Manchester United’s owners are embroiled in a war over the sale of the club and ownership of the club’s shares amidst a potential sale being mooted.
The Athletic have revealed shocking details that indicate the difference in opinion and sentiment between the Glazer siblings.
Joel and Avram Glazer on one hand and Edward, Kevin, Bryan and Darcie Glazer on the other.
Laurie Whitwell reports that Joel and Avram at some point tried to buy out their siblings,and run the 20-time English champions as a pair without their different opinions.
Joel and Avram used the guise of “stadium redevelopment” to approach Apollo, a private equity firm, to secure massive funding that would enable them raise the money needed to kick their brothers and sisters out.
The Athletic relays, “In truth, the other four Glazer siblings have wanted to cash in for a long time. One source, who remains anonymous to protect their position, says that rather than go through the tortuous process to take United public 10 years ago, Edward, Kevin, Bryan and Darcie Glazer would have preferred to sell up entirely then.”
“Undisputed, and not previously reported, is that Joel and Avram tried to buy out their siblings last summer. That is what those talks with Apollo, a private equity firm, were really about, rather than finding funding for a stadium rebuild.”
“The theory is that Joel and Avram felt letting their brothers and sister go would free them to run United in a more unified, streamlined manner. Having four voices on the board whose focus has been on realising the value of their stakes, rather than the betterment of the club, clogged progression.”
The other four Glazers hold between them 71,701,268 of the Class B shares that are worth 10 times the voting rights of the Class A shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange. These have a an estimated value of $980m.
Darcie holds an additional 603,806 Class A shares with an estimated value of $8.3m.
They dynamics of the siblings’ share ownership have led to speculation whether there is a private agreement to not trigger share conversion, as the four others would have the power to out-vote Joel and Avram to maintain any sales as Class B shares, which would unlock their full value.
Whitwell adds that when Apollo declined Joel and Avram’s offer, the brothers approached Ares. Like in the first instance, there was also no deal that came to fruition. These setbacks along with piling debt and the cost of redevlopment or rebuilding the stadium may have finally pushed the family to selling.
