Five Questions on Glazers Selling a Manchester United Stake

The chance to invest in one of the major brands in world football has emerged with the Glazer family considering the sale of a minority stake in the English club Manchester United FC. Private equity firm Apollo Global Management Inc. and UK businessman Jim Ratcliffe have already expressed interest after Bloomberg News first reported that the American owners were willing to bring in an investor. Here are five questions around the potential arrival of new money.

The Glazers have never been so unpopular among fans. The club is struggling to perform on the pitch, despite having invested heavily in star players and top managers, and its key infrastructure -- including the famous Old Trafford stadium -- is in need of upgrading. Manchester United suffered embarrassing defeats in its first two games of the English Premier League season, and was tipped to lose its third on Aug. 22 against high-flying arch rivals Liverpool FC. At the same time, private equity funds and high-net-worth individuals, mainly from the US (where the sport is called soccer), have been flocking to European teams, which are valued on much lower revenue multiples than their US equivalents.