Sheikh Jassim's stunning net worth as his takeover plans for Man Utd are revisited

Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani, a Qatari banker and son of the former emir, has had his Manchester United takeover plans revisited. Back in 2023, his bid was up against one submitted by the eventual new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS.

United opened their doors to investment and after a lengthy process in 2023 it was INEOS and Ratcliffe who snapped up nearly a 30 per cent stake in the club. He's now openly discussed the early stages of his ownership, leaving many pondering what might have been under Sheikh Jassim's reign. Two years ago, it was reported that the Qatari billionaire was competing with INEOS for a full takeover of the club. His team expressed at the time their desire to return the club to its "former glories" and boasted the financial muscle to make it happen.

Forbes has previously given us a glimpse into Sheikh Jassim's personal fortune, rumoured to be around £900million. However, the Al-Thani family of which he is a member is believed to have a combined net worth of £125billion, more than enough to buy United outright.

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During their reported takeover bid, Sheikh Jassim and his team pledged to wipe out all gross debt currently owed by the club. After the 2025 summer transfer window, it's estimated that United owes various parties up to £1.1b, reports the Manchester Evening News.

"The bid plans to return the club to its former glories," their statement read. "The bid will be completely debt-free, via Sheikh Jassim's Nine Two Foundation. "It will look to invest in the football teams, the training centre, the stadium and wider infrastructure, the fan experience and the communities the club supports.

"The vision of the bid is for Manchester United to be renowned for footballing excellence, and regarded as the greatest football club in the world."

However, it was INEOS who secured a minority shareholding in the club two years ago. Following what has been a disappointing beginning to his United ownership, the co-owner has now urged for patience.

"There are two halves to a football team - there is the business side and the sports side," Ratcliffe acknowledged on the Business podcast.

"The biggest correlation, like it or not, between results and any external factor, is profitability. The more cash you have got, the better squad you can build.

"It's like a Formula 1 car, the better car you can build, the quicker you go. The better your squad, the better your football should be. So a lot of what we have done in the first year is spend an awful lot of time putting the club on a sustainable, healthy footing.

"If you look at our results for last year we have the highest revenues ever. Profitability, the second highest ever. We're not seeing all the benefits of the restructuring that we've done in this set of results, and we were not in the Champions League.

"Those numbers will get better. Manchester United will become the most profitable football club in the world, in my view, and from that will stem, I hope, a long-term, sustainable, high level of football."

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