A bid for Manchester United led by INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been confirmed in a statement outlining their ambitions for the club.
The Premier League giants were put up for sale by their current Glazer family owners last year.
Ratcliffe already owns Nice in France and Lausanne in Switzerland
Interested parties were given a ‘soft deadline’ of 10pm on February 17 to submit their offers for the Premier League giants.
Ratcliffe had previously revealed his interest in the buying the club and his ambitions have now been revealed.
In a statement, INEOS said: “We can confirm that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS have submitted a bid for majority ownership of Manchester United Football Club.
“We would see our role as the long-term custodians of Manchester United on behalf of the fans and the wider community.
“We are ambitious and highly competitive and would want to invest in Manchester United to make them the number one club in the world once again. We also recognise that football governance in this country is at a crossroads.
“We would want to help lead this next chapter, deepening the culture of English football by making the club a beacon for a modern, progressive, fan-centred approach to ownership.
Billionaire Ratcliffe is also a United fan
“We want a Manchester United anchored on its proud history and roots in the North-West of England, putting the Manchester back into Manchester United and clearly focusing on winning the Champions League.”
The chairman of Qatar Islamic Bank, Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad bin Jaber Al Thani, has also submitted a bid for United.
His offer is understood to be £4.5billion, while Ratcliffe’s bid is thought to be worth £4bn.
United also have speculated interest in a takeover from the United States and Saudi Arabia.
