Manchester United takeover is just about to take another twist as reports now indicate that billionaire Elon Musk might be about to throw his heart in the ring in the race to own the club. The Tesla owner is known for pulling off swift takeovers with his latest one making him the sole owner of Twitter and he is now said to be weighing up an offer to present to United before the Friday set deadline. It is speculated that Raine Group could potentially receive as many as five serious bidders' by the end of the week. However, both Avram and Joel Glazer are also exploring the possibility of buying out their four siblings on the club board as they remain keen on running United. Below are some of the expected bidders so far at this stage of the process:

Emir of Qatar:
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, the emir of Qatar, is expected to bid in the region of £4bn ahead of the Friday soft deadline. Sources, however, indicate that the people spearheading this bid will not surpass the £4.5bn mark despite the Glazers asking price being at £6bn. 

Elon Musk joins the race:
The tech mogul is now among the interested parties ready to make a bid for the club. It is reported that the Twitter and Tesla billionaire is weighing up whether the opportunity at Old Trafford is too good to pass up. Musk with a net worth of £157bn could join forces with another interested individual or group to become the front-runner in the bid. The business tycoon is said to be a boyhood fan of the club and has been reported joking severally about buying and owning United, a dream that can be achieved if his bid sails through. 

Sir Jim Ratcliffe:
The founder and chairperson of INEOS Group officially declared his interest to buy the club last month. He is also a boyhood supporter of the club and has previously met with Avram and Joel Glazer. He had initially declared his interest in buying United in August after he had seen his last-gasp bid to buy Chelsea rejected in April. He is not new to football investments as the British billionaire owns French club OGC Nice and Swiss team Lausanne-Sport, both through his company INEOS.

Qatari Investors:
Sources indicate that the group has got plans underway to make a ‘mega-money’ move to purchase United. The group comprises of 'private, high-wealth individuals' all based in Qatar. The report also adds that the group is 'separate' from Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), who have owned Paris Saint-Germain since 2011 and last year in October purchased a minority stake in Portuguese side Braga. While QSI is affiliated with the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the country's sovereign wealth fund, it is claimed that the money behind such a move for United would be from an 'individual fund' rather than a state-owned one.

Saudi Arabian groups:
Another report now indicates that there are several parties from Saudi Arabia who have already gained access to United's so-called 'data room' to view details of its financials. For such rights to be granted those parties would have to have expressed their interest to Raine and also signed confidentiality agreements. However, there is a lack of clarity as to whether a formal bid will follow. None of the parties is affiliated with the nation's sovereign wealth fund, Public Investment Fund (PIF), which took over New Castle last year but one and have been pouring money into the club's transfer kitty giving room for the manager to sign quality players who are clearly advancing their agenda to have a silverware on their cabinet soon.

(Image: The Mirror)