American hedge fund Elliott Investment Management reportedly submitted a bid to buy Manchester United before Friday's deadline.
Current owners the Glazer family announced in November that they were putting the club up for sale, with the American businessmen understood to be open to either a partial sale or a full sale, should their £6bn asking price be met.
The deadline for the opening round of bids passed at 10pm GMT on Friday night, with The Raine Group, who are advising on the deal, now set to assess those offers before deciding which ones to advance through to the next stage.
Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani, chairman of the Qatari Investment Bank, and IENOS owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe have both already confirmed that they have made bids for the 20-time champions of England.
As many as five offers are understood to have been received, though, with rumours of Saudi interest as well as offers from America.
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Twitter and Tesla owner Elon Musk has been linked with a bid, and The Times reports that Elliott Investment Management - a hedge fund led by American billionaire Paul Singer - also lodged an official offer before the deadline.
The report claims that the US firm is not aiming to obtain a majority share of the club from the Glazers, but would instead look to provide the financing for a bid.
Singer's group manages assets worth a reported $56bn (£46bn) and have previously ventured into the world of football ownership with AC Milan.
The 78-year-old Singer became the owner of the Italian giants in 2018 after the club's previous owner defaulted on a loan payment owed to Elliott Investment Management.
Singer spent four years in charge of Milan, during which time the club won their first Serie A title for 11 years before being sold to RedBird Capital last year.
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While Sheikh Jassim and Jim Ratcliffe have publicly declared their intentions for Man United should they be successful in their bids, the details of Elliot Investment Management's proposal are unknown.
The firm could look to obtain part-ownership of Man United - a proposal which may appeal to the members of the Glazer family that still want some part to play at Old Trafford - or they could provide debt financing, or a combination of the two.
The Glazers are understood to be demanding £6bn for the Red Devils, although reports have suggested that none of the bids so far has met that asking price.
The Qatari offer is thought to be worth around £4.5bn, while Jim Ratcliffe's approach is reportedly worth around £4bn for 69% of the club.
Barney Corkhill
