Manchester United set new deadline for Sir Jim Ratcliffe to complete investment

Manchester United have extended the deadline for Sir Jim Ratcliffe to complete his investment in the club.

The petrochemicals billionaire did have until midnight on Tuesday – in eastern time in the United States – to finalise his £1.2bn deal but now has a further 72 hours until Friday.

Ratcliffe’s investment in the club has received Premier League approval while United are awaiting confirmation from the Football Association, although that is not expected to be an issue.

Similarly, there are no concerns that Ratcliffe does not have the funds with an SEC filing saying the 71-year-old has liquid assets worth more than $4bn but that his overall value, partly due to his stake in Ineos, is “significantly in excess” of that.

On Christmas Eve, Ratcliffe agreed a deal to buy a 25 per cent stake in the club, with Class B shares owned by the Glazer family and Class A shares that are traded on the stock exchange.

According to the SEC filing, “19,431,468 Class A Shares, representing approximately 36.7% of the outstanding Class A Shares, have been validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) pursuant to the Offer”.

That represents more than the 25 per cent required.

Ratcliffe will pay $437m for Class A shares and $1.65bn in total, paying a price of $33 a share.

His stake in the club will rise to 29 percent as he has pledged to invest £237m in infrastructure while Ineos will have control of footballing operations. Ratcliffe will get two seats on the football club board, which will go to Jean-Claude Blanc and Sir Dave Brailsford.

Ratcliffe, a lifelong United fan, and Brailsford have been at Old Trafford and the Carrington training ground as they conduct an audit of the club.