Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani could get another opportunity to move into football ownership

Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani could be handed a fresh chance to enter the world of football ownership almost three years on from being pipped by Sir Jim Ratcliffe in the race to buy Manchester United. The Qatari's father Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani is reportedly spearheading a move for Italian heavyweights Inter Milan via investment firm Al Mirqab, where Sheikh Jassim holds a prominent role.

The banker featured as one of the initial contenders for ownership of United after the Glazer family started looking at a potential sale in 2022. He pursued a complete takeover but the Americans ultimately chose to offload a minority shareholding to Ratcliffe during the 2023/24 campaign.

Now, as reported by Tuttosport, his father - referred to as HBJ - has held preliminary discussions over Al Mirqab acquiring a minority stake in Inter. The same outlet suggests that the Nerazzurri's current owners, Oaktree Capital Management, are not considering a full sale but might be open to parting with a non-controlling share.

HBJ, 67, previously served six years as Qatar's prime minister following a two-decade period as foreign minister. Forbes values his fortune at US$4.7bn (£3.52bn), ranking him 823rd on the magazine's billionaires list, while Sheikh Jassim's wealth is put at somewhere between £900m and £1.1bn by the same source.

Through the Al Mirqab group, which shares its name with HBJ's yacht, the former political figure has ploughed money into finance, hotels and high-end property.

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Tuttosport claims that a growing share of this real estate portfolio is located in Italy, with the billionaire increasingly spending time in Milan.

The same outlet suggests that Sheikh Jassim had previously spearheaded an attempt to purchase Inter from former owners Suning, who ultimately sold to Oaktree in 2024. He withdrew from that transaction after being unable to agree with Suning on their asking price for the club.

On the pitch, Inter have experienced a revival in recent years. The Milan outfit reached the Champions League final in 2025, falling short against Paris Saint-Germain, while they have secured the Serie A championship in two of the past three campaigns.

Matters have proved more challenging for Christian Chivu's team in Europe this term, with narrow losses to Real Madrid and Club Brugge leaving them facing a steep climb to progress to the later rounds of the Champions League. Nevertheless, they lead the Serie A standings with 16 points from a possible 18.

United have endured a more difficult beginning to their own season, their first with Champions League action under Ratcliffe's stewardship. They have recorded one victory and one loss in Europe but find themselves in the lower reaches of the Premier League table after winning just one of their opening six fixtures.