News of Elon Musk Buying Manchester United Is Satirical

Misbar investigated the circulating claim and found it to be satirical. The claim was spread after Musk tweeted about buying the club. 

Musk’s tweet, which has been retweeted more than 115k times, turned out to be a joke. In the same thread, Musk replied to someone who asked him for a confirmation of the news, explaining that it is a “long-running joke.”

Musk also added that Manchester United has been his favorite team since he was a kid.

Who Is Elon Musk?

Elon Musk is a South African-born American industrial engineer and entrepreneur. He co-founded PayPal and SpaceX, a provider of aerospace transportation services. Additionally, he was an early investor in Tesla, a manufacturer of electric vehicles, and is currently the company's CEO. With a net worth of $267 billion, Musk is the richest person in the world.

Elon Musk’s Controversial Tweets 

This was not the first time Musk's tweets went viral and created a buzz on social media platforms.

Only four months after stating that he would buy Twitter, Musk is now attempting to get out of a $44 billion deal to buy the company after it sued him.

Musk also tweeted on April 27, two days after Twitter's board accepted his unsolicited offer to purchase the company, “Next I'm buying Coca-Cola to put the cocaine back in.”

Reaction to Elon Musk’s Tweet

The claim has gone viral and many social media users have been circulating it with satirical captions. 

A user posted a photo showing five robots standing like football players while wearing Manchester United jerseys that are sponsored by Tesla instead of Manchester United. 

Another video was shared, showing Ronaldo connected to devices in front of a scientist. The video’s caption reads: “Elon Musk programming Ronaldo to go back to his prime years.”

A cartoon video showing a man evaluating the most famous players was also circulated with the caption: “Elon Musk at Manchester United's next board meeting.”

A scene from the Chinese movie “Shaolin Soccer” shows players playing on the field with unbelievable skills. The clip was shared with the caption: “Manchester United players after Elon Musk put chips in their brains.”

Manchester United Shares Rise in Value After Musk’s Joke

In premarket trading on Wednesday, shares of the English football team Manchester United quickly increased by as much as 17% after Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk jokingly tweeted that he would buy the club.

On August 17, the shares of Manchester United, which are listed on the New York Stock Exchange and are denoted by the abbreviation “MANU,” were up 3.68% after initially jumping 17% in reaction to Musk's tweet.

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