English football (soccer) team Manchester United says it has received a "preliminary approach" for a financial takeover of the club.
The announcement was made Monday to the London Stock Exchange. It followed newspaper reports that American businessman Malcolm Glazer was preparing a bid to buy the club. Manchester United's share price jumped over three percent on the news.
Glazer, who owns the National Football League's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has a 19.2 per cent stake in United. He is the second largest shareholder behind the company Cubic Expression, which holds a 28.9 percent stake.
British newspaper reports over the weekend quoted banker Mehmet Dalman as saying: "The Glazers want to own the club - either through buying more shares or through management or board level."