Manchester United shares dive on report sale is off

Manchester United shares have seen their biggest ever one-day fall after a report that the team’s US owners are going to take it off the market.

The club’s shares fell by more than 18% in New York on Tuesday.

That came after the Mail on Sunday reported that no potential buyer had matched the club’s asking price.

The US-based Glazer family announced in November it was considering selling the Premier League club as they explored “strategic alternatives”.

Manchester United’s co-chairmen, brothers Joel and Avram Glazer, are holding out for an offer of £10bn, according to the Mail on Sunday.

However, prospective bidders Sheikh Jassim of Qatar and British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe had not come close to offering that amount, the paper said.

The newspaper cited a source with long-standing close ties to the club’s owners as saying the Glazer family may try again next year to sell the team when they hoped to attract more bidders.

The club did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment.

Tuesday’s share price fall wiped around $700m (£556m) off Manchester United’s stock market valuation. It is now valued at about $3.2bn.

The Glazer family bought Manchester United in 2005 for $790m.

However, they have faced fierce opposition from some fans who accuse them of loading the club with debt and not investing enough in it.

Since the takeover the club has spent more than £1bn on interest and loan payments, plus share dividends – the majority of which have gone to the Glazer family.

But the club has also spent some 1.36bn euros (£1.18bn) on transfers under the Glazers.

Last month, the 1958 Group, which is made up of fans that want the Glazers out of the club, held a protest at Old Trafford to signal their continued opposition to the family’s ownership. – bbc.com