The stock market investors must have been rubbing their hands with glee. In the space of a few hours yesterday morning more than £123 million sterling was added to the share value of Manchester United Football Club after BSkyB confirmed it was in negotiations to buy Britain's largest and most successful club for a reputed £575 million.
Once Mr Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB had confirmed its interest, Manchester United issued a similar, sparsely worded statement which said a "further announcement" would be made in due course and shares in the club immediately soared by 47.5p to 206.5p. The club's chief executive and largest single shareholder, Mr Martin Edwards, could make more than £80 million from the sell-off.
The proposed deal was heralded by the Murdoch-owned newspaper the Sun, as a golden windfall for football with the headline "Gold Trafford" but with a much more cautious welcome in his other newspaper the Times, the media magnate was sending out a message to the fans that the future of their team was safe in his hands. The London Independent and the Guardian concentrated on the "alarm and anger" among fans.
If the deal goes ahead, the Trade and Industry Secretary, Mr Peter Mandelson, said, it would be enormously important, and he confirmed that it would be investigated "very completely and extremely searchingly" by the Office of Fair Trading to make sure it abided by competition laws. "The Director General will examine the competition aspects and will then report to me and I will take whatever action I need to take."
Asked for his personal opinion Mr Mandelson said: "I love football and I am a great supporter of those who broadcast it." BSkyB already owns the television rights to all Premier League football matches in a £647 million deal which will expire at the end of 2001. But if Mr Murdoch is successful in his Manchester United bid he will be guaranteed an important voice in future negotiations for television rights once the deal expires.
BSkyB is currently under investigation by the OFT over its right to televise football matches. In January next year the Restrictive Practices Court will decide whether BSkyB, the BBC and the Premier League are effectively operating a monopoly by ensuring football clubs negotiate collectively for television rights rather than on an individual basis.
In the cloak and dagger world that is football, however, rumours were rife yesterday that at least two other media groups might consider making a bid for the club. The Granada media group, which owns substantial shares in BSkyB and Manchester United's own digital channel, was one such key player being discussed along with the Enic group, which has a 25 per cent stake in Glasgow Rangers and owns the football clubs Vicenza in Italy and AEK Athens in Greece.
But in the end, politicians uneasy about the implications for fans and football as a whole, simply wanted Mr Murdoch to reassure them that the deal would secure the future of football. The Foreign Office Minister and Manchester United fan, Mr Tony Lloyd, said what the fans wanted were "proper answers" about how he intended to run the club. "There are concerns that Mr Murdoch and his broadcasting empire already control a huge part of live football. Manchester United as a Premier team may get a degree of control which is unhealthy for the ordinary supporter."
Mr Lee Hodgkiss of the Independent Manchester United Supporters' Association predicted that a takeover of the club would pose problems not just for its supporters but for all football supporters in Britain. "Murdoch would control British football, the kick-off times and the days that football matches are played. All we can do is appeal to Martin Edwards's better judgment - if he has one - that he will consider not selling to Murdoch."