Manchester Utd owners weigh up £190million bid for cricket team

The Glazer family own Man Utd and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Manchester United owners - the Glazer family - are reportedly interested in purchasing a franchise cricket team in the Indian Premier League. The Indian Premier League (IPL) is cricket's most popular T20 franchise tournament, with the premier competition set to increase from eight teams to ten next year. Earlier this month, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) issued an Invitation to Tender (ITT) document which permits potential buyers to register their interest in buying one of the two new franchises. In order to receive an ITT, interested parties are required to pay a tender fee to purchase it. Once this has been done, they are then able to bid for a franchise, provided that they meet the eligibility criteria. According to the Times of India, the Glazers have reportedly purchased an ITT and are therefore among a host of other interested parties. It is believed that foreign investors will only be allowed to purchase and operate one of the new IPL franchises if they set up a company that is based in India. https://twitter.com/Sportskeeda/status/1451091101712928768 The Times of India's report also refers to a source who stated: "So, technically, overseas investors are eligible to submit a bid if they meet these conditions. "We don’t really know whether Manchester United's owners will come to the bidding table. What we certainly know is that they've shown interest." As well as the Red Devils, private equity firm CVC Capital Partners are also thought to be interested in buying one of the new franchises. CVC - who were the majority shareholder of Formula One between 2006 and 2017 - currently owns a 4.3 per cent stake in the Six Nations. While the BCCI have set the base price for each new team at 2000 crore (£190m), it is almost certain that both franchises will be sold for much more than that due to them being sold through an auction. Related links:

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