Sports Desk: Manchester United might soon become the new owners of the iconic Indian football cub East Bengal.
According to a report published in the Mirror, this was revealed by the former Indian cricket skipper Sourav Ganguly, who is also the president of the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI).
Ganguly said that East Bengal is in talks with the owners of the Premier League club and other interested parties regarding the takeover. He also added that it might take another 10 to 12 days for any conformation on the new ownership.
Earlier, in 2020 Manchester United was to travel to Kolkata to play a friendly match against East Bengal. However, due to the pandemic it was cancelled.
Apart from football, the Glazers family, who are the owners of the Manchester United since 2005, have in the past also shown interest in investing in the sports market in India. Recently, they wanted to buy one of the two newly formed Indian Premier league (IPL) teams, however they were unsuccessful in the bidding process.
Therefore, the United reportedly considers East Bengal a cheaper option to set its foot on the Indian market for now.
In addition to Manchester United, other English clubs like Manchester City and Watford have also invested in Indian football. While City is linked to the Indian Super League (ISL) team Mumbai City, Watford have investments in Odisha FC.
Likewise, clubs like Arsenal have invested in a football academy in West Bengal, which is the most popular football market in the country.
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