Saudi official on the sale of Manchester United: what is known about the negotiations.

According to The Sun: The proposal from Turki Alalshikh regarding the possible sale of Manchester United is likely connected to plans to renovate Old Trafford stadium.

Sources within the club were perplexed by the statement from the Saudi Arabian government representative claiming that the club is allegedly in negotiations regarding a potential sale.

Turki Alalshikh is associated with the shocking proposal to buy Old Trafford Getty He has ties with businessman Rodolphe Saade Getty

Alalshikh has also been linked to a possible acquisition of the French club Marseille and previously collaborated with billionaire Rodolphe Saade, who also considered buying Marseille.

Saade leads the CMA CGM group, which recently acquired Freightliner.

It is noteworthy that Freightliner owns land around Old Trafford, which is significant for the plans of United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe to build a new 100,000-seat stadium next to the old stadium, which is over 115 years old.

Saade has met multiple times with Alalshikh, who is well known in Saudi Arabia for organizing boxing tournaments.

The head of the Old Trafford renovation working group, Lord Seb Coe, recently visited New York to discuss the possibility of attracting investors for financing the new stadium.

The estimated cost for the new Old Trafford is around 2 billion pounds.

After the panic sparked online regarding a possible club buyout, Alalshikh was forced to clarify his position.

“My post about the potential sale of Manchester United meant one thing: the club is in advanced negotiations with a new investor,”

— Alalshikh wrote on Twitter.

“To clarify, I am not an investor, and they are not from my country. I write this as a fan hoping for this deal, though it may not happen.”

Saudi authorities have been accused of trying to use sports to further their goals through boxing events and ownership of Newcastle United.

id='6382333146112' data-video-id='6382333146112' data-account='5067014667001' data-player='default' data-usage='cms:WordPress:6.5.7:2.8.6:javascript' data-embed='default' class='video-js' data-application-id='' controls style='width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0; bottom: 0; right: 0; left: 0;'> Shutterstock Editorial

Saudi officials previously made unfounded claims that a sale of the club could occur. Sources from United suspected that it was an attempt to raise stock prices.

Ratcliffe discussed his relationship with most club owners, the Glazer family, in an interview that aired on Wednesday.

“We are local, and they are from the other side of the ocean,”

— said Ratcliffe.

“It is quite far to try to manage such a big and complex club like Manchester United. We are here, with our feet on the ground.”

 

“We have good working relationships. They come to board meetings. We sit down and discuss matters.”

 

“There is probably something written in a formal agreement (about who controls football operations), but I already said when we finally finished with those legal agreements: 'I hope we don't see them anymore.'

 

“They just went into the bottom drawer, and honestly, I haven’t looked at them since.”

What is known about the 'new' Old Trafford

Manchester United plans to build a new stadium on the site of the old one instead of renovating it.

This decision results from numerous visits to other stadiums, including Bernabeu and Camp Nou.

• The project budget will be approximately 2 billion pounds.
• The expected capacity is 100,000 seats.
• A club of United's scale requires a modern stadium.
• The new stadium will be located on land next to the current home of the 'Red Devils'.
• United aims to revitalize the Trafford area where the stadium will be located.
• There are plans to preserve Old Trafford, converting it into an additional arena, although it may eventually be demolished.
• The club surveyed 30,000 fans about future actions, and the results show about 50-50 in favor of staying or relocating.
• The architects Foster + Partners were chosen to create the master plan. This company also developed the Wembley stadium project.
• Old Trafford has served as the home of United since 1910.
• The completion of the new stadium is scheduled for 2030.