While the majority of football fans are currently wrapped up in the World Cup, it’s easy to forget that it was all going on at Manchester United just a couple of weeks ago.
In addition to Cristiano Ronaldo leaving in an explosive fashion following his controversial interview with Piers Morgan, just days after his departure was confirmed, United finally got a whiff of the news they’d waited 17 years to hear as the Glazer family revealed they were open to selling the club.
With that in mind, it didn’t take long for the bookmakers to set the odds for who might come in next were the Glazers actually to agree to a sale and while there are some familiar names, others might come as a bit of a surprise.
As you can see, top of the list is no surprise: Failsworth-born billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe leads the odds with an estimated 25% chance of buying out Man United.
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Said to be one of the richest men in the UK, Ratcliffe has been seen as arguably the most serious bidder for some time now, despite being told the club was “not for sale” back in October.
Meanwhile, Michael Knighton — who previously hoped to head up a consortium bid involving Ratcliffe’s immense wealth and already tried to buy United more than three decades ago — sits in third, though he’s made it clear that any potential takeover would require help with financing.
Sat in second are the Dubai Sovereign Group, i.e. a state-run fund akin to Manchester City‘s Abu Dhabi Group, PSG’s Qatari owners or Newcastle’s new Saudi Arabia administration.
Dubai are yet to join the premier footballing fray when it comes to putting the wealth of an entire nation’s investment fund into a sporting franchise but it seems like only a matter of time before they do.
Then there’s Jim O’Neill, a.k.a, the Lord and Baron of Gatley, who previously tried to launch a hostile takeover back in 2012. He hasn’t been in the conversation for some time but given his Goldman Sachs background, could be a serious option.
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As for David Beckham, we imagine he’s too busy running Inter Miami and his part in Salford City via the Project 92 ownership group — though that Qatar money certainly won’t have hurt his chances. And, again, who knows, he could form part of a consortium.
Jim O’Neill (via GOV.UK)Credit: David Beckham (via Instagram)
On to US investors with the Harris/Blitzer Group, owners of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils, as well as the Pagliuca/Tanenbaum Group, who run the Boston Celtics and the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Both groups have expressed interest in buying Premier League clubs in the past and as we have seen with Chelsea’s recent takeover, there seems to be a growing interest from American businesses even if not everyone is convinced that their designs on English football are a great fit.
Then we come to ‘The Field’. For anyone unaware, this group is made up of inherited Red Bull owner, Mark Mateschitz, who not only owns the Formula One team but also RB Leipzig, Salzburg and several other sports teams. He is estimated to be worth more than $15 billion.
Beyond Mateschitz, the trio is completed by two of the richest men in the world, i.e. Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg. Yep, those guys.
This list is by no means exhaustive and, as always in football, who knows what’s going to happen next? Any one of these suitors could emerge as the leading candidate but there’s always a dark horse waiting in the wings.
Moreover, it isn’t just a case of ‘anyone would be better than the Glazers’ — nothing but trouble follows that way — so whoever the club decide to hand over the reins to, you can only hope they go through the proper vetting process.
Is there anyone else you think has an outside chance?
Erling Haaland breaks yet another Premier League record after nine-goal thriller
Danny Jones
Erling Haaland has broken his umpteenth record since arriving in the Premier League and donning a Manchester City shirt, becoming the fastest player to reach 100 goals in the competition.
Let’s be honest, are any of us surprised?
While yet another goal from Haaland and entering himself into the 100 club was a notable narrative on the night, the real headline, however, was that scoreline, as City barely escaped by the skin of their teeth.
Despite persisting questions surrounding the Blues’ defence, it was nevertheless a landmark moment for the Norwegian number nine, who remains the most prolific striker on the planet. Here’s how he did it:
Commenting on the achievement on social media, the big blonde bagsman simply wrote, “When football takes you to places you could never have imagined” – signing off with a ‘100’ emoji, of course.
Despite it being reiterated that he doesn’t think too much about the various milestones he continues to surpass with each passing game, he admitted he knew about this particular one and was visibly chuffed with being in such good company.
For context, it took Haaland 111 matches to score his 100th goal in the division, which is 13 appearances quicker than the next fastest Premier League legend, Alan Shearer, who took 124 games to reach the tally when the modern era of the top flight first began three decades ago.
You can see who else has achieved the feat and how fast here:
Even more impressively, this wasn’t the only rather incredible statistic that came from the fixture either, as he walked away with a frankly ridiculous bit of pedigree among the strikers’ union.
As well as his opening goal, which well and truly opened the floodgates (at both ends, as it turned out), Haaland was caught offside in a PL away game for the first time in more than TWO whole years, the last occasion being against Sheffield United in August 2023.
To quote a post we saw on X, “Do you know how crazy a stat this is?…”
If you didn’t manage to catch the game on Tuesday night, we seriously recommend you watch the many highlights from the win over Fulham down below.
The Manchester 24 Hour Run raises over £70,000 for the region’s homeless community
Danny Jones
The numbers are in for the 2025 Manchester 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness, which saw hordes of runners take over the city centre to generate money for the ever-crucial cause.
Having set an ambitious target of £50,000, not only did they manage to achieve their goal, they absolutely SMASHED it, totalling more than £70k.
In fact, with last-minute donations and matching contributions still trickling in over a fortnight on from this year’s event, the final figure is actually set to surpass that by several thousands.
Simply incredible stuff. Speaking on the night, here’s what the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, had to say about another inspiring edition of the annual endurance relay.
Running in the wind and rain, dashing through puddles in the cold, the pitch black and all through the night into the fresh cold Manc morning this month, more than a thousand volunteers, locals, businesses, and more laced up their trainers for the seventh edition in six years.
For those unaware, this event is a recurring 5k relay loop around Manchester, with the route designed to run around parts of the city centre where you can witness homelessness first-hand.
Taking place in November every year – when the region is even more dark, grey and wet than usual – this also gives participants an opportunity to further empathise with the discomfort felt by rough sleepers.
Well over 4,000 individuals and 165 organisations have taken part in this initiative since 2019, funding more than 70,000 nights of accommodation through the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity and its ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme. That tally is set to jump massively, once again, after this year’s run.
Here’s how the 2025 stats on the tarmac break down:
100 running clubs and organisations
Over 1,500 individual runners and walkers
44 x five-kilometre consecutive relay laps run
Over £188,700* raised across all events and years.
Multiple sponsors, including Autotrader, Accenture and Mistral
Credit: Ed Hill (supplied)
In 2025, the 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness also successfully expanded to Sheffield and Hereford for the first time, as well as returning to Birmingham for its second year.
The event unites local running communities to support local organisations. Better still, in 2026, the event is expected to expand again; for instance, after a rescheduling, the event is heading over to Yorkshire once more for the inaugural edition of The Leeds 24 Hour Run in March 2026.
Reflecting on the event’s seventh year, The 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness co-founder, Thomas Lewis, says: “Every year I think we’ve hit our peak in terms of fundraising and turnout, and every year we somehow manage to surpass it. I’m completely blown away by the support and dedication of the Manchester running community. Bring on next year.”
Fran Darlington-Pollock, the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity’s outgoing CEO, added: “We’re so proud to continue supporting this incredible event and all the hard work that goes into making it such a success year after year.
“The passion and dedication of the organisers, runners, and supporters are truly inspiring, and we’re so grateful for the funds raised, which help people experiencing homelessness through A Bed Every Night.”
Anyone still wanting to make a donation can do so by visiting The 24 Hour Run website and the attached JustGiving page HERE, which will remain open for a few weeks following the event.
There are plenty of other ways we can help fight homelessness throughout the year, and it’s by pursuing vital causes like this that we truly put the great in Greater Manchester.
Danny Jones -
30th November 2022 
