Ratcliffe jokes that Sheikh Jassim might not ‘exist’ after ‘very odd’ Man Utd takeover saga

Sir Jim Ratcliffe at a press conference.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has joked that he is “not sure” Sheikh Jassim exists after his failed bid to buy Manchester United.

Ratcliffe beat the Qatari banker in the race to purchase the Premier League club.

It was believed that Sheikh Jassim wanted to buy a 100 per cent stake, while Ratcliffe was looking to buy 25 per cent of the club, which was the preference of the Glazer family.

Now that the British billionaire’s takeover has officially been complete, he has been speaking to The Athletic about his plans at Old Trafford.

Having discussed his pursuit of Newcastle United director Dan Ashworth and the future of Mason Greenwood, Ratcliffe was asked about the takeover race, noting that the Glazers never actually met Sheikh Jassim, who might not even exist.

“Still nobody’s ever seen him, actually,” Ratcliffe said. “The Glazers never met him… he never… I’m not sure he exists!”

He was also asked if the Qataris provided the proof of funds to buy Man Utd, replying: “No, they didn’t, no.”

Furthermore, Ratcliffe says Sheikh Jassim claimed that his bid was a lot higher than it was and that he is not completely sure that they were even in the running.

“I don’t know,” he said when asked if he was potentially the only bidder.

“They were they were obviously there and there was a whole host of people on the team in their squad… I didn’t ever meet them. But it was it was a very odd affair.”

And on the background briefings and whether or not the Qataris played clean during the takeover race, Ratcliffe said: “I’m not going to comment on that. I know what the answer is.”

Ratcliffe also discussed his desire to buy Chelsea in 2022 and is not sure why there were fewer bidders for Man Utd.

“I would say this but there is no comparison between Chelsea and Manchester United,” he added. “The scale of Manchester United is incomparable to any of the London clubs to be honest with you.”