The owner of the Daily Mail has entered exclusive talks to acquire The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph in a landmark £500 million deal, potentially concluding a protracted two-year struggle for control of the esteemed broadsheet titles.
Exclusive Negotiations Commence
DMGT (Daily Mail and General Trust) confirmed the exclusive negotiations on Saturday, 22nd November 2025, following an initial report by Sky News. This development comes less than a fortnight after a previous sale agreement to a consortium led by RedBird Capital Partners unravelled.
The parent company stated that this exclusivity period would be used to finalise the transaction's terms and prepare the necessary submissions for regulatory bodies. A deal of this magnitude, which would combine two of Britain's most influential national newspaper groups, is expected to face rigorous examination from the Competition and Markets Authority. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy is also anticipated to play a key role in the approval process.
A Tumultuous Two-Year Sale Process
The path to this point has been far from straightforward. The collapse of the RedBird-led deal was precipitated by internal opposition from within The Telegraph's newsroom. Concerns were reportedly centred on the alleged links between the consortium's chairman, John Thornton, and influential Chinese state actors.
This was not the first failed attempt to secure the titles. An earlier proposal involving a consortium of RedBird and the Abu Dhabi state-owned investment fund, IMI, also fell apart. That deal collapsed after the UK government moved to change the law regarding foreign state ownership of national newspapers. IMI was slated to take a 15% stake, the maximum permitted under the proposed structure.
Lord Rothermere, the controlling shareholder of DMGT, had initially intended to acquire a minority stake of just under 10% in The Telegraph as part of the RedBird consortium. The new, direct negotiations mark a significant shift in his strategy.
Vision for a Global Media Brand
Expressing his admiration for the publication, Lord Rothermere stated, "I have long admired the Daily Telegraph. My family and I have an enduring love of newspapers and for the journalists who make them." He described the title as Britain's largest and highest-quality broadsheet, pledging to provide editor Chris Evans with the resources needed to invest in the newsroom.
The strategic vision for The Telegraph under DMGT ownership is clear: international expansion. The company plans to "invest substantially in Telegraph Media Group (TMG) with the aim of accelerating its international expansion," with a particular focus on the United States. This mirrors the successful overseas growth of the Daily Mail, which has established editorial and commercial operations there.
A spokesman for RedBird IMI commented on the new development, saying, "DMGT and RedBird IMI have worked swiftly to reach the agreement announced today, which will shortly be submitted to the Secretary of State."
If the acquisition is finalised, The Telegraph newspapers would join a stable of DMGT-owned media brands that includes Metro, The i Paper, and New Scientist, creating one of the most powerful print and digital media portfolios in the UK.
