Wednesday, March 3, 2010

When Will They Stop?: Goldman Sachs Chief Economist Wants to Buy Manchester United Soccer Team

Goldman Sachs chief economist, Jim O’Neill, a lifelong Manchester United fan, is part of a group of wealthy fans called the Red Knights who met in London on Monday and confirmed they are putting together a bid to buy the soccer team, reports the Stockport Express.

O'Neill, naturally, heads the group.

Manchester United is the reigning English soccer champions, having won the 2008–09 Premier League, as well as the League Cup holders. Forbes estimates the team is worth $1.87 billion.

4 comments:

  1. When will they stop?

    When they capsize their own ship due to the excessive levels of manure they've generated.

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  2. Ha, the deal is being sold as wrestling the club from foreign hands.

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/mar/03/manchester-united-red-knights-commercialisation

    Maybe Jim O'Neill is British. This is from the Guardian piece:

    there is ever more urgency surrounding the campaign to rid clubs of both foreign owners and unwanted debt. In many eyes, football should return to the halcyon days of a bygone era, when local businessmen pumped money into the teams they'd supported since childhood, players were loyal to their clubs, and fans were treated with respect rather than as cattle to be milked.

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  3. From The Guardian on the Red Knights:

    There may be no such doubts over the credentials or affiliation of the likes of Jim O'Neill, a key player in any bid, but there still seems something unlikely about this Goldman Sachs chief economist endorsing the "collective ownership model" that would give ordinary fans a real stake in the club.


    http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/mar/02/manchester-united-red-knights-glazers

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  4. ManU fans hate Malcolm Glazer. The Guardian states:

    "the dilemma that Glazer has posed every United fan: do you continue to support, emotionally and financially, a team turned into a company-cum-brand or company run for the speculative financial benefit of a Florida-based family, when the profits are being leached away and the cost of your season ticket is being hiked year after year?"

    ReplyDelete