American hedge fund Elliott Management has reportedly offered the Glazer family the financial support to continue owning Manchester United after the New York-based organization expressed interest in investing in the Premier League team, per ESPN.

Despite strong resistance from the United fan base to the American family, Elliott’s appearance in the selling process of United opens up the possibility of Joel and Avram Glazer, the club’s co-chairmen, keeping a large stake in the club.

The Glazers announced in November of last year that they had hired Raine Group, the American bank that oversaw the £2.5 billion sale of Chelsea in May, to look for “strategic alternatives” for running United. Since then, the Glazers have received at least two major offers from rival buyers.

Before last Friday’s 5 p.m. ET deadline for offers to be registered with Raine, Britian’s richest man, Jim Ratcliffe, the founder of chemicals company INEOS, and Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani, the chairman of the Qatar Islamic Bank, each submitted a sealed offer to purchase United.

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Though Joel and Avram Glazer were reportedly eager to entice outside investment to help fund the modernization of Old Trafford and the construction of a new training facility, both Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim made it clear that they wanted to own a majority or all of United.

Sources close to the bidding process confirmed that Elliott Management’s proposal is for “potential finance, not a bid for the club.”

Elliott, worth $55 billion in assets, approached Raine with a proposition last week, and it is prepared to contribute to the funding of a bid for United.

Sources claim that Elliott’s involvement in the process gives the Glazers and Raine the chance to negotiate investment for the existing owners in the event that a full sale cannot be accomplished, despite the fact that Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim are ready to fund their own bids.