plan to invest more in sports, relying on the success of the World Cup. For human rights organizations that have been trying to draw attention to the problems in Qatar during the 12 years that the country has been preparing for the World Cup, this desire hides the true motives - whitewashing the image in the eyes of the world community. Either way, the royal family-linked foundation is expected to file its application with the RainGroup soon. Investors do not have much time to think - they plan to complete the reception by the end of next week.

Who exactly is going to buy Manchester United and why PSG can prevent this
Qatar has the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) - it is the sovereign wealth fund of the state of Qatar. QIA was established in 2005 "to protect and enhance the country's financial assets, as well as to diversify the economy." The fund's portfolio spans multiple markets, economic sectors and asset classes, allowing the country to participate indirectly in other forms of business in other countries. It is this fund that United is going to buy: £ 4.5 billion is being offered for the club, although the Glazers want more than £ 6 billion for it. In Qatar, this amount is considered unrealistic, because Manchester United still has a stadium that needs either reconstruction , or complete demolition and building a new one from scratch - such a project could cost about £ 2 billion.

QIA has a subsidiary, Qatar Sports Investment, which acquired PSG in 2011. These are not all of its sports assets: in October last year, QSI acquired a minority stake in Braga, since the winter of 2022 the organization has been sponsoring the International Padel Federation, and since 2007 it has been managing the sportswear brand Burrda Sport. The president of QSI is Nasser Al-Khelaifi, he is also on the board of directors of QIA and is the chief executive officer of PSG.

And here comes the conflict: if QIA acquires Manchester United, then something will have to be done with French assets, since UEFA rules prohibit clubs playing in the same competition under the auspices of the organization to have one owner.

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The Emir of Qatar is confident that it is possible to own two clubs. Well, or you have to find a solution to make it possible
In Qatar, even though they are trying to prove that QIA and QSI have different owners, they understand that quite reasonable questions may arise from UEFA. Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani's strategy is to try to acquire Manchester United while keeping PSG: it is planned that the clubs will be managed by different organizations - for this they will create a separate structure. There is already a precedent: Red Bull Salzburg and RB Leipzig are formally managed by different owners, although they ultimately belong to the same company - Red Bull GmbH. That hasn't stopped them from meeting in European competition and Qatar has that in mind. Another solution is to try to put pressure on UEFA and ask either to adjust the rules or make an exception.