Billionaire United buyer Jim Ratcliffe's lavish life - yachts, mansions and kids
Since the start of this year, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been after one of the UK's best-loved brands, Manchester United. The British billionaire is now on the verge of purchasing a 25 percent stake in the football club, set to invest around £1.5billion, after rival bidder Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani withdrew from the race.
But what else do we know about the successful businessman? Here the Mirror takes a look at Ratcliffe's personal life and background, from being a boyhood United fan at a young age to recently ranking as the second wealthiest person in the UK, and the immense fortune he has to his name.
Ratcliffe with his brother Bob and his three children Julia, Sam and George (Icon Sport via Getty Images)Ratcliffe, 71, was born in Failsworth, Greater Manchester, and is a boyhood United fan. He was raised in a council house with his father who was a joiner and mother who was an accounts officer worker. The family moved to East Yorkshire and in 1974, he graduated with a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Birmingham. Ratcliffe's career started at oil firms BP and Esso, before he moved into private equity and joined Advent International in 1989. A decade later, he formed chemical company Ineos and built up an enormous fortune.
He was knighted in 2018 by the late Queen for services to business and investment. That same year, he was named the richest man in the UK in the Sunday Times Rich List 2018. According to Forbes in 2022, Ratcliffe has a rough net worth of $16.3billion (£13.5billion), though other estimates place him closer to £30billion. He has earned a reputation as a tough negotiator and is also known for his passion in sports, owning French side Nice and Swiss club Lausanne-Sport. "I did have this inkling that I wanted to be successful - that I wanted to be a millionaire one day. But I was just dreaming, really," Ratcliffe has said.
Superyacht Hampshire II which the Ineos boss owns, worth approximately £120million (Daily Record)The billionaire has attracted much criticism over the years, including in 2013 when Ineos announced it would close the Grangemouth petrochemical plant in Scotland and cut 800 jobs - famously earning him the villain moniker of Dr No. In 2016, he was criticised by green groups when Ineos imported the first ever shipment of shale gas from the US into the UK. In 2020, Ratcliffe, who was a Leave campaigner in the Brexit referendum, moved to Monaco - which does not tax individuals based on their income - and said he had tried to "give back to the UK" by investing £2.5billion in the country.
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Ratcliffe has three children, including two sons, George and Samuel, with his ex-wife Amanda Townson. The couple were married for 10 years before divorcing in 1995. His eldest child George has followed in his father's footsteps and became commercial director of Ineos last year. Ratcliffe also has a daughter called Julia, who he shares with his second wife, Italian tax lawyer Maria Alessia Maresca. The pair reportedly tied the knot in the late nineties and split up a few years later. Little is known about Ratcliffe's dating life and he largely keeps his romances private.
The superyacht has a beach club, ball court, helicopter deck and zip line experience onboard (Daily Record)It's believed the Mancunian has large homes in London and Hampshire, as well as Monaco, Switzerland and France. He also reportedly owns five private jets, a helicopter, luxury cars and several superyachts, most famously Hampshire II for over a decade, which is worth approximately £120million and has a beach club, ball court, helicopter deck and zip line experience onboard. His other super yacht, called Sherpa, is estimated to be worth £100million. So, we're pretty sure Ratcliffe can afford to buy Man United...
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