There’s a new superpower in town
After a protracted saga, Newcastle United have gone from Magpies to Swag-pies as their £300 million ($408m) takeover by a Saudi Arabian-led consortium has put an end to Mike Ashley’s much-derided, 14-year period as the club’s owner.
For the majority of Toon fans, it’s amazing news. Millions will be poured into first getting the team out of the relegation zone, with the inevitable splashing of cash set to begin in the January transfer window.
Steve Bruce will be replaced with a much more high-profile manager, training facilities will be massively improved and the youth academy will be provided with everything they need to ensure they are producing the best possible next generation of talents.
Then there’s the city itself. St James’ Park is located centrally within Newcastle – a rarity for football stadiums – and developments in the surrounding area will bring jobs and a general boost to the city’s economy.
The takeover, however, is not without controversy.
The Premier League insists the Public Investment Fund (PIF) that now holds an 80 per cent controlling stake in the club is entirely separate from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia itself, despite Mohammed bin Salman (known as MBS), the country’s Crown Prince, serving as PIF’s chairman.
State-backed takeovers of clubs are nothing new, of course, but those speaking out against the deal are calling it an exercise in ‘sportswashing’, a practice in which the mega-rich try to improve their country’s global image by investing in sports teams.
Saudi Arabia, for example, ranks 170th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index, meaning there is virtually no freedom of speech in the country to oppose the views of its leaders.
Additionally, Amnesty International has said that the Arab kingdom is trying to “sportswash their appalling human rights record with the glamour of top-flight football”.
Where things get even more controversial is the murder of Saudi-born journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a vocal critic of his country’s regime who had been in self-imposed exile before his death in an Istanbul consulate in October 2018.
Saudi officials insist that MBS had no involvement in the killing of Khashoggi (something the CIA say they doubt), but said that “rogue agents” must have “premeditated their crime”.
Speaking after the takeover, Khashoggi’s fiancée, Turkish national Hatice Cengiz, told Sky News of Bin Salman’s Public Investment Fund: “It doesn’t make sense because everyone knows the government [in Saudi Arabia] controls everything.
“The current Saudi regime has a Crown Prince who is managing everything in the country. The point is this: how do the players, the fans and the director of Newcastle accept this situation?”
“I guess money is more important than anything in this life.”
▪︎ Report by Goal.com newsletter