Wannabe Man United owner Amancio Ortega started as a delivery boy before forging his fashion empire

Amancio Ortega, who has unexpectedly thrown his name into the ring to buy Manchester United, is an elusive figure.

As one of the co-founders of Inditex - most known for the Zara fashion chain - the 86-year-old has become one of the world's richest people. At one point, he was the world's richest man, overtaking Bill Gates in 2016, although he has since fallen down that list.

Now, it is thought he wants to some some of his enormous wealth to buy the Red Devils - a remarkable decision to thrust himself into the limelight for a man who has given just a handful of media interviews in his lifetime.

But just who is Ortega, and how did he become rich enough to compete with the likes of Apple and Sir Jim Ratcliffe for the right to buy Manchester United? Here, we answer some of those questions.

Who is Amancio Ortega?

Amancio Ortega Gaona was born on March 28 1936, as the youngest of four children. He started working for a shirtmaker at the age of 14, where he learnt to make clothes by hand, and also worked as a delivery boy.

His life in the world of fashion quickly focused on two core principles - customer preference and speed. He first applied this approach to Confecciones Goa (his initials backwards), a bathrobe business in 1963. This was the company that eventually turned into Inditex, one of the biggest names in global fashion, which also runs Bershka and Stradivarius.

With his first wife Rosalia Mera, they opened their first Zara store in 1975, which allowed them to sell directly to consumers.

Armancio and Rosalia married in 1966, and divorced two decades later. Their daughter Sandra Ortega Mera is now the chairwoman of Zara, the most-recognisable of Inditex's brands. Rosalia died in 2013 at the age of 69.

There is limited information on Ortega as he prefers to keep a low-profile. There was no photograph of him published until the year 2000, and he had only given three interviews to media journalists up until 2012.

He has a huge real estate catalogue across Europe and the USA, but it was reported that he spent most of his time with his second wife Flora Perez Marcote in an apartment in A Coruna, Spain, where he has lived since he was a teenager.

What is his interest in football?

He is a huge fan of his hometown club Deportivo La Coruna, and some stories have even claimed he owned them, something which does not appear to be supported by evidence.

He can often be seen in the stands of their Riazor stadium as a fan - and it was claimed he delayed his daughter's expensive wedding to see them play.

The club had several seasons in the Champions League earlier in the 2000s - playing Manchester United on six occasions - but have since slipped to the third tier of Spanish football.

Who is rivalling him to buy Manchester United?

Apple have said that they are interested in buying the club, in what would be a deal above $5million.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has also thrown his name into the ring to buy Manchester United, after years of speculation that he might be tempted to make an offer. His team have said in recent times that they are focusing on his current teams, Nice in France, and Lausanne in Switzerland.

Qatar World Cup ambassador David Beckham has also stated he would be interested in being involved in a potential takeover bid for his former club.

Dubai are also thought to be interested, while Elon Musk has previously joked that he would be interested in buying Manchester United, according to Sportsmail's previous list of potential buyers who have emerged amid news that the Glazers are considering selling Manchester United after 17 years in charge.