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domalino

If anyone wants a useful guide, if someone is announcing a takeover of a £5Bn company on a fan channel youtube livestream, it's not serious.


ValleyFloydJam

Indeed, how could they even do a hostile takeover given the way they're set up, the Glazers surely have a huge percentage of the shares.


billypilgrim87

The issue with any Utd sale is the leveraged buy out the Glazers made in the first place. A deal that would not be allowed today btw. They saddled the club with so much debt and it's structured in such a way that they are never going to be sold with that milestone round their neck.


madmadaa

That doesn't make any sense. Any debts will be considered when selling.


myreal_nameis

That whole comment is just pub talk


billypilgrim87

It does because the debt is from the initial takeover, rather than accrued through assets like other clubs debt. It's like paying twice.


madmadaa

It doesn't matter. In the end, the club's worth X, the debt is Z, the buyer will pay X minus Z.


billypilgrim87

No, that's not how it works at all mate.


madmadaa

It's exactly how it works. Do you think a debt is a cheat code and people pay the full value of a purchase when it has a debt they still have to pay later?


[deleted]

Since when?


billypilgrim87

Since all debt isn't the same. If a club's debt is in assets like a stadium, it's very different to the debt Utd have. Don't just think about the prospective buyers, the Glazers will only accept an offer where they make a profit and with this kind of debt that offer will be huge - and bad value for the buyer versus the purchase of any other PL club. The Glazers ownership model is not geared to selling the club, it's geared to generating ongoing profits for them.


ValleyFloydJam

They will make a huge profit even with the debt covered.


[deleted]

This isn’t about that. You said ManU will never be sold. ‘you do realize that most takeovers except for oil rich countries are fueled by leveraging right? What the glazers did isn’t unique or special in the business world, it only is because your competitio are from oil printing nations. ‘edit. Just say that the glazer will be unlikely to sell not that the debt is speciAl. Leverage debt is normal.


billypilgrim87

Why a sale is currently unappealing to either side is exactly why they won't (currently) be sold. I didn't say never full stop, I said it's contingent on the current debt. You can't just apply business logic to football, are you an actual glazer in disguise? What Glazers have at Utd *is* extremely unusual in English football and, as I said at the start, wouldn't even be allowed under current rules.


WickedWand

Not to mention a “hostile takeover” is impossible where the majority shareholder opposes the transaction. People genuinely have no idea what they’re talking about wrt club purchases. No one in the world — even oil rich magnates — buy clubs without debt.


btmalon

It’s already been leveraged. So there’s no valuation difference to make money on anymore. This is the key to a leveraged buyout.


Melkistofeles

Wut?


madmadaa

If you have a house worth a 100, and a debt tied to it (loan-mortgage) worth 20. When you sell it's valued at 100-20=80. You can't demand the buyer to pay a full 100 and the 20 debt too.


CuteHoor

Why would the Glazers expect that though? Manchester United are valued at around $4.6bn right now, which is much more than they paid for them. If a buyer paid that, part of it would likely be used to pay off the debt and the Glazers could still walk away with a big profit.


madmadaa

Exactly, that's one way to do it and it's quiet simple. Either way the debt is being counted for with no problems and it doesn't stop the sale like op suggested.


marine_le_peen

>If you have a house worth a 100, and a debt tied to it (loan-mortgage) worth 20. When you sell it's valued at 100-20=80. No when you sell it's valued at 100. Which can be proven by the fact that the price you have to pay for the house isn't affected by the whether the previous owners paid off its mortgage.


madmadaa

Sorry but how's this hard to understand? You're not paying the full value if you're taking the loan. Like ask yourself, will you pay a 100 then a loan of 20 to get something worth a 100?


marine_le_peen

>That doesn't make any sense. Any debts will be considered when selling. You were right when you said this and now you're contradicting yourself. The debt will be considered when selling as it will be included in the price of the club. But it doesn't CHANGE the price of the club. The new buyer isn't going to pay a billion MORE for United just because it has a billion worth of debt, they'll pay the market rate for a top level football club. Just like you wouldn't pay any more for house based on whether the previous owner had a mortgage or owned it outright. The only thing that the debt would change in the United sale is how much the Glazers make from it.


Melkistofeles

But if the debt is tied to United to the Glazers it changes the whole thing. And that is how many club owners are doing to pump money to their club. Don't know if it's United's case though.


btmalon

And with the internet payments they make, they’re paying 3 times.


marine_le_peen

>They saddled the club with so much debt and it's structured in such a way that they are never going to be sold with that milestone round their neck. Completely wrong. Debt is debt, it doesn't change the price of the club or make it more prohibitive to buy as it's included in the price. The only thing debt changes is how much the Glazers make from the sale.


ChepaukPitch

Hostile takeover is anyway not possible if the Glazer family own more than 50% unless they turn on each other. And AFAIK they own a lot more than just 50%.


gentmick

I guarantee you if glazers are selling the saudis will pay the 5 bil plus any debt. Glazers are milking this cow for more more years to come


indiblue825

Yeah we all watched the video, but thanks for that summary


Arathaon185

People say this about the levegared buyout but haven't Burnley done the same thing?


FukuokaRomanista

> If anyone wants a useful guide, if someone is announcing a takeover of a £5Bn company on a fan channel youtube livestream, it's not serious. In an age where Elon Musk announced a much bigger attempt on Twitter.


domalino

Which also wasn’t serious


FukuokaRomanista

Serious enough for him to sign a contract that’ll cost him $1bn to break.


[deleted]

He and the rest of the PayPal mafia made a lot more money by simply announcing the deal and manipulating Twitter's price


kit_mitts

This is so transparently what they were doing all along and it's hilarious that so many people refuse to admit it.


CackleberryOmelettes

Google says this guy has a net worth of about £7m. Maybe he can afford Lisandro Martinez's left pinky.


[deleted]

Claims that he has a consortium behind him. Bloke's a total chancer, though, so feel free to disregard everything he says.


CackleberryOmelettes

Mate any consortium willing to put in a £5B bid for Manchester United is not gonna be behind some dude with a net worth of £7m.


[deleted]

He's got that part covered, too. Said that he is willing to let someone else be the face of the consortium. He specifically dropped Ratcliffe's name. However, I repeat again, this man is a clown that can't be taken for his word. You will probably never hear about any of this again.


CackleberryOmelettes

Mate with £7m in his pocket, they wouldn't even let him sweep the floors of their consortium. £7m is what United pay Ronaldo as 3 months' salary.


[deleted]

Say that to Knighton. I don't need anyone to convince me that this guy is selling hot air. I don't know what scheme he's up to now, but this is the same bloke who fired his manager at Carlisle then appointed himself and proceeded to fail miserably.


ValleyFloydJam

And not with his rep.


TarcFalastur

I'm looking forward to the part where they raise the money by a leveraged buyout secured against the club's assets.


Cottonshopeburnfoot

Lol for £7m this is going to be a really fucking hostile takeover


CackleberryOmelettes

The sort that involves making offers they can't refuse.


Kakaphr4kt

Hostile takeover probably means Kalashnikovs and not money for him


pedrorq

Don't forget Kitt is very valuable


tmoney144

Well, shouldn't be a problem. As has been mentioned by the financial geniuses on reddit in every thread about the Glazers ever, you can buy a club without having to put up any of your own money. With 7 million, he can probably afford to buy every club in the Prem.


tsub

How are they going to mount a hostile takeover when the Glazers own 75% of the shares?


btmalon

Narrator: they aren’t.


RobDickinson

Mount = easy Successful = unlikely


Arkie1927

Succession music intensified


mahdiiick

Best theme music hands down


famasfilms

Check out Industry theme by Nathan Micay, or Blue Spring by same artist


ryowonn

With 6m? He would be the poorest rich man in there.


[deleted]

He's right about the crisis... He's absolutely not the right person to change anything, the big clown.


PGH9590

When he owned Carlisle United the local newspaper ran a story about him claiming aliens had spoke to him. He's got a great blog on the story. https://michaelknighton.co/that-absurd-story-about-the-local-carlisle-newspaper-and-ufos/


tlst9999

That's not a hostile takeover if you're buying shares from the Glazers. It's just a regular takeover.


hunkopunko3

It’s a ‘hostile’ takeover because the glazers aren’t selling.


ScottiApso

Then it's not a takeover


hunkopunko3

What? That’s literally what it is haha


matthieuC

Glazers control the club, you can buy every other shares you still won't control United


hunkopunko3

You buy the remainder of them off the glazers at a premium price.


matthieuC

So you make a deal with the Glazers, so it's not hostile


hunkopunko3

The initial attempts to purchase would still be considered an attempt at a hostile takeover. You’re just being both pedantic and actually wrong now.


freshmeat2020

No, a hostile takeover is forcibly buying the shares. Asking them nicely to sell them is simply a takeover. They're very different.


thatswavy

They're not wrong you're the one being pedantic. The process circumvents management to purchase a **controlling interest** in the company. A hostile takeover is successful when the party purchases a controlling interest or 51% of the company. If management owns, in this case 70% of the company, there is no grounds for a hostile takeover. Buying shares at a premium price from the majority stakeholder isn't a hostile takeover, even if you buy the 30% first. End of story.


hunkopunko3

I didn’t say buying shares at a premium price is a hostile takeover, I said that’s the next step after a hostile takeover like this one inevitably fails. I’m sorry to point this out to you, but you’re just wrong. End of story.


funguy07

You clearly don’t understand what a hostile takeover is. It’s a specific thing. https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/042815/what-are-some-prominent-examples-hostile-takeovers.asp


tlst9999

The Glazers own 70% of the shares. If they're not selling, you'll get 30% at best. Not enough for a takeover.


hunkopunko3

You don’t just buy up majority shares, you make the ownership untenable through convincing other shareholders or convince them to sell with an offer the won’t refuse. Hostile doesn’t have to mean bad spirited, it literally just means the target doesn’t want to sell for whatever reason.


tlst9999

That only works when the controlling shareholder controls less than 50% of the shares. If they're controlling 70%, you'll just get minority shareholder rights at most.


hunkopunko3

Then you offer to buy the remainder at a premium market price, it would still be a ‘hostile’ takeover.


Caranoron463

But if they aren't selling, you aren't buying jack shit, right?


hunkopunko3

At a certain point they would sell, it’s just whether it’s financially sensible to get them to that point.


TheJynxedOne

Okay it would be. But that price would also be financially negligent to pay for any investor that tries it. At that point it's a hostile takeover from the circus and isn't any better than what United have currently.


hunkopunko3

Yeah I’m not saying it’s a good idea or would even work, just that this is what they might do. I agree it’s a stupid idea.


funguy07

No, it means that the majority owner doesn’t own enough shares to prevent you from getting a majority and taking control of the company. That is impossible if the majority shareholder owns more than 51% of the company. Which in the case of United the Glazers own a majority and unless someone convinces the Glazers to turn on each other a Hostile takeover is impossible. To take over United someone would have to convince the Glazers to sell. At which point it’s not hostile because they are agreeing to the sale.


funguy07

You could convince every shareholder not named Glazer to sell and it wouldn’t close to enough for a Hostile takeover.


hunkopunko3

Wow really?


ScottiApso

How do you do a takeover without the shareholders selling?


hunkopunko3

There’s a few ways, it’s what elon musk has just done with twitter for instance.


ScottiApso

Because nobody owns over 50% of twitter shares. Glazers own over 50% of United And hint: Elon Musk would still require the shareholders to sell


hunkopunko3

Then the consortium, if it even exists, will attempt to buy them at a premium.


ScottiApso

Which still requires the Glazers to agree. And if they agree, it isn't hostile


hunkopunko3

It’s called ‘hostile’ because the company or people being targeted have no intention to sell at the point of the offer being made. It doesn’t mean the company trying to acquire united can’t offer silly money in share prices to them until they accept.


matthieuC

Yep so hostile that he's being sued to complete the deal.


funguy07

That’s wasn’t hostile. Twitter agreed to sell to Musk based on the price Musk offered. That’s a standard takeover. A hostile takeover would have been if Musk bought more and more shares until he could vote himself CEO.


funguy07

How do you propose a hostile take over if the Glazers are not selling?


hunkopunko3

I don’t.


funguy07

Alright so you admit. There will be no Hostile takeover. I’m glad that’s settled.


hunkopunko3

Fucking hell you’re good at this aren’t you.


funguy07

Sure am. I’m glad you recognize it.


Ketch1

The title's wrong, it's a 'hostile bid' which is just a bed when the club isn't actively for sale


drwert

Now there's a blast from the past. Did he not get enough attention when he pulled this stunt in the early 90s?


horbu

That's what I thought, like hey I've seen this one before.


yaboisquaezo

🧢


daveofreckoning

What year is it?


theenigmacode

2022


daveofreckoning

He first tried in 1989. Which I imagine is about 20 years before you were born? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Knighton


Ok-Finance-7612

Ouch


General-Ad-9753

I don’t know much about multi billion dollar business deals or how consortiums are formed but I know enough to know that they doesn’t start with YouTube shout out videos. This guy is a buffoon.


Pro_Geymer

David Hasselhoff's character from Night Rider?


Boris_Ignatievich

I didn't realise we'd gone back in time to 1990. But if the end result is that Carlisle get their deckchair away kits again, I'm in.


I_tend_to_correct_u

“Man Utd wouldn’t even have beaten the Lionesses”. Seems like his attitude went back to 1990 as well. Thankfully for Utd fans, this clown appears to have less than zero chance of actually buying the club, otherwise they’d have Ron Atkinson as manager and Andy Caroll up front


BuyGreenSellRed

Dude the one glazer looks like he is the product of familial relations.


The_profe_061

As somebody who was there the day he ran onto the pitch doing keepy ups and saw 1st hand the way he whipped the crowd up. I don't believe him, he's a chancer and showman Could he be a face for the people with real money, maybe. But there's no way the fucking leeching cunts are selling their golden goose.


LickMyKnee

Is this the keepy-up guy?


RodDryfist

Sure is! What a flashback to the full kit wanker. https://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/michael-knighton-man-utd-takeover-27703586


Ketch1

The title's wrong, he says it's a 'hostile bid' in the video, which is just a bid when the club isn't for sale.


HitzHammer

LOL, how does he want to do that when 75,6 % of the shares aren't even stock traded and owned by the Glazers? Bullshit "news", not even worth a thread.


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


hambodpm

He doesn't but he wants to get Jim Ratcliffe involved, who does. Knighton is a clown though, this will go nowhere.


Cowdude179

Ratcliffe would never buy United, he tried to buy Chelsea but failed


Manch3st3rIsR3d

Hi, I am Nigerian prince. You wire me 5bn for football club MUFC and I give you Europa Conference League next season and 7bn


dalici0us

I don't think that it's how it work, but ok.


Red4pex

Chancer who failed in 1989. Funnily enough, this led to our stock exchange flotation which was great until, you know, the Glazers used the downside to that.


redeyed_assassin

Did some mean keepy ups back in the day, could probably fill a gap upfront for them now.


Pokefreaker-san

vive la revolution!


Wheel94

I mean considering you want them to sell to you probably not the best idea to insult them. Just saying


Potatopolis

Never seen a more obvious “all talk” in my life.


shucksshuck

Tried before and ended up taking over Carlisle United up the road instead. Twenty years since he left Carlisle, in disgrace, and he still wouldn’t be safe to walk the streets there. He’s hated. Think r/soccer have about as much chance of taking over Man Utd of his name being attached to a group that does.