After over a year of speculation on the future of Manchester United, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS’ bid of £1.25bn was eventually accepted for 25% of the company with the 71 year-old and his staff taking control of ‘footballing operations’ at the club.
This isn’t INEOS’ first rodeo in the world of sport. In 2017, Sir Jim purchased Swiss Super League club Lausanne-Sport and completed the takeover of OGC Nice in 2019 for €100m.
In 2021, Ratcliffe invested £110m into a sailing team, captained by Sir Ben Ainslie – in an attempt to become the first British team to win the America’s Cup.
In 2019, Ratcliffe and INEOS bought Team Sky from bSkyb for an unconfirmed price, renaming the team to INEOS Grenadiers. INEOS are also the Principal Partner and co-owners of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team.
Sir Dave Brailsford is also a key cog in the INEOS Sport machine. Sir Dave was the leader of the British Cycling team from 1997 to 2014, where they endured one of their most successful period – winning two gold medals at the Athens Olympics in 2004. At Team Sky/Team INEOS, Brailsford managed the team to six Tour de France titles in seven years.
In 2021, Brailsford was appointed as Director of Sport at INEOS – overseeing the expansion of INEOS’ sporting ventures.
Jean-Claude Blanc was appointed the CEO of INEOS’ Sport in December 2022. The Frenchman is one of the best ‘sports executives’ in the world. He has managed the Olympics (Winter Games), Tour de France, Paris Dakar, Davis Cup, French Open and has been the CEO and Chairman of Juventus. Blanc also spearheaded PSG’s lucrative deal with the Jordan brand.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Sir Dave Brailsford and Jean-Claude Blanc are the three frontmen for INEOS’ ‘footballing takeover,’ overseeing a much needed rebuild that is needed at the Theatre of Dreams.
