Buccaneer buys into Man Utd dream ticket

A huge sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' threatening sword and skull logo proclaims that 80,000 fans are queuing for season tickets on the approach road to the American football team's eye-catching stadium. The phenomenal clamour for tickets to watch the local team - once so bad that it could not attract star players or anyone to see its games - is seen as the result of the seemingly endless generosity of watch-maker turned fish-oil seller Malcolm Glazer, the team's owner for the last eight years.

This is not somewhere the denizens of Manchester would normally spend much time thinking about. But that has changed with this week's news that Mr Glazer has just become one of the largest shareholders in Britain's biggest football club, Manchester United.

In Florida's warm winter sun yesterday, the grand stadium built by Mr Glazer for $200m (£120m) four years ago was quiet ahead of Monday's big game. But come the night the Raymond James stadium - sponsored by a local financial firm - is sure to be a sell out.

As is often his wont, the septuagenarian will be there to cheer on the team that has been transformed into the winner of the prestigious Super Bowl under his ownership.

The state of the art stadium might be at least one place where Sir Roy Gardner, Manchester United chairman, could ask the Florida resident what he is up to.

A stake-building exercise in the Premier League club by Mr Glazer has helped stoke fresh speculation that United will soon be the subject of a full-blown takeover bid.

This week Mr Glazer almost doubled his stake to 5.9% - worth around £30m - and yesterday the club's shares jumped again on takeover rumours.

Mr Glazer has an eclectic range of business interests that have made him worth about $1bn, according to Forbes magazine. A jack of all trades, he is thought to have been so taken by the success of the Bucs, that he may make a move for the struggling Los Angeles Dodgers, owned by Rupert Murdoch.

For now, Mr Glazer is keeping his own counsel. Based in Palm Beach, he started work at the age of eight in his father's watch business and took over the firm at 15 when his father died. In his native Rochester, New York, he sold motor homes before dabbling in businesses ranging from food processing to shopping malls to buying into oil exploration company Zapata, founded by George Bush Sr.

One of the recurring themes through Mr Glazer's business career is that he likes to keep it in the family: his six children are involved in most of his business endeavours. But he also courts controversy. At Zapata, which he left a year ago, he attracted several legal actions, including allegations that he used non-public information to buy shares.

Recent regulatory filings by Zapata, show Mr Glazer is continuing to be paid $122,500 a month even though he is no longer employed by the company. The agreement was struck in March 2002 and will run until April 2006, leaving him with an income from Zapata alone of around $1.5m a year.

To Bucs fans in sun-bathed Tampa such controversies seem irrelevant. It is easier to focus on the estimated four-fold increase in the investment Mr Glazer has made since buying the team for what was then a record-breaking - and some said foolhardy - $192m in 1995. The team is now thought to be worth between $600m and $800m and bringing in revenues of $31m a year.

Mr Glazer's interest in Manchester United, then, is causing some confusion. Unlike many of his other investments, the club is not failing on the field or financially which suggests little scope for a turnaround story. But it is also a potentially attractive deal to an investor looking for a debt-free target that generates cash.

Mr Glazer is buying the shares when they are at two-year highs. Perhaps he thinks someone is going to bid for United, or perhaps he really just fancies owning shares in the club. His interest in the Los Angeles Dodgers has sparked some local speculation he is ready to sell out of the Bucs now they are at the top and look for new investments. But, until he breaks his silence the United board, at today's game against Birmingham City, will be none the wiser.