Finnish entrepreneur Thomas Zilliacus has put forward a bid to purchase Manchester United, but his success will depend on tapping into the club’s vast fanbase to make the acquisition possible.
The deadline for bids, which was on Wednesday, has been extended, and Zilliacus is now the third bidder to publicly express interest, joining Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani.
Zilliacus has proposed acquiring 50% of the club, with the remaining half purchased by the fans, who would be involved in the club’s decision-making process.
Zilliacus believes that ultimately, sports clubs should belong to their supporters and his bid is founded on the principle of equality with the fans. He opposes the current trend of billionaire Sheikhs and oligarchs taking over sports clubs and controlling them as personal playthings.
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The club’s current market value is just under $3.9 billion (£3.17 billion). Therefore, if every fan of the club participates in buying the club, the total cost per fan would be less than $6 (£4.88).
Zilliacus’ group will finance half the sum needed to purchase the club, and he plans to establish a new company for the specific purpose of inviting fans to participate in financing the other half. If every fan participates, the cost per fan will be less than $3 (£2.44).
“Any sport club ultimately should belong to its fans. My bid is built on equality with fans,” he said.
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“The current development, where billionaire Sheikhs and oligarchs take over clubs and control them as their personal playgrounds is not a healthy trend.
“The current market value of the club is just under $3.9billion (£3.17billion). That means that if every one of the fans of the club would join in buying the club, the total sum per fan would amount to less than $6 (£4.88).
“My group will finance half of the sum needed to take over the club and will ask the fans, through a new company that is being set up for this specific purpose, to participate for the other half. If every fan joins it means less than $3 (£2.44) per fan.”
Although only three bids have been publicly announced, it has been reported that as many as eight proposals could be submitted for consideration by the Glazer family.
Who is Thomas Zilliacus?
Thomas Zilliacus, a Finnish entrepreneur who is the executive chairman of Mobile FutureWorks Group, an investment company that has interests in various businesses, including OpenMobile.
Zilliacus has also previously served as the chairman of Finnish football club HJK and was a former owner of the Finnish ice hockey team Jokerit.
As of 2021, according to Forbes, Thomas Zilliacus had an estimated net worth of $110 million.