sport news Manchester United for sale Q&A: Are Glazer family on their way out and who will ... trends now
Cristiano Ronaldo walked away from Manchester United in acrimonious fashion on Tuesday - yet that was only the second most important news story to emerge from Old Trafford.
The sensational development that the club's owners - the Glazer family - may be willing to sell up could have potentially seismic consequences for football.
The 333-word statement published on the club's website may have been boringly titled 'Manchester United announces process to explore strategic alternatives to enhance the club's growth' but its significance was clear.
It is the first time the club's American ownership, who bought the club in a leveraged takeover that saddled the club with enormous debt back in 2005, have confirmed they are seeking investment or could be willing to sell up.
But what does it all actually mean? Why now, who could take United over and what would the process be? Sportsmail takes you through all the key questions.
Joel and Avram Glazer stunned the football world by announcing Manchester United are up for sale - or inviting additional investment - on Tuesday
Fans protests against the Americans' ownership have grown in ferocity in recent months
What did the Glazer family's statement actually say?
The statement dropped on United's website at 9.30pm, just as trading on the New York Stock Exchange, where the club are listed, came to a close for the day.
It began by saying the club's board 'is commencing a process to explore strategic alternatives for the club…. To enhance the club's future growth.'
The next paragraph explicitly says the Glazers would consider all options, including 'new investment into the club, a sale, or other transactions.'
There then followed a quote from Avram and Joel Glazer, United's executive co-chairmen, who said 'we will evaluate all options'.
The statement concluded with the caveat that 'there can be no assurance' any sale or investment will come from the process.
The opportunity to own one of the world's biggest and most famous football clubs - or even invest in it - will be appealing to the world's wealthiest individuals
So, what is the significance of those words?
While the impenetrable corporate language would have left most United fans scratching their heads, one thing stood out - the word 'sale.'
For the first time since they took over 17 years ago, the Glazers are considering selling Manchester United and have publicly acknowledged that fact.
Alternatively, they would now be willing to invite outside investment into the club to support their own financial input.
What practical steps have they taken?
The statement also outlined that Raine Group, the New York-based merchant bank, have been appointed as United's 'exclusive financial advisor.'
This is significant because the Raine Group oversaw the sale of Chelsea earlier this year and, therefore, will be well aware of any potential investors out there interested in a big English football club.
Rothschild & Co, the bank and financial services company, have also been appointed to work on behalf of Glazer family shareholders.
United have gone through a lean decade since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson, failing to compete for the major trophies, but there are signs of gradual recovery now
Erik ten Hag came in as manager over the summer and has brought a no-nonsense approach, not least with the departing Cristiano Ronaldo
Why are they doing this now? What has changed in the past few months?
Only the Glazers themselves will now the true reasons but it's likely several factors come into play.
One is their failure to take United into the European Super League last year. The project, which featured 12 elite European clubs including six from the Premier League, collapsed in the face of a ferocious fan backlash.
The Glazers worked in tandem with Liverpool's American ownership, Fenway Sports Group, on the Super League project, which they thought would supercharge profits.
But supporters hated the idea of breaking away from the Premier League to play in a closed shop competition against the same teams with no jeopardy of relegation.
UEFA succeeded in closing down this serious challenge to its Champions League competition and only recently slapped downtime 'greedy plans' of A22 Sports, who are trying to resurrect the idea.
Liverpool, who have been owned by Fenway Sports Group, also American, since 2010 are also currently up for sale
Another prominent factor is the sale of Chelsea over the summer because it not only gave a yardstick of the worth of a leading Premier League club but also signified there are investors out there with billions to spend.
Todd Boehly and his consortium, another American businessman, paid £2.5billion for Chelsea with the promise of investment taking that figure to £4.25bn.
It's possible the Glazers looked at that and believed there would be similar interest out there in United.
They would also believe United, with their larger stadium and more glorious history, would command more money than Chelsea. Either way, they are certain to make a huge profit on the £790million they paid for United back in June 2005.
This news also comes hot on the heels of Liverpool being put up for sale by FSG after 12 years under their control.
This means the two most successful clubs in England are on the market at the same time and competing for the same super-wealthy investors. The Glazers would want United to be front of the queue.
Other factors include the emergence of Newcastle United, with Saudi owners who have far deeper pockets than they do and who are likely to challenge the cosy 'big six' cabal in the coming years.
There's the clear and obvious decline of Man United since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson back in 2013 - a period of drift that has seen them fail to win the Premier League, rattle through four permanent managers and fail to compete in the Champions
