- Qatar takeover of Manchester United could create role for David Beckham
- United has been on sale for 11 months but a buyout remains on hold
- Listen to the latest episode of the Mail Sport podcastEverything starts !‘
David Beckham has shut down the idea he could become a Manchester United ambassador if the Glazer family sells to Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani.
Beckham previously sealed a partnership deal with Qatar for the FIFA World Cup last year, when he took on the role of ambassador for the tournament, despite widespread criticism.
But although Qatar is now pushing to sign Manchester United, Beckham claims there has been “no discussion” about his role if their takeover bid is successful.
“At the moment there have been no discussions,” said the former England and Manchester United star. CNBC.
“I have a long-standing relationship with Qatar due to my involvement with PSG… but there have been no discussions yet.”
David Beckham responded to claims he could return to Man United as ambassador
Sheikh Jassim is one of two leading bidders for Manchester United alongside Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
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The Glazers put the club up for sale 11 months ago, but despite several offers from Jassim and Sir Jim Ratcliffe – and protests from fans – the impasse appears no closer to being resolved.
Links to Qatar mean Beckham has been seen as a potential bridge for the new owners, with the 48-year-old a six-time Premier League champion at Old Trafford.
Beckham is well known to the Qataris for having finished his career at Paris Saint-Germain at the time when the Qatar Sports Investments group bought them.
Last year, Beckham was criticized for controversially agreeing to serve as an ambassador for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The 48-year-old man was paid £10m to support the tournament and insisted “commitment is the only way to bring about change”.
While Beckham has distanced himself from any possible ambassadorial role, United fans are mainly focused on the Glazers’ slow sales.
As reported Sports Mail Last week, Ratcliffe considered abandoning his bid to buy Manchester United in favor of a minority stake buyout – which would leave the Glazer family in control of the club.
Beckham has established numerous partnerships with Qatar but insists there has been no discussion of a potential role at Man United if successful.
The Glazers put the club up for sale 11 months ago, but the takeover appears no closer to being finalized after both offers were rejected.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is considering abandoning his bid to buy Manchester United in favor of taking a minority stake, which would leave control to the Glazers.
In a shock move that would no doubt spark outrage among many United supporters, the petrochemical billionaire is mulling a change of direction to try to break the impasse in what has been a tedious process now approaching its tenth month.
A spokesperson for Ratcliffe declined to comment, but it is understood that one of the options being considered is the purchase of around 25 percent of United’s shares.
That would likely net a figure close to £1.5 billion for the Glazers, who paid £800 million for the club in 2005 before plunging that debt onto United’s books.
Potential legal challenges have been raised as a prospect if this path is chosen. Ratcliffe’s main rival Sheikh Jassim submitted his latest bid for full control of the club in May.
Sports Mail It appears the Qatari remains committed to a 100 percent recovery.
United have had a difficult start to the season, suffering four defeats in eight Premier League matches so far and losing both of their Champions League matches.
The impasse surrounding the takeover further strained relations between the Glazers and United fans.
The American owners have never been popular during their 18 years at the helm and fans have regularly demonstrated inside and outside Old Trafford to demand a sale.
The 1958s, a group who led the campaign against the Glazers, gathered in large numbers to protest outside Old Trafford ahead of the match against Brentford.
Anti-Glazers protests have been a fixture at matches at Old Trafford for many years now
United fans demonstrated outside the ticket office against the Glazers on Saturday.
