Manchester United is for sale, who could buy the world-famous club?

The owners of Manchester United are more than simply the custodians of a soccer club.

For, with its long history of accumulating trophies, rebuilding the team after the 1958 Munich air disaster, and self-proclaimed 1.1 billion fans worldwide, Manchester United is “arguably Britain’s most valuable sporting, perhaps even cultural, asset,” as Simon Chadwick, professor of sport and geopolitical economy at SKEMA Business School.

So when United’s American owners – the Glazer family – which bought the team in 2005, announced almost four months ago that they were exploring selling the club, it sparked a multi-billion dollar bidding war stretching across the financial sector, geopolitics, and soccer.

It also inflated the share price from $13.03 on November 21 to a 52-week high of $27.34 on February 16, although it began dropping again as reports emerged questioning the club’s true value.

So, what will happen to the world-famous club in the coming weeks, why is its potential sale so important, and could the Glazers, after all this, remain its owners?

Who is in the running?

Despite all the rumors circulating, there are currently only two confirmed bidders for the club: British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe and Qatari Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani.

Both confirmed their intent publicly, prompted by a soft deadline on February 17 set by the bank handling the sale, the Raine Group, according to multiple reports.

Parties from Saudi Arabia have also reportedly entered the race to own the club, while the US-based hedge funds Elliott Investment Management and Ares Management Corp have submitted their own proposals to offer financing for a bid, the Telegraph and Reuters reported respectively.

And the Glazers themselves, deeply unpopular with United fans since their leveraged buyout of the club saddled it with a net debt of $626 million according to the club’s latest accounts, remain in control of the whole process.

For years, fans have protested against the Glazer family, staging marches on Old Trafford, and plastering “Love United, Hate Glazer” on banners at home and away matches.