Sir Jim Ratcliffe claims he's made Man Utd better despite string of 'unpopular' decisions

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Sir Jim Ratcliffe has claimed he became "very unpopular" at Manchester United for making the "right" decisions.

Ratcliffe, 73, has made a number of high-profile calls at Old Trafford since he acquired a 27.7 per cent stake in United in December 2023 and assumed full control of the football operations in the following February.

Among the changes Ratcliffe has made include axing more than 250 jobs to save an estimated £40million, ending the tradition for paid ambassadorial roles for former players, and ordering a return to office for all staff.

There has also been a major overhaul of the club's executive team, with Omar Berrada coming in as Chief Executive (CEO) and Jason Wilcox as the Technical Director. Dan Ashworth did arrive as Sporting Director but he departed his role after less than five months in it.

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United have spent more than £400m on transfers since Ratcliffe arrived. That hasn't led to much success on the pitch so far, although the Reds did win the FA Cup in 2024 and reach the Europa League final in 2025.

They initially kept Erik ten Hag after winning the FA Cup before later sacking him and costing the club around £21.4m in compensation. The Reds then appointed Ruben Amorim but axed him last month with Michael Carrick coming in as his replacement until the end of the season.

Ratcliffe has received some criticism from United fans and others alike during his first two years at United, but the INEOS chief has now defended the "difficult" but "right" decisions he has made.

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Speaking in an interview with Sky Sports , Ratcliffe said: "I've seen quite a bit of this at the football club (people making unpopular decisions). If you do difficult things, which we felt that we had to do at Manchester United... we felt like they were the right things to do. But you do become very unpopular for a while."

Ratcliffe continued: "Well, I've been very unpopular at Manchester United because we've made lots of changes. But for the better, in my view. And I think we're beginning to see some evidence in the football club that that's beginning to pay off."

Before mentioning United, Ratcliffe had claimed that Britain has been "colonised" by immigrants, who are draining resources from the state. The Reds part-owner opened up on why he believes Britain faces profound political, social and economic challenges.

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In a warning to the UK, Ratcliffe said: "You can't have an economy with nine million people on benefits and huge levels of immigrants coming in. I mean, the UK has been colonised. It's costing too much money. The UK has been colonised by immigrants, really, hasn't it?"

Ratcliffe's United missed the chance on securing a fifth straight win as they were held to a 1-1 draw against West Ham on Tuesday. The Reds, however, were heading for a defeat up until Benjamin Sesko scored a stoppage-time equaliser after Tomas Soucek had given the Hammers the lead.

It's a point that leaves United in fourth on 44 points from their 26 Premier League fixtures this season. They are just two points behind third-place Aston Villa , who boast a game in hand and face Brighton on Wednesday.

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