Malcolm Glazer, who owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has increased his share of Manchester United to 71.8%. He's trying to get to 75%, which would mean he could take the club private.
For those of you not familiar with what the rest of the world calls "football," Manchester United is the New York Yankees of soccer. They have the best tradition, the most money, the biggest fan base, and also like the Yankees, you either love them or hate them.
Man U fans are very upset by Glazer's attempt to own the team. A fan group called Shareholders United has been staging protests in Manchester and threatening to boycott games if Glazer gets full control of the team. One member of that group told SkySports News, "If that means starving ourselves (of soccer) and starving the club of income in order to make this parasite detach himself from us, then so be it."
Among fans fears is that he'll raise ticket prices (oh, no! not that!) and sell Old Trafford, their 67,000 seat stadium, which would be like the Cubs selling Wrigley Field.
I'm not sure where those particular fears are based. I haven't been able to find anything from Glazer or his representatives suggesting that.
It is also rumored that Glazer wants to market the Man U brand in the U.S., although I can't see how that would be a bad thing.
My advice to Man U fans is to settle down and give Glazer a chance. He took the Bucs, once the laughing stock of American sports, and made them Super Bowl winners. He's not likely to do anything to screw up something as good as Manchester United.
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