Sir Jim Ratcliffe has invested more money in Manchester United to increase his stake in the club.
Ratcliffe acquired 27.7% of the club earlier this year in a deal worth around £1.2bn, but the club’s official financial filings show the INEOS chief has invested a further £79m in the club, increasing his ownership stake to 28.94% in the process.
All of the shares that were initially in Ratcliffe’s name after the initial takeover have since been transferred to his INEOS company, formalizing United’s position. Group’s multi-club portfolio That also includes French side Nice and Swiss outfit Lausanne-Sport.
There will be no problem when it comes combined And Nice face in the same European competition that INEOS says it owns just 17% of the French side, meaning neither INEOS nor Ratcliffe have a legally controlling influence over Nice – satisfying UEFA’s multi-club rules.
While the timing of Ratcliffe’s latest investment at United could spark excitement ahead of the January transfer window, the funds are unlikely to be used to buy new players and are instead set to contribute to behind-the-scenes business costs.
That leaves a new head coach Ruben Amorim works with a small budget More than his predecessor Erik ten Hague, Ratcliffe was keen to end windows of high turnover and instead put his faith in Amorim to improve the players currently at his disposal.
Bosses’ budget can be stretched by the sale of any player and all eyes are on forward Marcus Rashford, who has recently acknowledged his desire for a new challenge. Mixed response from Amorim.