Man Utd takeover: Who is the Qatari, Sheikh Jassim, who has bid for the club? | OneFootball

Who is Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani?

The Qatari bank manager has bid £4 billion to buy Manchester United on Friday and is now the clear favourite to take control of the club.

But who is he?

Well, a lot is known of his father, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber al-Thani.

He was the prime minister of Qatar between 2007 and 2013 and was formerly the head of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund (called QIA).

But who is his son, who is on the brink of buying Man Utd?

Well, the brilliant Nick Harris from Sporting Intelligence has produced a fascinating thread after trying to find out more about Sheikh Jassim.

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As well as producing an in-depth report in the Daily Mail, he's also produced a very intriguing thread on everything we know.

It begins: "So little is known about Sheikh Jassim, the Qatari bank manager who lodged a £4bn bid to buy Man Utd on Friday night, that even spokespeople working for him don’t know his age, whether he is married or how he made a supposed fortune of billions."

"Plenty is known about his dad, Qatar’s PM from 2007 to 2013, Sheikh Hamad, aka HBJ, who in several meetings with Prince Charles a few years ago gave the UK’s current king £2.6m in cash in suitcases, a holdall and in Fortnum & Mason carrier bags.

"Both Sheikh Hamad and son Jassim (one of his 15 kids by two wives) went to Sandhurst. At 23, in 2005, Jassim was made chairman of one of Qatar’s biggest banks, QIB. Intriguing is his reported 'lifelong' passion for Man Utd.

"We’re told Jassim fell in love with Man Utd in 1992, a year in which Leeds won England’s top-flight title, Sheff Wed were 3rd, and the division included QPR, Wimbledon, Oldham, Coventry, Luton and Notts County.

"But 10-year-old Sheikh Jassim in Doha was a football seer and could see that Alex Ferguson was about to make Man Utd, without a top-flight title in 25 years, into a dominant force for the next two decades. Clever kid

"If Sheikh Jassim really does have £6bn+ in cash to spend on United, and assuming he earned it since starting work as a bank manager in 2005, he would have earned the equivalent of £333m PER YEAR in the period since.

"I spent Friday evening and today (Saturday) speaking to people who know Jassim, or know bits about him, and frankly reader he’s led such an anonymous life, even his spokespeople can’t tell me his precise age or the source of his wealth.

"Not that any of those things matter, because he’s backed by the apparatus of state, and will thus be loaded with whatever cash he needs for the MUFC project. Sources say he’s a genuine MUFC fan who has been to ‘many’ matches as a fan.

"I don’t doubt for a nanosecond he is capable of doing all he claims in terms of buying and funding Man Utd. I’m less sure it’s really unconnected to his position in the Qatari elite and close to those running a SWF worth $450bn."

The statement after Qatar bid for Manchester United

The Qatari party have released a statement confirming their bid.

It read: "Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani today [Friday February 17] confirmed his submission of a bid for 100 per cent of Manchester United Football Club.

"The bid plans to return the club to its former glories both on and off the pitch, and - above all - will seek to place the fans at the heart of Manchester United Football Club once more.

"The bid will be completely debt free via Sheikh Jassim's Nine Two Foundation, which will look to invest in the football teams, the training centre, the stadium and wider infrastructure, the fan experience and the communities the club supports.

"The vision of the bid is for Manchester United Football Club to be renowned for footballing excellence, and regarded as the greatest football club in the world.