Glazer family eye Hong Kong for float of Manchester United THE American owners of Manchester United are exploring the option of floating the English football club in Asia. The Glazer family have held talks with several investment banks on a scheme to list the Premier League champions on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The deal would mark a shock return to the public markets for the club six years after the Glazers took it private in a blaze of controversy. Bankers have told the Florida-based tycoons that the listing could value the club at pound stg. 1.7 billion ($2.6bn) -- more than double the pound stg. 790m the Glazers paid for it in 2005. A flurry of floats on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange by upmarket consumer goods companies such asSamsonite has prompted the family to consider a listing. Thanks to the international power of United's brand, and the strength of its following in Asia, advisers believe the club could attract a high price for its shares. Sources insisted the plans were at an early stage and may still come to nothing. The Glazers are believed to be keeping a watchful eye on the imminent $16bn flotation of Prada. The luxury fashion house will begin drumming up investor interest today. If Prada's shares perform well, the Glazers are expected to show more interest in the plan. Since the Glazers bought the club, manager Alex Ferguson has led United to a 19th league title, making it the most successful team in the history of English football. It is also one of the best supported clubs in the world, and the third wealthiest, after Spain's Real Madrid and Barcelona. Last year, a list of the 10 most valuable sports brands compiled by Forbes magazine ranked Manchester United second only to the New York Yankees. Last year, the club's annual revenue of pound stg. 286m and operating profit of pound stg. 91m were the highest in the Premier League. However, it was pushed into a pound stg. 79m loss by interest payments on the debts the Glazer family have piled on to the club -- debts that have made the family unpopular with fans. Speculation that the Glazers are preparing to sell the club began last year when the family refinanced some of United's loans. In a second refinancing, high interest loans were repaid with cash from unknown sources, fuelling rumours the Glazers were laying the groundwork for a sale. It is understood that a float is the only exit the family is willing to consider. They have ruled out a sale to another private investor such as the Qatari royal family, which made a tentative takeover approach last year.