White Knight waits in wings
NEW Yorker Malcolm Glazer’s first action after taking over struggling US football team Tampa Bay Buccaneers was to sack the manager.
That was back in 1995. He forked out $192m to buy the Buccaneers noted for their failure rather than their success. Last year they won the Super Bowl becoming the seventh most-rated franchise in the NFL.
On Thursday Mr Glazer, who had been nursing a 5.9% stake in Manchester United, upped his shareholding to 16%.
His move triggered speculation Glazer might act as White Knight to the beleaguered club, and especially to manager Alex Ferguson.
Mr Ferguson has been feeling the heat ever since he crossed John Magnier over his disputed stake in the famous Rock of Gibraltar. That decision put the most famous sports club in the world on a rollercoaster that could see an outright bid by Mr Magnier and his colleague JP McManus.
Alternatively, having stepped back from that chance earlier this week they may have left the door open for the US billionaire.
But could he do it? The short answer is yes. As the 244th richest man in the US, according to Fortune Magazine, Mr Glazer is worth several billion dollars.
Combined, Messrs McManus and Magnier just about make billionaire status. That is not to suggest that they are in need of food parcels from Vincent de Paul.
However, despite their billions or lack of them and despite the bile flowing between Mr Ferguson and Mr Magnier over the Rock, they have pulled back from an outright bid as the ultimate humiliation for United and Mr Ferguson.
Mr Glazer has a nose for value, an ability ably demonstrated when he took over Tampa Bay. Those who know say it was the best deal ever done by this man, who took over his father’s watch-parts shop at 15 following his father’s death.
His tough nature is legendary and talk of a White Knight riding to rescue Manchester United or the under-pressure United boss is missing the point. Dubbed the ‘leprechaun’ Mr Glazer is legendary for his sideline appearances at the Bay’s Raymond James stadium in Florida during their home games.
Conspicuous by his small stature and his ginger beard, Mr Glazer raised eyebrows when he promised on the club’s website to turn 19 years of losses into a winning streak. But he did what he set out to achieve and much more besides.
Not that much is known about the man who turned 75 on his last birthday apart from his determination to succeed. Wary of the press, he has given few interviews.
His business dealings are cloak and dagger affairs, but he has spent the last 60 years learning business the hard way. One of the few public comments attributed to him was on his father’s death which he said was “probably the most tragic thing in my life. But it was good in one way. It made me a man”.
At the time of his father’s death Mr Glazer had just $300 to his name and few would have predicted his extraordinary rise to prominence from his humble Rochester, New York origins to the heady heights of being a name in the firmament of the US economy.
When he went after Harley Davidson in 1991 the bid went to court after the company injuncted Mr Glazer. During the hearing the judge described him as a wolf is sheep’s clothing.
It wasn’t his only setback. His bid for plastic giant Formica also failed.
Meanwhile, he built up considerable wealth through judicious investments in banking, nursing homes and a television station. To the followers of Tampa Bay, Glazer is a saviour.
To others he is nothing short of a ruthless builder of wealth and prestige with little concern for those whom he walks over to get what he wants. It is far from clear however, that Mr Glazer is about to bid against Mr Magnier and Mr McManus for control of United.
Given his legendary reputation for having an eye to value he may simply want to be along for the ride when Mr McManus and Mr Magnier turn the screws on the club to boost its share price and its profit profile.
Whether he is biding his time to make a bid is difficult to say.
The cost of buying shares has been steadily increasing and a full take over could cost about €1 billion at this stage.
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