with Ferguson for his reorganisation of the squad. The decision by Edwards to remain loyal to Ferguson paid off in 1989–90 as United lifted the FA Cup to end their five-year wait for a major trophy. A year later, United won the European Cup Winners' Cup. 1992 saw United win their first-ever League Cup, and a year later they ended their 26-year wait for the league title when crowned champions of the inaugural Premier League. The double followed a year later. 1994–95 was a relative disappointment for Edwards and indeed everyone else connected to United as they were pipped to both the league title and the FA Cup and left without a trophy, but United bounced back the following year to win a unique second double. By this stage, Edwards had been able to raise the funds for United to break the national transfer record on two occasions in the space of 18 months – the £3.75 million move for Roy Keane in the 1993 close season, and the £6 million move for Andrew Cole in January 1995. The success continued for the rest of the decade with another league title in 1997 and a unique league title/FA Cup/UEFA Champions League treble in 1999. By the end of the decade, Edwards had made available the cash for United to buy the first two eight-figure signings of their history – defender Jaap Stam and striker Dwight Yorke. In the 1998–99 he had accepted a £623 million bid from BSkyB to take over Manchester United, but the takeover was cancelled after the Monopolies and Mergers Commission blocked it. The Irish duo J. P. McManus and John Magnier also built a significant stake in the club. However, the club continued to have unprecedented success on the football pitch despite an uneasy relationship between manager Alex Ferguson and Martin Edwards. The success continued into the 21st century, as United retained the Premier League title in 2000 with a record 18-point margin and gained their third successive title the following year. Edwards enabled United to break the national transfer record twice in 2001 when they signed Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy and Argentine midfielder Juan Sebastián Verón, but he was forced to resign as chairman in November 2002, after allegations of using a prostitute on an official club business trip to Switzerland. Despite this, he continued to represent the club at FA and UEFA meetings.