Sir Jim Ratcliffe ‘requested Manchester United captain Katie Zelem what she did’ on tour
Sir Jim Ratcliffe allegedly had an awkward moment at Manchester United’s Carrington training ground when he reportedly asked the then-women’s team captain Katie Zelem what she did
Manchester United’s top dog Sir Jim Ratcliffe is said to have dropped a clanger after he asked the captain of the women’s team what she did.
Women’s club captain Katie Zelem took Ratcliffe – the Ineos owner owns just under 29% of the Premier League giant – on a tour of the Red Devils’ Carrington training ground facility. She has 12 England caps under her belt and has played for Liverpool, Juventus and United – she left in 2024 to join Angel City FC in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in the US.
The alleged gaffe came through a report by Telegraph Sport amid criticism of Ratcliffe’s approach to the women’s team. Some have accused him of showing little interest in the WSL side.
Concern arose when the Ineos boss chose to watch United play Arsenal at Old Trafford instead of the women’ side in an FA Cup final at Wembley, which they won 4-0 against Tottenham Hotspur.
Ahead of the match, the players’ families were only given menial ticket allocation, leading to men’s skipper Bruno Fernandes and goalkeeper Tom Heaton to intervene.
Members of the women’s operation are thought to have been disappointed by the departure of director Dan Ashworth, who was considered an ally of the women’s game but had a reported personality clash with Ratcliffe.
The Telegraph reports that Ratcliffe and Ashworth never had a meaningful conversation about the women’s team during the time they worked together, while Ratcliffe also redirected questions about them to his advisers when he was asked about them in February last year.
The Daily Star has approached United for comment. Ratcliffe himself has said the idea he is not interested in the women’s team is “slightly misguided”.
This week, United co-owner Avram Glazer has insisted that Manchester United will not be sold.
Glazer was asked about the future of United on the day the club published their quarterly accounts and the £14.5million cost of getting rid of manager Erik ten Hag, Ashworth and other members of football staff was revealed.
The Glazer family remain majority owners of the Premier League side.
Asked by Sky Sports in Miami whether he would sell the club, Glazer gave an emphatic one-word answer: “No.”
The quarterly accounts showed that United’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBIDTA) were £70.5m for the second quarter, but player trading and interest costs meant they ended up recording a £27.7m loss.
Total revenue was down 12% year on year to £198.7m, with net finance costs up from £300,000 to £37.6m on the prior year quarter due to an “unfavourable swing” in foreign exchange rates on unhedged US dollars borrowings.
The 1958 fan group said the second quarter figures made for “grim reading” as they prepared to protest before the home fixture with Arsenal on March 9.
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