Man Utd owner Ratcliffe avoids charge by FA for ‘colonised’ comment

Manchester United owner Jim Ratcliffe has apologised if people were offended by UK ‘colonised ⁠by immigrants’ comment.

Manchester United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe has been reminded of his “responsibilities as a participant in English football” after he triggered a storm of criticism for claiming the United Kingdom had been “colonised” by immigrants.

But England’s Football Association will not be charging Ratcliffe over his comments, which were widely condemned by political figures, including British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and the club’s supporters.

The governing body issued Ratcliffe with a reminder of his responsibilities when taking part in media interviews, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Friday. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly.

British billionaire Ratcliffe, who owns petrochemicals giant INEOS, made the comments during an interview with Sky News, which aired last week.

“You can’t have an economy with 9 million people on benefits and huge levels of immigrants coming in,” he said. “I mean, the UK’s been colonised.”