Man United fans were briefly teased by the prospect of Elon Musk taking over, but his joke opens up the question of who else could buy the club.
Despondent Manchester United fans were lulled into thinking that all their Christmases had come at once this week when Elon Musk, the richest person in the world, said he was going to buy the ailing Premier League club.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO, whose net worth Forbes reports to be $270 billion, announced on social media that he was planning to buy the club from the Glazer family.
That pledge would have been music to the ears of the beleaguered United fans who are planning another protest against the club’s owners ahead of Monday’s home clash against Liverpool, who won 5-0 at Old Trafford and beat them 4-0 at Anfield last season.
Given the fact that United began the season under new manager Erik ten Hag with a 2-1 loss at Brighton & Hove Albion and then followed that up with Saturday’s humiliating 4-0 defeat at Brentford, the arrival of Jurgen Klopp’s side (who are also winless from their two games this season) is not one many United supporters are relishing.
Musk broke the news on Twitter, the social platform for which his attempted takeover had led to a protracted legal battle, late on Tuesday.
Also, I’m buying Manchester United ur welcome
Unfortunately for United supporters, the 51-year-old then had to explain to his 103.4 million followers that he was merely making a joke, which is never a good sign of how well your comedy material has landed.
It turns out that the prospect of Musk taking over at various sporting enterprises is a recurring theme in his laugh-a-minute social media output.
No, this is a long-running joke on Twitter. I’m not buying any sports teams.
Standup is my side-hustle
Still, even after dismissing the prospect of riding in to save United, Musk has still left the possibility dangling that he might make a bid for the Old Trafford boardroom one day by revealing his childhood fandom of the club.
