Manchester United has joined great rival Liverpool in opening its doors to a potential buyout that could be the biggest in sporting history.
A fee of 2.5 billion pounds for a team that has a smaller stadium than any of its elite Premier League rivals has set a marker for United and Liverpool, who have long-been the most popular in England, with enormous global reach.It also has by far the biggest stadium in the Premier League, with Old Trafford’s capacity at more than 75,000 in contrast to Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge, which holds around 42,000.
Merchant bank Raine Group, which conducted the sale of Chelsea, is handling the process for United, which could include a full buyout. The late tycoon Malcolm Glazer bought United in 2005 for 790 million pounds . The family stands to make a huge profit on that even by the most conservative valuations.