Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Glazer family flying to UK for Manchester United leadership summit

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is flying in to Manchester to meet with Joel and Avram Glazer at Manchester United’s latest executive committee meeting.

United’s co-owners are set for face-to-face talks at Carrington to discuss the latest developments at the club after Ruben Amorim’s dismissal and Michael Carrick’s appointment as interim head coach.

The location of the summit has been moved to Manchester to avoid upheaval for United’s football leadership team in this turbulent time — they are usually held in Monaco — and to provide Ratcliffe and the Glazers a chance to speak to Carrick and his staff.

It would be the first time Joel and Avram Glazer have visited the new main building at United’s training ground, which was built at a cost of £50million, funded by Ratcliffe’s investment. The Glazers have not put a penny of their own money into renovating the club’s infrastructure since completing their leveraged buyout in 2005, plunging United into hundreds of millions of pounds of debt.

The ExCo meetings typically take place every month, featuring members of the club’s hierarchy and football directors, but this one takes on added importance given the sense of turmoil at United in the wake of Amorim’s sudden departure.

There is widespread agitation and concern among the fanbase, with the 1958 group calling for a protest march at Old Trafford ahead of the visit by Fulham on February 1. They are aiming scrutiny on the Glazer-Ratcliffe ownership, chief executive Omar Berrada, and director of football Jason Wilcox.

Supporters are pleased to see the return of Carrick, who won 12 major honours as a player including five Premier League titles and the European Cup, but they are also questioning the wisdom of aiming for Champions League qualification by hiring him as head coach until the end of the season and planning little business in the January window.

Carrick won two and drew one of his three matches in caretaker charge of the team in 2021, while his previous full-time experience was at Middlesbrough between October 2022 and May 2025.

The subject of United’s commercial situation is also due to be discussed, with the club yet to agree a training ground kit partner, potentially worth £20m per year, and not yet close to sorting a replacement for shirt sleeve sponsor, with their DXC agreement ending this summer.

United sacked Amorim on January 5 following 14 months in his role after a breakdown in the relationship between him and the club’s leadership team behind the scenes.

Under-18s coach Darren Fletcher was placed in interim charge for the trip to Burnley last week before also taking the team for Sunday’s FA Cup defeat by Brighton & Hove Albion.

Carrick will now lead the side, alongside former England assistant Steve Holland, former Premier League defenders Jonathan Woodgate and Jonny Evans and Under-21s coach Travis Binnion, for the remainder of the campaign before a permanent successor to Amorim is identified ahead of next season.

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