Elon Musk Says Tweet About Buying Manchester United Was a 'Long-Running Joke'

Sorry, Manchester United supporters. Elon Musk won't be coming to the rescue.

On Tuesday, the Tesla CEO said he's going to buy the club, but he quickly clarified the comment was made in jest:

United supporters would certainly love to see an ownership change.

The Glazer family have been largely unpopular from the moment they gained a majority share of the club in 2005 because of the debt they incurred in order to make the deal happen.

Even as Manchester United continued to win the Premier League on multiple occasions, it did little to generate goodwill toward the Glazers. Now that the Red Devils are stuck in a cycle of mediocrity, the atmosphere around Old Trafford is the lowest it has been in perhaps a generation.

Musk might have taken his name out of the hat, but the Independent's Miguel Delaney reported Wednesday there is a growing belief the Glazer family might be prepared to sell Manchester United.

"A series of industry sources insist the biggest takeover in global sports history is a strong possibility within the next year to 24 months," per Delaney.

Maybe that doesn't come to pass, either, but you can't blame supporters for getting a bit hopeful about a possible regime change.