A UAE-based consortium that wants to buy Man United has approached David Beckham about a possible role in the deal, according to reports.
The Red Devils’ fan base went wild last week when wealthy Saudi boxing promoter Turki Al-Sheikh claimed interested parties were at an “advanced stage” of buying Man United.
“The best news I heard today is that Manchester United are currently in the advanced stages of completing a sale agreement to a new investor. I hope he is better than the previous owner,” Al-Sheikh wrote in X.
However, Al-Sheikh clarified his comments after some Man United fans speculated that he or another Saudi national was considering buying the club.
The next day, Al-Sheikh posted again, saying: “Yesterday’s post about a possible sale of Manchester United means one thing: the club is in advanced stages of negotiations with a new investor.”
“To be clear, I am not an investor and they are not from my country. I am posting this as a fan hoping for a deal to happen, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will happen.”
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According to reports, the group wanting to buy Man United is a UAE-based consortium, with Red Devils officials said to have held “meetings” with them earlier this week.
Now, according to the Star and Mirror (via The Independent), “the consortium wants former United winger Beckham to be an ambassador for the bid.”
Beckham has reportedly been “approached to support a takeover bid” and the group is “preparing a proposal to buy out the Glazers’ majority stake in the club.”
Asked if the Glazers should leave in July 2023, Beckham said in an interview with The Athletic, “I think so. I think it’s purely because the fans want it.”
“Once you lose fans, especially at a club like Manchester United, it’s difficult to get them back.
“Obviously they (the Glazers) have accomplished a lot and financially, the fact that we’re talking about Manchester United’s sale price shows they’ve been successful. But there needs to be change. We’ve all seen it and we all know that.”
On whether he could play a role at Man United in the future, Beckham added: “I have a lot going on here right now and my focus is purely on everything that’s going on in Miami and my business.
“But I don’t have any approaches. I think it would mean a lot to me to be involved with Manchester United in the future, but you never know.
“We’ll see what happens in the next few weeks and months. Hopefully a decision will be made and if I get involved in some way…if not, I’ll just be a United fan and do what every other fan is doing, just come to the venue and watch our team.”
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Soccer finance expert Dan Plumley has addressed the potential impact of Man United’s share price rising 8% amid recent takeover rumors.
Plumlee told Football Insider: “This is a reaction to what we’ve seen in the media about Saudi Arabia’s potential, statements from fairly well-known Saudi individuals who have speculated about a takeover, that have gotten this out there and ultimately driven up the stock price.”
“This is completely fueled by speculation around the takeover. What that means for the club is more for the shareholders and investors, and a rise in the share price ultimately reflects positively on the shareholders and investors, which means the share price goes up.”
“There won’t be that much of a change in the day-to-day finances or the running of the club. In terms of the stock price going up, the fact that the stock price is going up will be treated as good news for the company.”
“That share price will ultimately benefit shareholders and investors at some point. In this case, it’s the flip side of the coin again, because the current owners don’t seem to want to sell right away, and Jim Ratcliffe has come in with a minority stake, so they’re the ones who will benefit from the increased stock, but clearly they’re not going to sell the club.”
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