English football club, Manchester United on Sunday evening announced that one of the UK’s richest men, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, has agreed a deal worth about £1.25bn to acquire a 25% stake in the club.
While the news serves a huge development for the fans and sports lovers globally who are hoping to see the club pursue a new direction given their woeful performance in the last half a decade, PUNCH METRO presents 10 facts about the man who will be the face of the new direction in the club’s history.
1. Background: Jim Ratcliffe, one of the UK’s wealthiest individuals, grew up in Failsworth, Greater Manchester, and remains a devoted Manchester United fan.
2. Wealth: Estimates of Ratcliffe’s wealth vary, with Forbes approximating it at around $18 billion (£15.8 billion) and the Sunday Times Rich List suggesting it’s closer to £30 billion.
3. Business Success: Ratcliffe built his fortune by acquiring undervalued assets, notably through his company, Ineos, which operates across 29 countries, generating sales of around £50 billion and employing over 26,000 people.
4. Chemical Industry Pioneer: With a background in chemical engineering, Ratcliffe worked at oil firms BP and Esso before making a career shift into private equity with Advent International.
5. Ineos Formation: In 1998, Ratcliffe formed Ineos after acquiring BP’s chemicals division in Hythe near Southampton, eventually growing it into a chemical powerhouse.
6. Tough Negotiator: Ratcliffe is known for his tough negotiation skills and faced off against unions during industrial disputes, notably at the Grangemouth petrochemical plant in Scotland in 2013.
7. Controversial Ventures: Ineos’s involvement in areas such as fracking and the importation of shale gas from the US into the UK attracted controversy and opposition from environmental groups.
8. Business Expansion: Beyond the chemical industry, Ratcliffe diversified Ineos by acquiring Belstaff, investing in professional cycling teams (Ineos Grenadiers), and expressing interest in owning football clubs.
9. Football Ventures: Ratcliffe owns French side Nice, Swiss club Lausanne-Sport, and has now secured a 25% stake in Manchester United, alongside his other sports-related interests.
10. Failed Chelsea Bid: In a bid to acquire a football club, Ratcliffe made an unsuccessful £4.25 billion offer for Chelsea FC in May last year, expressing his fondness for Manchester United, a club he previously couldn’t bid for as it was not on sale.
