Man Utd's new era starts now! Sir Jim Ratcliffe officially completes partial Old Trafford takeover

Ratcliffe had already agreed a deal to purchase the 25% stake from the Glazer family for around £1.3 billion ($1.6bn) in exchange for taking control of the club's football operations. The deal was agreed on December 24 although the transaction was subject to approval from regulatory bodies. The FA and the Premier League ratified the deal last week and all that was left was for Ratcliffe to finalise his purchase of Class A shares.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe said: “To become co-owner of Manchester United is a great honour and comes with great responsibility. This marks the completion of the transaction, but just the beginning of our journey to take Manchester United back to the top of English, European and world football, with world-class facilities for our fans. Work to achieve those objectives will accelerate from today.”

Joel Glazer, Executive Co-Chairman, said: “I would like to welcome Sir Jim as co-owner and look forward to working closely with him and INEOS Sport to deliver a bright future for Manchester United.”

Ratcliffe saw off competition from Qatari billionaire Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, who withdrew from the race to buy United last October. The banker was only interested in purchasing the whole club, although doubts emerged when he was unable to provide proof of funds.

Ratcliffe grew up in Failsworth in north Manchester and supported the club as a child. He attended the Champions League final in 1999, calling it one of the best experiences of his life. His petrochemical firm INEOS has already worked in several major sports including cycling, Formula One, sailing and owning French club Nice and Swiss side Lausanne. However, Ratcliffe admitted last month that taking control of United's football operation is the most exciting thing he has been involved in.

Ratcliffe and INEOS director of sport Sir Dave Brailsford have already met club staff at the training ground, while Brailsford has attended a number of matches including United's 2- win at Luton on Sunday. They have also convinced Omar Berrada to leave Manchester City and become their next CEO while they are working on a deal to hire Dan Ashworth as director of football from Newcastle. United, who have won their last four Premier League games, are next in action on Saturday at home to Fulham.