The Qatari sheikh vying for control of Manchester United is the low-key son of one of the Gulf’s wealthiest men, with ready access to the billions required to make the audacious bid work.
Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, who is in his early 40s, has also maintained the discipline and discretion required to rally the Qatari establishment behind the tiny state’s latest high-profile operation.
“If he has gone public with this bid, you can be confident that everyone from the emir down wants this to work,” said a top executive with a multinational corporation that has done business with Qatar for decades.
“Qatar has held the World Cup and now it has to follow it up,” he added, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of making public comments in Qatar.
The bid for one of the world’s most famous clubs was reported in the Gulf state on Saturday, with Sheikh Jassim’s statement strictly factual.
The deal could cost more than $5 billion, and no details were provided in the announcement. Sheikh Jassim, on the other hand, has strong ties to the seemingly bottomless pockets that have made Qatar one of the world’s top investors.
The sheikh, the son of former Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, has been the chairman of Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) for many years and attended Sandhurst, the elite British military academy.
He graduated as a “officer cadet,” according to his bid statement.
It also stated that Jassim is a “lifelong Manchester United fan,”
The sheikh was born in 1982, the year QIB was founded. He joined the bank’s board of directors in his early twenties and has served as chairman for the majority of QIB’s rise to become a leading Islamic financial institution.
As Qatar’s wealth has grown, QIB has opened women-only bank branches and introduced Sharia-compliant insurance and other products for women.
REF: BBC SPORTS
