United ready for flotation

Manchester United will be confirmed as one of the world's most valuable sports teams when they kick off their stock market flotation on Thursday.

The club, bought by the Glazer family in 2005 for about £800million, will offer 16.7million shares, equal to a 10 per cent stake, which are set to price at between 16 and 20 US dollars (£10-12) before listing on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday.
United, who claim to have a global fanbase of about 660million and have won a record 19 English league titles, would be valued at £2.1billion at the top range.
The US-based Glazer family, which is set to make about £90million from the flotation, failed to garner sufficient demand in previous efforts to sell shares on exchanges in Hong Kong and Singapore.
Analysts at data provider Morningstar told the Financial Times that 10 US dollars (£6) a share would be a fair value, adding: "Shares could trade at a significant premium to our fair value estimate if the market values the soccer team in line with other successful sports franchises."
The remaining proceeds raised in the initial public offering (IPO) will be used to pay down some of the 134-year-old club's debt, which was last reported to be around £423million.