Tycoon increases United stake

The Dutch multi-billionaire television tycoon who came up with the idea for Big Brother has secretly being buying up shares in Manchester United. Jon De Mol, the chairman and chief executive of the production company Endemol, has reportedly amassed 7.6 million shares since November. His stake in the club now stands at 2.9 per cent and was worth £8.7m at the close of trading last night.

The development could signal the start of a battle for control of the club. Mol could be one takeover candidate, although his last venture into football will make him wary. In the mid-1990s he invested heavily in a Dutch television channel that was due to screen all that country's league matches, but the channel folded after three months.

A more likely takeover, prompted by Mol's buying, could come from Dermot Desmond, JP McManus and John Magnier, three wealthy Irishmen who have all bought or recently expanded their stakes in United. Desmond, the owner of Celtic, has bought just under three per cent of United.

McManus and Magnier, who are both close to United's manager, Alex Ferguson, own approaching nine per cent of the club.

United, prompted by speculation of a takeover, were informed of Mol's purchases this week. A spokesman for United said last night the club had no comment on the matter. Shares in United closed yesterday slightly up, at 113.5p, valuing the club at £300m.

De Mol would certainly be able to afford to buy at that price. He sold Endemol, a company he founded in 1979, for £3.3bn three years ago to the Spanish company Telefonica. Big Brother alone has grossed an estimated £1bn in worldwide rights. Endemol is also responsible for shows including Stars In Their Eyes and Changing Rooms.

Although United's share price has crept up from around 90p in December, the club's value has fallen massively in recent years. As recently as March 2000, United became the first sports club in the world to be valued at £1bn. Shortly before then, the investment bank Warburg Dillon Read said it thought the club was worth a figure closer to £1.3bn, not least because of projected earnings via the internet for pay-per-view content.

"Manchester United's internet strategy has not been priced into the shares and, while it's difficult to value, we think it adds another pound to the price," said one Warburg analyst. The bursting of the dot.com bubble put paid to that. The ITV Digital fiasco then called into doubt the value of future TV earnings. And then the transfer market collapsed, meaning that the club's most valuable assets, its players, have also crashed in value. But De Mol evidently feels United's diminished value does not reflect reality.