English Premiership football club Manchester United, has called off talks with US businessman Malcolm Glazer over his proposed offer, but has left the door open for further discussions.
The club said it would not support a bid that involved taking on a large amount of debt to finance a takeover. It said it still had not had a definite offer from Glazer, but had held talks regarding the potential structure of any deal. It said it could not back the structure outlined by the Glazer family in relation to its potential offer.
'The board has decided to inform all shareholders that it would regard an offer which it believes to be overly leveraged as not being in the best interests of the company,' United said in a statement this morning.
Glazer, owner of American football's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has built his stake in the club to just over 28%. Fans have been hostile to Glazer because of reports he planned to put the club into debt to finance his takeover.
Manchester United said it intended to have further talks with the Glazer family and other interested shareholders.
