Lansdowne Partners increases Man Utd stake

Fund management firm Lansdowne Partners, in which the Irish duo John Paul McManus and John Magnier have an interest, has increased…

Fund management firm Lansdowne Partners, in which the Irish duo John Paul McManus and John Magnier have an interest, has increased its stake in English champions Manchester United to four percent from 3.7 percent.

The club, the subject of takeover speculation, said in a statement this afternnon that Lansdowne now held 10,451,296 of its shares.

United's biggest shareholders have been gradually building their stakes in the club, jockeying for prime position as speculation builds of a possible takeover.

The leading shareholders are Irish racehorse owners McManus and Magnier, who lifted their stake to 23.15 percent by buying TV firm BSkyB's 10 percent stake.

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Reuters