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Sir Jim Ratcliffe's INEOS confirm last-minute Manchester United takeover bid

British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe has entered the bidding to buy Manchester United and wants to make the Red Devils the world's "number one club".

INEOS make official bid
Ratcliffe wants to win Champions League
Qatari bid already received

WHAT HAPPENED? The race to buy Manchester United from the Glazer family is hotting up with Ratcliffe's offer for the Red Devils now confirmed. Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani has already submitted a "substantial bid" for the Premier League club and has also vowed to restore the club to its former glories.

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Ratcliffe is the owner of multinational chemicals company INEOS and already has interest in several other sporting ventures. The 70-year-old owns Ligue 1 side Nice, Swiss club Lausanne, cycling team INEOS Grenadiers and is also a shareholder in the Mercedes Formula One team.

WHAT THEY SAID?: "We can confirm that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS have submitted a bid for majority ownership of Manchester United Football Club," read a statement. "We would see our role as the long-term custodians of Manchester United on behalf of the fans and the wider community. We are ambitious and highly competitive and would want to invest in Manchester United to make them the number one club in the world once again."

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AND WHAT'S MORE: Ratcliffe has also vowed to make Manchester United the dominant force in English football once more and wants to bring European glory back to Old Trafford.

"We also recognise that football governance in this country is at a crossroads. We would want to help lead this next chapter, deepening the culture of English football by making the club a beacon for a modern, progressive, fan-centred approach to ownership. We want a Manchester United anchored in its proud history and roots in the North-West of England, putting the Manchester back into Manchester United and clearly focusing on winning the Champions League."