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ANCHESTER United's owners, the Glazer family, look likely to have to drop their asking price of £6bn-£8bn for the
The Glazers, who also own NFL franchise the
The Americans fired the starting gun on what they hope will be a competitive sale process after several months of speculation that they were open to selling shares.
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United's owners have hired the same US-based investment bank, the
But industry sources believe any deal is unlikely to reach the £6bn-£8bn that the Glazers are said to be seeking for an asset they bought in a controversial £790m takeover in 2005.
Estimates range from £3bn to £5bn for a club whose market capitalisation was around £2.3bn on Tuesday, despite the share price climbing on the sale news. They also have debts of £500m.
Macroeconomic conditions such as higher interest rates mean that potential buyers are being more cautious and preferring to wait, sources said.
The already shallow pool of possible suitors could be further reduced by the fact that United are a public company, listed on the
That means any would-be buyer will have to go public with their offer and their intentions, a degree of scrutiny some investors may not accept, another source said.
"It is not a coincidence that the Glazer family have formally announced a process beginning to sell
"A benchmark has been set by
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Another US buyer remains the most likely solution for the Glazers, due to the favourable exchange rate and recent trend of American investors, such as Boehly, in European football.
British chemicals billionaire Sir
"If the club is for sale, Jim is definitely a potential buyer," Ratcliffe's spokesperson said in August.
"If something like this was possible, we would be interested in talking with a view to long-term ownership."
Economist Lord
United made a net loss of £116m as they finished a disappointing sixth in the
GOING, GOING, GONE: CLUBS FOR SALE MAN UTD The Glazers announced on Monday that they have appointed bankers to advise on a partial or full sale of the club they bought in 2005
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