Financial documents released by the club on Wednesday revealed that British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe had cautioned Manchester United that he would have to abandon his bid to become a minority owner if it was not finalized before Christmas Day.
Ratcliffe agreed to buy a 25% stake in the Premier League club for around 1.02 billion pounds ($1.3 billion) on Christmas Eve.
However, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings released on Wednesday have revealed that the INEOS chairman's patience had begun to wear thin shortly before an agreement was struck.
In the week before Christmas, Ratcliffe's company 'Trawlers Limited' "gave Manchester United a deadline of Dec. 25, 2023, to accept its best and final proposal."
It led to an informal meeting of the board of directors on Dec. 22 and a "robust discussion regarding the feedback from the offeror."
The board representatives noted Ratcliffe "could decide to withdraw (the) proposal if the board of directors was not prepared to move forward by Dec. 25, 2023."
Ratcliffe's investment in United was subsequently agreed on Dec. 24, bringing an end to a protracted saga that began when United's owners, the Glazer family, put the club up for sale in November 2022.
Ratcliffe struck a deal to buy 25% of Class B shares held by the Glazers and up to 25% of all Class A shares for $33.
That offer for up to 13,237,834 Class A ordinary shares was confirmed on Wednesday.
