Man Utd takeover: Sheikh Jassim offers Glazers sweetener in bid to beat Ratcliffe, Zilliacus

Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani is said to have added sweetener in his attempt to persuade the Glazer family to sell him Manchester United.

Sheikh Jassim, chairman of Qatar Islamic Bank and son of a former Qatari prime minister, made his second-round offer to buy United on Friday night.

A source close to the offer says the Qataris remain confident of completing a takeover despite rival interest from Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Finnish businessman Thomas Zilliacus.

No figures have been revealed, but one or more of the initial bids were reportedly in the region of £4.5 billion, and Sheikj Jassim's second bid reportedly reached the asking price of £6 billion sterling by the Glazers.

And yet, the Qatari royal has reportedly offered another carrot in a bid to secure United, according to The Sun.

It is claimed that the Sheikh "discussed a joint venture with the Glazers that could see NFL games in the Middle East".

The Glazers, who also own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, have tried to expand the NFL's global following in recent years, sending teams to London to play at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

And Sheikh Jassim thinks offering the Middle East as another potential location could give him the upper hand in negotiations.

A source said: "Sheikh Jassim has been very clear that he wants to buy the club and he has the money to do so.

"He was impressed with the Glazers and would like to work with them in the future.

"Part of his proposal was that the Glazers could bring their NFL team to Qatar for an exhibition game in the Doha National Stadium.

"This would help to build Qatar's stature as a destination for sports entertainment and provide the Glazers with a chance to spread their NFL brand and profit from it.

"Sheikh Jassim has offered to insert a clause in any buyout agreement guaranteeing this and that appeals to the Glazers."

In January, the NFL announced that the Buffalo Bills, Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots would play games in England and Germany.

NFL Executive Vice President Peter O'Reilly said, "Growing the league and our sport internationally is a major strategic priority for the NFL, and we're excited to play another five games outside the United States in 2023."< /p>

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